LCBO confirms Ontarians will have to shell out a little extra for certain beers and spirits
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.
The CBC outlined the minimum price increases:
Wines won’t be affected because none of its wines are sold at the minimum price, said LCBO spokesman Chris Layton.
About 10 per cent of spirits sold by the LCBO and three to four per cent of beers will see their prices go up.
A 24-bottle case of the cheapest beer will go up by 55 cents, from $28.80 to $29.35. A 750 mL bottle of a mainstream spirit will go up by 50 cents to $23.90.
Okay, they’re not exactly the hugest of hikes. Still, they were enough to set off NDP leader Andrea Horwath, who argued that consumers are “being nickel and dimed.” If she’s right and the motive behind the increases is to raise revenues rather than moderate drinking, well, forgive us for pointing out that auditor general Jim McCarter just explained how to do that without taking it out on the consumer.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/food/lcbo-prices-to-rise/&title=LCBO confirms Ontarians will have to shell out a little extra for certain beers and spirits&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/pbr.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_112332" align="alignleft" width="320" caption="Get ready to pay more for your PBR (Image: rob_rob2001)"][/caption]
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.
The CBC outlined the minimum price increases:
Wines won’t be affected because none of its wines are sold at the minimum price, said LCBO spokesman Chris Layton.
About 10 per cent of spirits sold by the LCBO and three to four per cent of beers will see their prices go up.
A 24-bottle case of the cheapest beer will go up by 55 cents, from $28.80 to $29.35. A 750 mL bottle of a mainstream spirit will go up by 50 cents to $23.90.
Okay, they’re not exactly the hugest of hikes. Still, they were enough to set off NDP leader Andrea Horwath, who argued that consumers are “being nickel and dimed.” If she’s right and the motive behind the increases is to raise revenues rather than moderate drinking, well, forgive us for pointing out that auditor general Jim McCarter just explained how to do that without taking it out on the consumer.
• Minimum prices for liquor sold in Ontario going up [CBC]){kind=link}
Thank god, maybe now I will be able to find decent beer at a concert.
So.. let’s do the math. The price of beer is going up from $1.20 a bottle to about $1.22 a bottle. That means that if you drank 500 bottles of beer a year, this just cost you ten dollars.
Uh… Yeah, that’s sure highway robbery. I am outraged. Just so angry that there are now flames spouting from my head.
It’s not the money, it’s the way we Ontarions let ourselves be led around like a bunch of fucking sheep, that we are. I like LE FIN DO MONDE (a great bear, brewed in Canada). And it’s especially good in the 750 mm. I can only buy it in the 375 mm at the Brewers, but I can go to fucking Wegman’s (a grocery store) in Niagara Falls, NY and buy it in the 750 mm. Does that make any sense????
i’m w. you scott. sheep we are, sheep we will remain.
if the lcbo did not spend so much on marketing the thing we don’t need to be sold….maybe the price of a decent bottle of wine could remain consistent for 12 months.
nickel and dimed, indeed.
whats shrinkage at the lcbo anyway?