VERY Expensive Vinegar

 Single Malt Balsamic?
   A while back I did a post about some of the expensive bottles of alcohol available at the LCBO ("Christmas Spirit$"). Recently while in Vancouver, I noticed some expensive bottles of vinegar while in The Gourmet Warehouse. Keep this image in mind if your wife asks you to go to the grocery store to grab a couple of bottles of balsamic. 

   There are much cheaper balsamic options and I will point out that the bottles pictured above are very small, 65G for $400. 
    I am much more a plonk person than an oenophile and I know even less about vinegars, so I will direct you to the oxologists and foodies who know much more.

Sources:
"Do you know who the oxologist is?You may not know that the balsamic vinegar expert has a name, just like the wine expert. The technician who patiently follows all the slow production phases of Balsamic Vinegar is the oxologist, from the Greek oxos, which means vinegar. The most famous one? Angelo Valentini, agronomist, oenologist, herbalist and oxologist who is still called upon to set up the vinegar attics and who has also written books on the subject." From: "5 Curiosities About Balsamic Vinegar."
"Everthing You Need to Know About Balsamic Vinegar," Andrew Wheeler, Serious Eats, Sept. 22, 2023. 
The Bonus: 
  If your partner is a foodie you can shop at the Gourmet Warehouse in Vancouver from your home. If you are cheap, however, you can order bottles of balsamic on Amazon for under $10. 

Christmas Spirit$

 Alcoholic Beverages
     I looked in MM to see what I have written about booze and I will just say that the MADD members would not approve. Last year, I admitted in "Sober Hypochondria" that I was not able to stay dry, even for just January, and I provided some evidence that perhaps alcohol was not as bad as the health people suggest. The title and sub-title of this post is all you will need to determine where I stand: "Sobriety May Be Overrated: Ammo for Alkies."
   Many of us plan to drink a lot in the next few days and promise not to drink once the bell rings in the new year. Most of us are better at planning, at least about things that are booze-related, than we are at keeping promises. That the promise part is difficult is attested to by a fellow British boozer.
   Although he knew it would be difficult he was determined to limit his consumption to 100 bottles of wine for the year. How difficult that goal is, you abstainers won't appreciate. He thought that if he stayed dry for January, he would have about eight bottles to his credit and only eleven months left. While he did have some alcohol-free days during that dreadful month, "the long and the short of it is I got through my 100-bottle quota in the first three months of the year!" (the exclamation point is provided by me, since I know you sober people probably gasped.)
   Wait, it gets worse. Having decided to drink less, he also decided to purchase wines of a better quality.  "I immediately splurged on good wine - claret and white Burgundy for the most part - and then guzzled it all by springtime. Some of it was around £75, such as 2009 Domaine de Chevalier, but most of it was in the £30-£40 range, such as 2015 Segla, which worked out at £33.20 a bottle." Note the £ symbol. I drink mostly "plonk" as the Brit would say, but I do realize that booze is expensive.

Very Expensive Bottles
  How expensive, you ask? Here are the five most expensive bottles in stock at the LCBO stores here in Ontario. They are all Scotch whiskies. The Scots have to be frugal to afford these.

1. $69,999.95

Coming in at number one is The Dalmore Cask Curation Series: The Sherry Edition.

2. $55,849.95

For nearly $56,000, you can purchase a single 700 ml bottle of The Dalmore Constellation Collection Cask 2 Single Malt Scotch Whisky 1971.

3. $55,000

For $55,000, you can get a 700 ml bottle of Bowmore 1969 Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky.

4. $47,000

A 700 ml bottle of The Dalmore 45-Year-Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky goes for $47,000.

5. $40,000

At number five, for $40,000 you can buy a 750 ml bottle of Highland Park 50-Year-Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky from Scotland

Booze That People Purchase
   According to the LCBO data, folks here were more likely to buy American whiskey than Scotch, and Tequila is very popular. About 35% of sales was for spirits, 28% for wine and 23% for beer, which is easily purchased elsewhere. The illustrations are from the LCBO Quarterly Update, June 23 to Oct. 12

 

Sources: "Could I Limit Myself to 100 Bottles of Wine A Year?" Toby Young, The Spectator, Dec. 14, 2024.

