NiagaraThisWeek.com has published a by Steve Kocsis, owner of of Beamsville, Ontario.
He makes the case for allowing grape growers to be granted licenses to operate wine stores in urban Ontario. Each 20 acres would lead to one wine license. My favorite lines are:
Customers could be given broader choice, better service and greater convenience. The LCBO would have to lose its arrogance and sense of entitlement. Let them prove they are entitled to their Sunshine Law salaries by competing to serve their customers and dealing fairly with their suppliers.
Any improvement in access to our own markets would be welcome. Land-based licenses would be a full loaf. A loaf of bread and a glass of wine shared with our fellow Ontarians would be poetry.
Anything would be better than the crumbs we are being left as we watch foreign conglomerates and local bureaucracies eating our lunch, the lunch we work years and generations to earn, but somehow we do not get to enjoy.”
That pretty well sums up the plight of the small to medium size winery in Ontario. Mr Kocsis should be congratulated on his courage. Speaking up against the only seller of your product, the LCBO monopoly, is a risky thing to do.
The only thing I disagree with Mr Kocsis on is his prescription. Instead of allowing just Ontario grape growers the right to sell wine, everyone should be granted that right, including wineries, grocery stores, corner stores, and private citizens with a love of the product. The more open and free things are, the better the result.
