"If you want to drink, you have to buy it from us!"

[Boozy]

Ew. Anything less than 80-proof vodka must be absolutely disgusting.

The reason the alcohol content is so high in hard liquors is because of the distilling process. The same process that makes the beverage not taste like ass.

[Greenday]

Ew. Anything less than 80-proof vodka must be absolutely disgusting.

The reason the alcohol content is so high in hard liquors is because of the distilling process. The same process that makes the beverage not taste like ass.

Pretty sure a lot of Smirnoff is under 80 proof. A lot if 70 proof if I recall correctly.

[Boozy]

Yes. And Smirnoff tastes like ass.

[Greenday]

Yes. And Smirnoff tastes like ass.

Compared to something like Grey Goose? Yes.

Compared to something like Vladdy? No.

[smileyeagle1021]

Welcome to a Utahn's world. We pay nearly a 100% markup, get weaker liquor than less regulated states, and to add insult to injury, the state is closing something like 10% of the stores (all of which are profitable) to save money, and to make the Mormons in legislature feel like they are doing God's work to reduce the evils of alcohol in this state

[victory sabre]

Here in Minnesota the liquor stores are closed Sunday. Because of that, and I dislike giving my State any more tax dollars, I get all of my beer out of State. I'm there anyway, I say why not.

[Greenday]

Here in Minnesota the liquor stores are closed Sunday. Because of that, and I dislike giving my State any more tax dollars, I get all of my beer out of State. I'm there anyway, I say why not.

Good ole Christian blue laws. They don't want Sharia Law, but they do want their own religion to be law.

[victory sabre]

Good ole Christian blue laws. They don't want Sharia Law, but they do want their own religion to be law.

Well, now, it's mostly the liquor stores against it, because they think they will do the same business in 7 days as they do in 6, but with the added expense of being open another day.

Like I said, I'll go out of State to get my beer.

[Crazedclerkthe2nd]

This is a problem not even limited to one COUNTRY. Last I checked Ontario, Canada still had the good ol' LCBO.

There is a separate chain of Beer Stores, but that's it. Unless you're a beer drinker your only option for booze is LCBO stores which are almost always overpriced. A quick Google reveals the LCBO has been in existence since 1927 and though there have been movements to try and get rid of it for I believe over 20 years now its still there.

Honestly, the "it will make things more dangerous!" arguments are ridiculous. I now live in a U.S. state where alcohol is easily available and I don't notice a higher percentage of drunks/alcohol related incidents than I did up north.

[protege]

PA getting out of the liquor business has been in the Pittsburgh-area papers quite a bit. Nearly everyone is for it. Naturally, the people who work at those stores aren't. They're bitching and moaning about how it will lead to "unfair" competition, and possibly eliminate their jobs.

Seriously? Are you kidding me? I think the competition would be a *good* thing. It would allow for greater variety, and bring prices back down to where they should be--not kept kept artificially high because some asshole in Harrisburg says so

[NecCat]

The LCBO is indeed alive and well, as well as the beer store(s) and wine shoppes in (attached to) some grocery stores. There is a few things about the LCBO:
- yes the prices are high, but the cashiers are union government employees, which means they actually get paid a decent wage
- it is owned by the government, which means every dollar they make in profit is one less dollar of income tax I have to pay
- as far as I know it is not illegal to purchase alcohol across any border and bring it into Ontario. I was recently in Ottawa and went to Quebec to buy some beer for my guys because it is so much cheaper, and brought it home. You can also purchase alcohol in the states and bring it back, they just require you to pay duty tax at the border if you have over a certain amount. I'm pretty sure there is no law against this, or if there is it is not enforced, I have never heard of anyone in trouble for this, and everyone I know buys alcohol in Quebec if they go there or to Cornwall or Ottawa for something.

I believe the LCBO exists for fiscal rather than safety or morality reasons.

[Sarah Valentine]

Is there any way to just order online and have it shipped to you, there's a certain type of champagne I like and instead of driving 3 hours just for 1 bottle I buy it online.

[patiokitty]

This is a problem not even limited to one COUNTRY. Last I checked Ontario, Canada still had the good ol' LCBO.

There is a separate chain of Beer Stores, but that's it. Unless you're a beer drinker your only option for booze is LCBO stores which are almost always overpriced. A quick Google reveals the LCBO has been in existence since 1927 and though there have been movements to try and get rid of it for I believe over 20 years now its still there.

Honestly, the "it will make things more dangerous!" arguments are ridiculous. I now live in a U.S. state where alcohol is easily available and I don't notice a higher percentage of drunks/alcohol related incidents than I did up north.

Each province has their own liquor control board and each province handles sales differently. I know here in NL you can buy beer at the corner store but not the supermarket unless it has a provincial liquor store attached to it, and it was shock to me seven years ago when I walked into my first corner store here to find beer being sold. Why? Because in BC that just wasn't done.

During my years in BC it's changed a bit. Back in the 70's my parents could only buy alcohol of any sort at a province-run liquor store. Over the years restrictions lifted and 'cold beer and wine' stores started opening up, and last I remember the only place you could buy bottles of hard liquor was at the liquor store, along with all sorts of beers, coolers, wine, etc.

[Jetfire]

In New Brunswick, all alcohol sales are handled by ANBL (Alcool New/Nouveau Brunswick Liquor) through their own stores.

In smaller communities the stores might be a section of the community's main business but most of the time they are standalone stores.

There are often talks of privatizing and/or letting other businesses sell, but so far the government is keeping tight control; though they have recently started a trial of letting some of the Co-op grocery stores sell wines directly.

Up north, where runs into Quebec are feasible, they tend to watch for people buying large amounts of alcohol and bringing it in (since prices and taxes tend to be cheaper in Quebec), but they don't care about people bringing back personal amounts.

[cindybubbles]

Did you say Pennsylvania, or ONTARIO?

Many of my country's provinces regulate alcohol; in Ontario, the only private stores I know that sell booze are The Wine Shoppe, The Beer Store, and Mill Street Brew Pub (but that's because it's an actual brewery that has a pub and a store). All of the others are LCBO, which is owned by the Government of Ontario.

Neither The Wine Shoppe nor The Beer Store nor Mill Street are allowed to sell hard liquor. That's LCBO turf. The Beer Store, however, will buy back your empty bottles, no matter where you got them.