"The 5 Most Expensive Bottles of Alcohol at the LCBO in Ontario," Ryan Rocca, Insauga.com, Dec. 4, 2024

P.S. "Both spellings of the word, "whiskey" and "whisky," are correct. The tricky part is matching the right spelling with the right country of origin. If you’re talking about a drink that’s been made in Scotland, Canada, or Japan, use the spelling without the e—whisky. When referring to drinks distilled in the United States or Ireland, use the e—whiskey."

Sober Hypochondria

 

  I was feeling bad enough about not "staying dry" for even a few days in January when these headlines began pouring from various media sources. You will have seen them as well: "It's Time to Put Cancer Warning Labels on Alcohol, Experts Say;" Canada's New Guidelines For Alcohol Say 'No Amount' Is Healthy;" "Even a Little Alcohol Can Harm Your Health" and "Yes, Even if it's a Bloody Caesar With Extra Celery: Why Even Just a Little Alcohol is a Risk." Sobering news indeed, especially since we would have to be less prideful about having invented the "Bloody Caesar."

  Readers of MM will know that I tend to be contrarian, and many of them are likely to be drinkers, so they will not be surprised if I take the side of the imbibers on this issue, and are likely to be pleased, as well, if they are drinkers themselves. Apart from arguing that, while alcohol may be bad for us, it does make us feel better, I will provide an article that you may have overlooked because of all those others which tended to be on the front page. 

   It would be unfortunate if all of this negative publicity forced the L.C.B.O. stores to return to the establishments they once were, or if we were to lose their magazine. I recall what they were like and a description was recently provided, so I don't have to come up with one:
  "Looking back, I’m struck by how Canada’s approach to alcohol and cigarettes has almost reversed since I was a student back in the late 1970s.
  At that time, I worked part-time in the last of what the Liquor Control Board of Ontario called conventional stores. Back then, the L.C.B.O. took the “control” part of its name seriously. Its older stores did everything possible to make people avoid them. Aside from some dusty display bottles of selected wines, all of the merchandise was hidden away behind a counter. Customers had to search out what they wanted to buy on lists of everything in the store that were behind glass panels, and write down the product’s name, brand number (Mateus rosé was 1086 B) and price. Then shoppers passed their slips to a cashier who, after receiving payment, turned it over to a clerk like me who fetched and bagged the goods.
   I must confess that my colleagues and I were sometimes less than friendly. We were also repeatedly reminded not to give recommendations or advice to customers — they were strictly on their own.
   But, conversely, smoking in offices and shops, including L.C.B.O. stores, was rampant at that time. Cigarette makers sponsored sports and cultural events, and their ads and products dominated corner stores and even some pharmacies.
  Now it’s cigarettes that are hidden away in stores behind blank cabinets, and they come in generic, government-mandated packaging with gruesome photos of tobacco’s health effects. All forms of advertising by the tobacco advertising are a distant memory."

An Alternative Account

 The article that was buried under all of the temperance ones is a temperate one arguing that the suggestions offered by the  sermonizers need to be subjected to some scrutiny. It is found in the Globe and Mail, which is more expensive than MM, so you may not have seen it. The author of it will, I hope, forgive me for reproducing portions of it. He is a professor at Brock University and the article is found here: "Canada's Drastic New Alcohol Guidelines Demand a Closer Look," Globe and Mail, Jan. 20, 2023. You should have a closer look and not rely on my snippets.

   Professor Malleck begins by noting that he is not a generally a critic of public health measures, but that he is "wary of generalized recommendations of behaviour change based upon narrowly selected evidence from a cohort that sounds increasingly like the 19th-century temperance movement." He also raises some issues about the 6,000 studies that were used, and notes as well: 

"Often, too, these kinds of studies involve looking at a broad cohort of people and seeing if those with a certain condition were more likely to have been drinkers. If researchers are only looking for drinking as a factor, it can be easy to miss other potential contributors. We don’t know, for instance, whether they spent their time drinking in smoky bars or restaurants (back when that was allowed), or did so while eating less healthy foods; these factors are often marginalized when alcohol becomes the focus."

