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The latest buzz on restaurants, chefs, bars, food shops and food events. Sign up for the Dish newsletter for weekly updates. Send tips to thedish@torontolife.com

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February 14, 2012 | 2:53 pm

Tired of the Beer Store’s conveyor belt? Queen’s Park is reexamining its liquor laws (but don’t get your hopes up yet)

(Image: Ken Lund)

When stringent regulations (almost) prevent a small brewery from working with a charity for homeless kids, well maybe it’s a good time to reevaluate some of your policies. Back in December, the province’s Alcohol and Gaming Commission made a decision to, as the Globe and Mail puts it, “block a tiny eastern Ontario brewery from offering home delivery of its beer in conjunction with a prominent Ottawa charity for homeless teens” (that brewery would be Beau’s). The decision was luckily reversed due to a last minute intervention from the not inappositely named Liberal MPP Grant Crack. This legislative session, the province will be looking a little more closely at its liquor laws, which comes as welcome news at a time when the three large breweries that own The Beer Store pretty much control where you buy your brew, how much it costs and how crappy your shopping experience will be (this might explain why the LCBO is eating its lunch). As the Globe’s Barrie McKenna explained on the weekend, The Beer Store’s bare utilitarian setup means more profit for Molson Coors, Labatt (a.k.a. Anheuser-Busch InBev) and Sleeman (a.k.a. Sapporo). Unfortunately, it also means you have to pick your beer up off a rattling conveyor belt. McKenna says the McGuinty government shows no sign of toppling the Beer Store’s monopoly any time soon, but you can’t blame us for dreaming a little. Read the entire story [Globe and Mail] »

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February 10, 2012 | 12:50 pm
U.S. native tribe accuses big beer companies of bootlegging 

Either a town of 11 people is drinking 13,000 cans of beer a day, or brewers are looking the other way as their product is bootlegged onto a First Nations reserve. If you’d like to give the good folks at Molson Coors and Anheuser-Busch the benefit of the doubt, it’s the 11 residents of Whiteclay, Nebraska, who have been downing all that booze. But a lawsuit by the Oglala Sioux tribe is alleging that the brewers have been deliberately selling beer in the tiny town’s grocery stores despite a ban on alcohol in their nearby reservation. And rather than assume the thirsty Whiteclay residents consumed nearly five million cans of beer in 2010, it seems plausible, as the president of one social organization said, that the brew is being bootlegged on their reservation—a place with a history of alcoholism. The brewers haven’t yet responded, but it will be interesting to hear their explanation of how such a small group of people could supposedly soak up so much beer. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »

Bottoms Up

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February 10, 2012 | 9:38 am

POLL: How much should you tip for fancy, pricy cocktails?

He shakes hard for your money (Image: CharlieTPhotographic)

Over at the advice section of the New York Times Dining Journal, Florence Fabricant writes:

The dollar per drink you might tip for some “well” alcohol on the rocks is not adequate these days for that Cucumber Basil Crush. Mixologists are becoming chefs and take special care in how their drinks are assembled and served. And for that reason, I’d tip $2.50 to $3 on a $14 cocktail — even if the bartender isn’t a great conversationalist.

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February 6, 2012 | 11:13 am

Queen West’s Brooklynn is all boarded up—because it’s expanding

(Image: Fraser Abe)

Dish readers gazing out the windows of their westbound 501 streetcar might have noticed the recent boards covering the entrance to Brooklynn at Queen and Northcote. No, the bar, co-owned by Zak Kellar and Ryan Boudah (and definitely not named after hipster ground zero), isn’t shuttering forever—in fact, it’s expanding. We spoke with Kellar, who told us that when the neighbouring Dufferin-Queen Animal Clinic moved across the street, the building’s landlord offered them the opportunity to grow. The place will now house a small art gallery, mostly featuring the work of their friend Krista MacFarlane, and the capacity will increase from slightly over 100 people to slightly over 200. So in case you ever felt there weren’t enough places on Queen West to get sloppily drunk before taking in a little art, your prayers will be answered. The renovated space is expected to open by this weekend.

