Category: The Politics of Drinking

Big Rock SAAZ Republic Pilz is coming to Ontario

Posted on by Ben

*an earlier, stupid version of this post was written as though SAAZ Republic Pilz was Big Rock’s first foray into Ontario. As Toronto Star Beer Columnist Josh Rubin helpfully pointed out, Big Rock beers have actually been here for about 20 years. This post has been revised to reflect the fact that this Big Rock Brewery is indeed the same Big Rock Brewery that currently has Big Rock Grasshoppper Wheat Ale, Big Rock India Pale, Big Rock Light Lime, Big Rock Traditional Ale, and Big Rock Warthog Ale all listed at The Beer Store. Yes, the entire conceit of this post–which was intended to be a transcript of my initial thoughts on the news–has essentially been destroyed, but I’m going to try to salvage the thing anyway because I don’t have time to rewrite it and oh great the baby’s crying I have to go. 

Saaz PPilsner

A couple weeks ago, the interwebs were all a-twitter with news that one of Canada’s oldest craft breweries–Calgary’s Big Rock Brewery–was bringing some new beer to Ontario.

The obligatory press release explained that the first of a series of new beer releases here would be SAAZ Republic Pilz, a pilsner with “a distinct but mild bitterness on the front end followed by a slight hop middle and a clean, refreshing finish.” It also explained that this release represented the first of of a total of three new beers slated for release in Ontario.

I don’t really know how I feel about this release, so, in order to convey my thoughts on the news, I’ve attempted to transcribe the conversation that occurred between the conflicting optimistic and typically dominant cynical voices in my own brain whilst drinking one last week.

Continue reading “Big Rock SAAZ Republic Pilz is coming to Ontario” →

Excuses I’ve heard for purchased tap lines

Posted on by Ben

Taps for sale

Please forgive me while I drag this dead horse out of the stable so that I might beat it once more, but did you know that the practice of purchasing draught lines in bars is illegal?

Obviously you do know that, because you read my blog and are therefore brilliant, well-informed about beer, socially conscious, and, one can assume, extremely attractive physically. But if for some reason you were out of town or asleep when I wrote about the subject for Torontoist back in January, allow me to sum up the issue in a single sentence: The practice of paying a licensed establishment or providing that establishment incentives in order to guarantee a brewery’s exclusivity in that licensed establishment is illegal under the province’s liquor legislation, and yet it still happens all the time. 

And, as I discovered while writing that article and have confirmed in the time that’s passed since I wrote said article, bar owners and big breweries are typically wholly aware this practice is illegal, but, to put it bluntly, don’t give a shit. Continue reading “Excuses I’ve heard for purchased tap lines” →

Allowing booze sales in convenience stores is a dumb idea

Posted on by Ben

Convenient Beer

Clearly, I’m among those who feel that the province’s beverage alcohol retail system needs modernizing.

I think most would agree I’ve been pretty vocal on that subject in the past.

You’d think then, that I’d be on board with recent initiatives from the Ontario Convenience Stores Association (OCSA) to lobby the province to let them sell booze.

Well I’m definitely not. Booze in convenience stores is a dumb idea.

In fact, allowing convenience stores to sell alcohol will simply give us more of the same shitty system we already have, just in more locations. And more of the same isn’t better, it’s worse. Continue reading “Allowing booze sales in convenience stores is a dumb idea” →

Budweiser Crown: So how’s the beer?

Posted on by Ben

Budweiser Crown

As you’ve probably noticed, Budweiser is currently undertaking a fairly aggressive ad campaign to get the word out about their new product, Budweiser Crown–which, for some reason is called Budweiser Black Crown in the US. Part of that advertising and marketing campaign involved getting some beers (along with a bitching wooden box, a glass, and some malt) out to beer writers. Accordingly, last night, once again, I found myself drinking Budweiser.

Now, if you read my beer ranting with any sort of frequency, you’ll know I tend to view things through a very micro- vs. macrobrewer lens and that I typically see most things that big brewers do as a soulless, robotic, money-fueled machine’s attempt to destroy all that is good and pure in the world of beer. Continue reading “Budweiser Crown: So how’s the beer?” →

UPDATE: Please revisit the issue of retail alcohol sales: An open letter to Ontario’s Minister of Finance

Posted on by Ben

I originally published this letter to The Honourable Charles Sousa, Ontario’s Minister of Finance, on July 23, 2013. A few days ago, I received the Minister of Finance’s response and have amended the post to include the minister’s letter (and my brief analysis). 

July 17, 2013

The Honourable Charles Sousa
Minister of Finance
c/o Advisory Services and Program Policy Branch
33 King Street West
3rd Floor
Oshawa, Ontario
L1H 8H5

Dear Minister Sousa:

My name is Ben Johnson and in what little spare time I still have, I write about beer, alcohol, and food for a handful of Toronto-based websites. As you might imagine, during my frequent research and discussions dealing with the subject of alcohol consumption in Ontario, the topic of the LCBO and the prospect of privatization—or any other notable change to our retail alcohol system—arises with some frequency.