"The CCSA also presents the relative risk, rather than the absolute risk, of developing the various conditions. According to its data, consuming three and a half drinks a day increases your risk of developing larynx cancer by nearly 100 per cent, which sounds shocking, and is presented in a table with scary red shading. But larynx cancer, which is mostly related to smoking, was diagnosed in roughly 0.0197 per cent of Canadians in 2022. Many of the other cancers the CCSA associates with alcohol also have low incidence rates. And everyone has a different level of risk for various conditions, based on factors including lifestyle and genetics."

  He also hints that perhaps one should consider that the results provided by the CCSA, might be like the ones about alcohol we would expect if they were coming from MADD.

"We should also consider researcher perspective. The CCSA is focused on harm-first, which is less a criticism than a fact: Although its name emphasizes “substance use and addiction,” its focus is on the negative side of “use.” Its job is to look for harm in the name of health. Through this lens, potential benefits don’t track."

And indeed, the CCSA made its recommendations without consideration of the potential (and well-documented) positive effects of alcohol on the lives of individuals, nor the potential harms caused by excessive and patronizing recommendations in the name of “for your own good” science.

These are important considerations, because human research on a population level (as compared with studies where all complicating factors are controlled in a lab, something you can’t do with long-term human research for legal and ethical reasons) is a point of contention among scholars. Although the CCSA does mention, near the end of the report, the considerable limitations to its conclusions, they do not seem to affect the urgency or excessiveness of its recommendations.

There is more, but because of copyright restrictions, I will just note his conclusion:

"Without considering the potential dangers of such advice, and the potential benefits around moderate drinking, the CCSA recommendations seem worse than useless. They’re reckless."

If the prohibitionists have their way, we may all have to head to the new cannabis dispensaries.

Sources:
Here is the report, "Canada's Guidance on Alcohol and Health," by the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction. 

Here is an article about the new guidelines: "Canada's New Alcohol Guidelines Advise Fewer Drinks," Wency Leung, Globe and Mail, Jan. 17, 2023.

The description of what it was like to buy alcohol in Ontario in the 1970s, is by Ian Austen, a Canadian reporter for the New York Times. It is in his "Canada Letter" - "Pushing Alcohol While Health Experts Say Risk-Free Drinking is a Risk," Jan. 21.

Sobriety May Be Overrated

 Ammo for Alkies

  

    I read a book review this morning that provides me with an opportunity to break free from a minor case of "blogger's block" which, like many cases of "writer's block", is symptomatic of nothing more than nice summer weather. This will be kept short and I will make clear that the sage wisdom offered is meant for those who: 1) prefer not to be sober; 2) like to consume alcoholic beverages; 3) need a better rationale for doing so; 4) need one quickly for the approaching holiday and 5) want to feel less guilty when leaving the LCBO store or pub. 

  If you incline toward intoxication, you would have been intrigued, as I was, by the title of a review that reads: "A History of Getting Hammered, and Why Some of Us Should Keep Doing It," by Zoe Lescaze, New York Times, June 19, 2021. I realize that those of you on the far right side of things, think that the New York Times is not to be trusted, so I will quickly add that the book under review was written by a university professor. I suppose that doesn't help much for those of you in that category, but I will quickly add again, for my Canadian readers, the fact that the professor resides at a respected Canadian university (UBC.) The title of the book is, for us boozers, as compelling as the title of the review; it is: Drunk: How We Slippped, Danced and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization.  The author is Professor Edward Slingerland and he is a Distinguished University Scholar, whose skills are appreciated in different departments, even in different faculties. He is also a PHILOSOPHER, so if you buy this book, you will be looking at an academic treatise that helps you justify your alcohol consumption, plus you will be the only one at the beach not reading a book by James PATTERSON.

  

   Happy hour approaches, so I will now turn this over to the reviewers and sources, and highlight the bits that you need if you are drinking too much and don't have time to actually read the book. 