Bottoms Up

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February 3, 2012 | 3:36 pm

Demand for fancy cocktail ice spurs Chilean man to steal five tonnes’ worth—from a glacier

Nothing like an old-fashioned on the glacial rocks

Seizing on a new and unique way to sucker people into paying exorbitant prices for water-based products, a man in Chile chipped five tonnes of ice from a glacier in Patagonia, which he allegedly planned to sell as “designer ice cubes.” The Guardian reports that cops busted the man as he was driving a refrigerated truck with about $6,200 worth of illicit ice that would have wound up in fancy cocktails in Santiago, Chile. The ice, by the way, was taken from Jorge Montt, which ranks among the world’s most rapidly shrinking glaciers—it’s retreating at a rate of half a mile per year, according to the Guardian. In addition to making us not want to live on this planet anymore, this story leaves many lingering questions. Is glacier theft the next big bartending trend? What other landmarks might we desecrate in the name of a perfectly chilled old-fashioned? Could the Leafs raise some extra cash by selling cubes of centre ice? Read the entire story [The Guardian] »

(Images: cocktail, thebittenword.com; glacier, Luis Argerich)

Bottoms Up

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January 30, 2012 | 3:15 pm
Toronto man (allegedly) gets rich selling booze to fake diplomats 

If recent reports are to be believed, the glamorous, booze-soaked life of an official diplomat can only be outshone by the glamorous life of an LCBO employee. Francois Agostini, along with the help of a part-time waitress, allegedly stole more than a million dollars from the LCBO—and he did it by exploiting a program he oversaw for the liquor board that provides booze to diplomats without tax or duty at a savings of up to 40 per cent (who knew?). Over the course of six years, Agostini allegedly conjured fake sales to fake diplomats. An LCBO affidavit says that “approximately $1.6 million worth of product was shipped to the Toronto warehouse…but the proceeds were not remitted.” That product, according to the board, was then sold out of the back of a truck in Stouffville. The LCBO says they’ve fired Agostini and made drastic changes to the diplomat program to prevent future scams. Meanwhile, we’re sure some booze-swilling attachés are more than a little sore at Agostini for blowing their cover. Read the entire story [Global]  »

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January 23, 2012 | 4:39 pm
LCBO under fire—once again—from the Star’s Martin Regg Cohn 

Remind us never to get in Martin Regg Cohn’s bad books: this weekend, the Toronto Star columnist followed up his recent screed against the LCBO’s pricing policy with a second rant against the board’s business practices. This time, Cohn took the LCBO to task for selling a covetable Lafite Rothschild 2009 at about 30 per cent below international market price. During the run on the Bordeaux that predictably followed, LCBO stores gave preference to longtime customers, which Cohn interpreted as allowing fancy wine-investor types to profit from a tidy bit of arbitrage. Cohn also argued that the LCBO should stop awarding Air Miles because the program is expensive, encourages alcohol consumption and is pretty much unnecessary for the provincial liquor monopoly anyway, since it’s usually used to distinguish a retailer from its competitors. The man’s got a point, but we’d sure miss those reward miles. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »

Bottoms Up

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January 16, 2012 | 3:37 pm

LCBO confirms Ontarians will have to shell out a little extra for certain beers and spirits

Get ready to pay more for your PBR (Image: rob_rob2001)

Sure, we understand that the Liquor Control Board of Ontario sets minimum prices on booze as part of its mandate to promote social responsibility (translation: to stop us from drinking so much that we forget where we live). But sometimes it’s possible to get a little tired of all the tough love. Late last week, mean mommy the provincial liquor monopoly announced it would raise the price of some beer and spirits starting March 1.

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January 11, 2012 | 5:10 pm
2011’s holiday rush propels LCBO to a record year (no thanks to its purchasing policy) 

It turns out all that spiked eggnog and mulled wine really adds up—during the holiday rush, Ontarians dropped $51 million at LCBO stores, helping the provincial liquor monopoly finish the year with a record $4.6 billion in net sales, according to a seething column by the Toronto Star’s Martin Regg Cohn. That boils down to $1.56 billion for provincial coffers, which sounds just peachy. Well, until you remember that the province could have netted a whole lot more were it not for the LCBO’s insane idiosyncratic purchasing policy, whereby it actually asks some suppliers to raise their wholesale prices to match the desired retail price. We humbly submit a New Year’s resolution for the LCBO: work on the bargain hunting. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »

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January 4, 2012 | 9:11 am

Still Waters now selling small-batch vodka out of its Concord distillery (with whisky on the way in a few years)

(Images: Still Waters Distillery)

Every now and then, a lovely little crack opens up in Ontario’s booze monopoly: a brewpub here, a wine kiosk inside a grocery store there, the occasional off-site winery boutique. Last month, the GTA gained yet another new venue for hooch hounds hoping to circumvent official channels: Still Waters, a local spirits distillery in Concord that makes and sells its product on-site.

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December 19, 2011 | 4:49 pm

Hoping to attract Bay Street suits, Trump Tower announces new lobby bar named Suits (get it?)

