Santa-inspired beer latest booze to be banned by Ontario liquor commission
Yet another alcoholic beverage has been banned in Ontario for its apparent appeal to youngsters. This time, it’s an Austrian beer called Samichlaus, which means St. Nicholas in Swiss-German. Like Dan Aykroyd’s Crystal Head Vodka and a string of other alcoholic beverages, Samichlaus was found to have breached advertising guidelines that prevent liquor packaging aimed at children. We would take this as a sign that anyone planning to sell alcohol in Ontario probably shouldn’t make their packaging look cool, but Samichlaus is actually pretty boring. The portrait of St. Nicholas looks less like a benevolent gift-bearer and more like the Player’s cigarette guy .
While even Aykroyd sympathized with the rationale behind the banning of his vodka in Ontario, the last time we checked the people who cared most about Santa Claus were toddlers—likely not consumers with a palate for the self-proclaimed “strongest lager beer in the world” (it clocks in at a potent 14 per cent). Besides, the six-year-old market has already been taken up by Hobgoblin, readily available at the LCBO.
• ‘Santa’ beer on Ontario’s naughty list [National Post]
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Yet another alcoholic beverage has been banned in Ontario for its apparent appeal to youngsters. This time, it’s an Austrian beer called Samichlaus, which means St. Nicholas in Swiss-German. Like Dan Aykroyd’s Crystal Head Vodka and a string of other alcoholic beverages, Samichlaus was found to have breached advertising guidelines that prevent liquor packaging aimed at children. We would take this as a sign that anyone planning to sell alcohol in Ontario probably shouldn’t make their packaging look cool, but Samichlaus is actually pretty boring. The portrait of St. Nicholas looks less like a benevolent gift-bearer and more like the Player's cigarette guy .
While even Aykroyd sympathized with the rationale behind the banning of his vodka in Ontario, the last time we checked the people who cared most about Santa Claus were toddlers—likely not consumers with a palate for the self-proclaimed “strongest lager beer in the world” (it clocks in at a potent 14 per cent). Besides, the six-year-old market has already been taken up by Hobgoblin, readily available at the LCBO.
• 'Santa' beer on Ontario's naughty list [National Post]){kind=link}
The LCBO are morons. This is an old classic beer. Stay off the crack, LCBO. Or grow up.
Yet another reason we don’t need the LCBO….this Provincial Gov’t supported rip-off steals from the middle-class and gives to the to the overpaid management,double-dippers and politicians….all in the name of ‘Social Responsibility’ – I guess too many stupid people in this province that need to be governed by McGuinty’s merry band of idiots!
SHAME! SHAME! SHAME!
How imbecilic can you get? I can see it now…thousands of thirsty 6 year olds abandoning their cravings for chocolate milk and mysteriously finding themselves drawn to local beer stores begging to have 14% alcohol beer instead…because it’s got a 20 year old picture of Santa Claus on it. Yeah really big risk! Goodness me, can’t we get our frickin priorities straight in this province!
Time for the LCBO to get some competition and open up alcohol sales to the Supermarkets. It would be simple to police by only having designated checkouts for sales and staffed by somebody over 18.
LCBO is out of touch with reality. Whoever at LCBO make those decision need to get a life.
I thought the whole point of the LCBO is that it’s good at carding minors. Are they now admitting they can’t keep children from buying beer? The whole thing is absurd.
The people who decide what goes on LCBO shelves are utter imbeciles. They went through a whole ordeal last year over a Flying Monkeys Brewerry beer called “Smashbomb IPA”. They banned it from the LCBO and their reasoning was “the title of this beer is inappropriate at a time when real bombs are falling on both Iraq and Afghanistan”. It was so absurd my brain nearly exploded. I wrote the person in charge of making these decisions, who I believe is Jack Laytons son, and pointed out various products already stocked at the LCBO such as Unibroue’s Trois Pistoles (Three Pistols), La Fin Du Monde (The End OF The World) and “Sexy” brand rose. I received no response.
These same idiots have also raised the prices of single malt scotch whiskies by over $30 in recent months for no apparent reason. They could have obtained twice the amount of taxes by just raising the price of Jim Beam by two dollars. The move basically gives a break to young college kids who are buying alcohol to get drunk, and punishes whisky hobbyists who purchase single malts to enjoy in moderation in a snifter or glencairn, over many months.
These people should be fired, and alcohol should be allowed to be sold in privately owned stores, so Ontario citizens can enjoy a wider selection of choices, instead of submitting to whatever the LCBO has to offer.