   After noting that, even Frederick the Great of Prussia recognized "that beer was a uniquely powerful bonding agent, and key to morale,"the reviewer, Ms Lescaze, goes on to offer the following points:

For thousands of years cultures around the world have “implicitly understood that the sober, rational, calculating individual mind is a barrier to social trust,” Edward Slingerland writes in “Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization,” an effervescent new study that’s equal parts anthropology, psychology and evolutionary biology. Drawing on recent experiments, Neolithic burials, eclectic myths and global literature, Slingerland teases out the evolutionary advantages and enduring benefits of getting blitzed. It’s a rowdy banquet of a book in which the ancient Roman historian Tacitus, Lord Byron, Timothy Leary, George Washington, the Chinese poet Tao Yuanming and many others toast the merits of drowning Apollonian reason in Dionysian abandon..."

"For our ancestors, inebriation was especially essential, “a robust and elegant response to the challenges of getting a selfish, suspicious, narrowly goal-oriented primate to loosen up and connect with strangers.” This is why hunter-gatherers likely began producing beer and wine before bread...."

“It is no accident that, in the brutal competition of cultural groups from which civilizations emerged, it is the drinkers, smokers and trippers who emerged triumphant,” Slingerland writes: Human society would not exist without ample lubrication..."

Disclaimer Alert

   I realize it is a little late and I should have provided this warning at the beginning.  But, in my defence, I only realized that such a warning is now required, when I saw one at the beginning of a CBC report about an upcoming quilting convention in Moose Jaw.  I did not risk reading on, in that case and am not sure what was upsetting, or who was being offended.  Perhaps the quilters simply forgot to ask the Indigenous for permission to temporarily occupy their space. 

   I hope you have not been made anxious or traumatized  by what has been written here so far, but I suggest you have a drink if you want to continue.

An Additional Warning

   Everyone now is rather 'touchy' and as a society we are tending toward temperance, so to protect myself and Professor Slingerland from those such as the MADD people, it should be noted that excessive alcohol consumption has been associated with some health concerns. Even my drinking buddies know that and practice moderation in some matters and generally avoid butter on their toast and salt on their eggs. The professor acknowledges this issue:

Slingerland is adamant that chemically induced communion is just as valuable (and perhaps particularly necessary) in modern times, but he does address alcohol’s more obvious medical and economic costs, the devastating effects of addiction and the subtle, pernicious ways in which drinking can alienate and exclude outsiders. Some readers might find the treatment cursory given the gravity of these issues, but Slingerland simply argues that they have been well documented, whereas serious scholarly work on the value of intoxication is surprisingly scant. As a result, poor alcohol stands “defenseless” against doctors and government policymakers who paint it as pure vice. Slingerland takes up the cause with all the chivalry of a knight-errant, and his infectious passion makes this book a romp as well as a refreshingly erudite rejoinder to the prevailing wisdom.

   Additional information is provided by the publishers, Hachette Book Group, where this blurb is found: 

A "entertaining and enlightening" deep dive into the alcohol-soaked origins of civilization—and the evolutionary roots of humanity’s appetite for intoxication. (Daniel E. Lieberman, author of Exercised)

  Another review is found in the New Scientist and this is found in it:

Slingerland, a philosopher at the University of British Columbia in Canada, has a novel thesis, arguing that by causing humans “to become, at least temporarily, more creative, cultural, and communal… intoxicants provided the spark that allowed us to form truly large-scale groups”. In short, without them, civilisation might not have been possible.

See: "Drunk Review: Could Alcohol-induced Creativity Be Key to Civilisation?" June 2, 2021.

   See also the review in the New York Journal of Books:

Slingerhand does not defend alcohol, but he does point out that it has positive benefits from the past to the present. Alcohol serves as a disinfectant (including for water) and as an anti-parasite medicine, including anti-fungal protection.

“Drunken words are spoken straight from the heart” and Slingerhand devotes much space to the many different dimensions of social drinking. “Sobriety diminishes, discriminates, and says no; drunkenness expands, unites, and says yes.” “The political function of alcohol is practical as well as symbolic.”

   For more, go directly to:

The Wikipedia entry for Professor Slingerland.

The UBC website.

The website for the book:  

The Bonus:

Professor Slingerland has authored other works including: Tying Not To Try. Perhaps he is a better professor than some found on the other side of campus. Our granddaughter is enrolled at UBC. Maybe I will encourage her to stroll over there when an actual visit is allowed. 