I write today because I know that you recently indicated that you wouldn’t rule out the idea of selling the LCBO. Specifically, according to a June 26, 2013 Canadian Press article, you commented:

It’s prudent for us to always view opportunities should they be of net benefit to the province [. . .]. We’ll look at what’s going to be in the best interests to the people of Ontario and to the province.

And while I can appreciate that this comment essentially just means you’re keeping your options open, I’m wondering if there are any actual future plans to “view opportunities.” Continue reading “UPDATE: Please revisit the issue of retail alcohol sales: An open letter to Ontario’s Minister of Finance” →

Same shit, different pile: A wholly objective look at The Beer Store’s makeover

Posted on by Ben

TBS

Yesterday, the Beer Store issued a press release announcing the launch of a new “pilot series” of stores with the idea of inviting Ontarians to “meet beer.”

At a glance then, it would seem that the Beer Store had recognized that their sales model needed revision–one of the criticisms of the Beer Store is that their system of a conveyor belt and wall of labels didn’t lend itself well to introducing consumers to new products, so a re-visioning that literally invited consumers to meet beer must surely mean the Beer Store is listening to our criticisms! Right?! Continue reading “Same shit, different pile: A wholly objective look at The Beer Store’s makeover” →

Some perspective on the Ontario Brewing Awards

Posted on by Ben

photo (9)

It is not my intention to diminish the achievements of those who won awards at last night’s Ontario Brewing Awards; however, I feel I am about to do just that.

You see, while the awards are a great time and an important event for the province’s thriving beer brewing industry, I feel that is important to remember that these awards don’t really mean all that much.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s great that the industry has this means of providing recognition, however, let’s take a look at what’s really going on here. Firstly, in order to be considered, a brewer pays $75 to enter their beer in a given category. There’s nothing wrong with entering your beer in a contest and nothing wrong with organizers of said contest asking for a little scratch to help cover administration costs (i.e. bottle openers, hulking gold statuettes)–but let’s consider that an award billing itself as “The Ontario Brewing Awards” isn’t actually necessarily representing the best beer in the province, it’s actually representing the best of a handful of beers which brewers have asked to be judged, please. Continue reading “Some perspective on the Ontario Brewing Awards” →

Drifting into the argument like wild yeast…

Posted on by Ben

Opinions in Ontario brewing are a lot like assholes and IPAs: These days, everyone has one.

There seems to be a lot of beer writing occurring as of late on the subject of beer writing itself—so I thought I too would jump on the masturbatory, navel-gazing bandwagon and offer my two cents and pretend that this little space I’ve carved out on the internets has any sort of influence at all.

The “conversation” largely began on the prolific and insightful “A Good Beer Blog.” Author Alan McLeod had offered up his opinion (as beer writers are wont to do) on an interesting little project being conducted by a co-operative of Ontario brewers who, in a nutshell, are attempting to brew beer adhering to ancient Belgian techniques that will, hopefully, see the beer fermented by wild indigenous yeasts the Brewers are hoping will drift into the open brewing vessels.

This is a broadly simplified explanation, and many other media outlets have done a much more detailed job, so feel free to seek them out if you want more information on the project (though be forewarned, none of them seem to answer my first question about the whole process, namely, won’t birds poop in the beer?!). Continue reading “Drifting into the argument like wild yeast…” →

Whisky Police

Posted on by Ben

Back in May, in a post titled, “How Canadian is Your Canadian Whisky?” I introduced you not only to Barry and Barry of Still Waters Distillery, but also to some of our province’s and our country’s liquor laws.

In particular, you may recall that Barry and Barry started distilling their award-winning vodka only as a means to raise a little capital while they waited for their whiskies to age, owing to the fact that Canadian laws dictate that whisky in this country needs to be aged at least three years.

Well shortly after writing that article, Continue reading “Whisky Police” →

How Canadian is Your Canadian Whisky?

Posted on by Ben

It turns out that the bottle of “Canadian Whisky” you’ve got on the shelf of your bar isn’t really all that Canadian after all.

This weekend I visited Still Waters Distillery in Concord, Ontario, in order to do a little profile of their business for blogTO. In addition to learning a thing or two about how vodka and whisky are made (not to mention trying a few samples), I also learned a little bit about the whisky business here in Canada.

Perhaps not so surprisingly, it’s a bit of a tough go.

Still Waters, it turns out, is virtually the only micro-distillery operating in Ontario; and really, there are only a handful of micro or craft distillers in the whole country. Much like the handful of Ontario craft brewers I’ve come to know in my time writing about beer, Barry Bernstein and Barry Stein, the co-founders of Still Waters, face an uphill battle when it comes to trying to get their products out to the people who drink them. Indeed, given that the craft beer community is so collaborative and supportive, Still Waters arguably faces an even tougher battle given that they’re essentially the only little guys out there right now, so they’re trying to do it on their own. Continue reading “How Canadian is Your Canadian Whisky?” →