Loading ...The Beer Store and its claim to be “The Ultimate Source for Beer in Ontario” is one of the most ridiculous statements imaginable. Refuting this claim is not a difficult task, but it is a lengthy one. Hence, this post is entitled “Part One”, and will be an ongoing series looking at The Beer Store and how they are one of the primary reasons that our beer retail system lives in the dark ages.
One of my many pet peeves with beer retailing in Ontario is the almost complete lack of beer-related merchandise sales. Individual microbreweries in Ontario do a good job of selling extra goodies – glassware, signs, openers, coasters, etc. But try to find your favourite foreign brewer’s branded glass and you will be out of luck. With the exception of the LCBO’s gift packs during the holiday season, it is virtually impossible to find merchandise from brewers, especially at “The Ultimate Source for Beer”.
The Beer Store has a section of their web site dedicated to “Beer Gear”. Keep in mind no sales are through their site, just listing what you could get in store, pending availability (there are no stock listings either).
Under the Glassware section, there are precisely two branded glasses available for purchase: pint glasses branded Molson Canadian or Budweiser. That’s it. You can get them with coasters, a bucket or just by themselves. This is what represents the glassware offerings from “The Ultimate Source for Beer”.
Suffice it to say, this is completely pathetic. Glassware is one of the many important facets to enjoying beer. Anyone who has been to Belgium will understand how important the glass is to a beer experience. Not only does branded merchandise such as glasses provide a nice collectible for beer lovers, it provides revenue to small brewers to help their business. But in Ontario, our beer retail system holds back even this. It’s not just our beer that needs to be freed. Glasses, too.
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7 responses so far ↓
1 Chris Storey // Oct 20, 2008 at 8:10 am
Great web-site. It’s about time people from Ontario get off their high horse and admit that our beer distribution systems sucks. You don’t have to go far to see how a real province does it – Quebec!!! They do it right. Great beer at great prices available everywhere. I haven’t gone to the Beer Store in two years, ever since they changed their stores from self serve to ” Buy The Big Three “. If you want to buy a real beer, just go to the ” Wall ” and take a look at the small pictures of your favourtite beer. Remember to bring your glasses. What a crappy way to buy beer. If you do decide to buy ” Bud ” , you can pick it up yourself and kick it across the floor when there is a line up. Reminds me of those old “Russian Bread Lines”. Pathetic.
2 Lager Bore // Oct 20, 2008 at 9:35 am
Yeah, but you can get Bud in ninety different “pack sizes”! True innovation!
3 Navvy // Oct 20, 2008 at 10:44 am
Good to see new posts on here! I haven’t even considered the BS for my beverages lately, the LCBO is a no-brainer.
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