Executives who appreciate the power of a good stiff drink will soon have a new second home in the Trump International Tower: the “elegant,” “dynamic” and yes, even “bespoke” Suits Lobby Lounge. The venue, which is described in a press release as a “sophisticated and welcoming destination for those après work or as an appetizer to the evening ahead,” will be opening alongside Stock restaurant and the rest of the hotel on January 31, 2012. Master sommelier John Szabo and the mixology team are promising a roster of “exceptional libations,” including a selection of super-luxe international labels—indeed, several wines, as well as a touted cherry blossom-infused vodka, will be unique to the Trump. For those who prefer their drinks standard luxe, Suits will also offer biodynamically produced wines and local craft beers, plus some antioxidant protein shakes for, say, the corporate brand consultant on the go.

Suits Lobby Lounge, 325 Bay St.

Bottoms Up

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December 13, 2011 | 11:00 am
Miraculously, microbrewery regulations ease up slightly 

While craft beer fans are still lamenting the takeover of the old Duggan’s space by Molson Coors subsidiary Six Pints Specialty Beer Company, there was one good piece of news for the province’s microbreweries last week. Due to some last-minute intervention by Liberal MPP Grant Crack, licensed liquor delivery services (yes, they exist) will now be able to purchase their beer directly from small brewers, not just from the LCBO or the Beer Store. This was all precipitated by the shutdown of the new delivery service run by Beau’s All-Natural on the day it was supposed to open. What’s more, the incident has sparked a 15-month full-scale review of liquor licensing practices in the province. Some items on the craft brewers’s wish lists no doubt include: an all-craft beer retail store, to escape the Beer Store’s stranglehold and the vagaries of LCBO listings; the ability to share trucks between small breweries to save on shipping costs; and easier access to out-of-province markets. Not earth-shaking stuff, perhaps, but when it comes to liquor control in this province, things proceed only by baby steps. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »

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December 12, 2011 | 12:19 pm
Booze Economics 111: restaurateurs don’t have it any easier than the rest of us 

Seems no one likes overpaying for booze. Following last week’s auditor general report, which brought the LCBO’s unusual pricing policies to light, the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association has registered its displeasure, too. In an open letter to Ontario finance minister Dwight Duncan, the CFRA is demanding that restaurant and bar owners be allowed to negotiate wholesale prices with the board. At present, restaurateurs only receive an HST credit, but otherwise pay just as much if not more than consumers would for a given bottle. “We urge you to follow the AG’s lead and undertake a comprehensive review of the antiquated and unfair policies of the LCBO monopoly,” wrote Ron Reaman, vice-president of the Ontario branch. Under the LCBO’s “fixed-pricing” structure, the agency doesn’t haggle with its suppliers, which sometimes means it deliberately pays more than a supplier’s initial offer (confused? See our primer on how it all works). Likewise, it won’t haggle with bulk purchasers, either. For consumers, it’s not much of a choice: overpay at the store or over-overpay at the bar. (In its defense, the agency does claim to offer the lowest retail prices in Canada.) Read the entire story [The Globe and Mail] »

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December 9, 2011 | 5:15 pm

Details emerge on Creemore’s plans for the old Duggan’s building (no, there won’t be a brewpub)

On Tuesday we confirmed a tip that Creemore Springs is moving into the spot on Victoria Street vacated by Duggan’s Brewery last April. Now another tipster has led us to a story in the Creemore Echo with the details. Apparently, the Duggan’s brewing facilities will be kept intact, but won’t be churning out Creemore Springs lager (the formula requires water from Creemore, and it’s a bit of a trek). Instead, it will become an “experimental lab” where test beers for Six Pints Specialty Beer Company—Molson’s craft beer division—will be cooked up and made available to the public.

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Bottoms Up

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December 8, 2011 | 9:20 am

Booze Economics 101: Why the LCBO happily charges more and earns less than it might

(Image: Mike Gifford)

Better grab a bottle of Wild Turkey and sit down before trying to understand this one. In an annual report released on Monday, provincial Auditor General Jim McCarter sank his teeth into a policy that makes the Liquor Control Board of Ontario pay more than it has to for wholesale booze—sometimes even demanding the privilege. You’d imagine the LCBO, as one of the largest purchasers of alcohol in the world, could, if it wanted to, use its clout to get lower wholesale prices, thereby reaping greater profits for provincial coffers or passing those savings on to consumers. Instead, it ascribes to a mystifying stratagem that brought on the Toronto Sun headline “Welcome to Suckerville, Ontario.”

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