LCBO alerts province: people like to drink in good weather

Here’s how busy the bartender at Toronto’s Black Bull Tavern is: When asked if the Queen West establishment has been swamped this summer, he said he was too busy to answer the question and hung up.

Robert Medal, who’s responsible for the city’s two Bier Market locations, took a few moments. Sales have been up about 12 per cent from last summer. Double-digit increases.

LCBO stores are reporting that pretty much everything is selling better than last year, when miserable weather left most of us reaching for a mug of hot cocoa and a warm blanket (instead of a chilled glass of pinot). In particular, LCBO spokesperson Chris Layton says that white wine, coolers and prefab mixed drinks have all been selling better than expected. One sign of the spike is that people are grabbing a cold one to relax in the warm weather: single-can beer sales are up a gut-building 46 per cent relative to last year.

Part of this is a long-term trend: although Canadians seem to be gobbling down wine more than beer, when they do drink beer, they’re drinking more from cans than from bottles. Most importantly, though, the LCBO would like us all to know that they don’t foresee any shortages.

• Weather has Ontarians hoisting a glass [Toronto Star]