In Trying Not To Try, Edward Slingerland explains why we find spontaneity so elusive, and shows how early Chinese thought points the way to happier, more authentic lives. We’ve long been told that the way to achieve our goals is through careful reasoning and conscious effort. But recent research suggests that many aspects of a satisfying life, like happiness and spontaneity, are best pursued indirectly. The early Chinese philosophers knew this, and they wrote extensively about an effortless way of being in the world, which they called wu-wei (ooo-way). They believed it was the source of all success in life, and they developed various strategies for getting it and hanging on to it.

The Privatization of the Liquor Business

Booze in Canada

[Update: In April 2019 the Ford government's first budget announced that alcohol would now be sold in Ontario in more places and be served at an earlier hour. A while back I did this related post which offers information about booze laws generally in Canada along with a bibliography.]

      Today there is an article in the London Free Press asking this question - "With Beer and Wine on Ontario Grocery Shelves, Why Not Liquor?" (see: "Distillers Seek Shelf Space in Supermarkets," Hank Daniszewski,  London Free Press, March 20, 2018.) Even though we can now walk to some grocery stores to buy some types of beer and may soon be able to purchase dope, the sale of alcoholic beverages is still tightly controlled.  For many years, throughout Canada, more ink has been spilled over this subject than booze consumed.

   I recall working on this subject over a decade ago and the somewhat dated results may be of use since the bibliography is a good one. Keep in mind that it has not been updated since c.2005. It was done at the University of Western Ontario (now Western University) as a guide for the faculty and students. It is no longer available on the University website and the University is not responsible for it. The document has been slightly edited (by me) and I have attempted to cure some of the 'link rot'.

   The pasting of the contents eliminated the italicization of titles and for that an apology is made. Keep in mind that it has not been updated since 2005. Still, the coverage is Canada-wide and the references will be useful. If you are currently working on this subject for a term paper, you will now have more time to go drinking.

Update: September 2005: [The Business Library had just received a print version of this report which is available online.] "Strategy for Transforming Ontario's Beverage Alcohol System", prepared by the Beverage Alcohol Review Panel. John Lacey, the chair of the panel has outlined the outcomes of the recommendations as being:
1) the consumer would get greater convenience and choice and would benefit from a competitive retain environment
2) the government would remove itself from investment risk while increasing its annual revenues
3) Ontario would continue to benefit from sound social responsibility practices
4) the existing commercial inequities would have been materially addressed.
The html version can be viewed here.

Update: February 2005:
     The information below was originally gathered in 2004. Early in 2005 there was again considerable interest in the subject which was prompted by Finance Minister Greg Sorbara's news conference. At the "Seinfeld News Conference" (labeled as such because it was " a show about nothing" ) it was announced that an independent panel would review the way liquor, wine and beer are distributed in Ontario. Here are some of the reactions: " Is LCBO For Sale or Not?", Guelph Mercury, Jan.14, 2005, p.A8; "Beer in Corner Stores? Ontario Floats the Idea-Province to Examine 'Archaic' Liquor Laws," Richard Brennan & Robert Benzie, Toronto Star, Jan.12, 2005, p.A01 and "Wine, Beer May Come to Corner Stores: LCBO Review Announced," CanWest News Service, Jan 12, 2005. We have worked up quite a thirst in striving to maintain some balance in presenting information about this subject and will continue to do so by pointing you to a couple of editorials for and against privatization; the National Post (which is consistently in favour or privatization) reprinted a Windsor Star editorial which concluded that the government should "get out of the booze business altogether" (see" "Liberalizing Liquor Laws," NP, Jan.14, 2005, p. A17.). The other view is expressed in "Don't Fix What Works," Mark McNeil, The Hamilton Spectator, Jan. 13, 2005, p.A17. All of these resources are available to you electronically and if you have difficulty locating them, consult with library staff.
[I am sure that is still the case].

     In recent months the issue of government control of alcohol sales has been a hotly debated topic and a factor in election campaigns. The subject has a long history and given the fact that political, economic and social factors are involved, many books and articles have been published and most of those are more partisan than disinterested. Our purpose here is to direct you quickly to some recent material that relates to the Canadian situation. Provided below are selected studies and articles held in the Western Libraries that relate to the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Ontario. The list is not an exhaustive one, but an attempt was made to choose articles representing different points-of-view. For assistance in locating the articles in the collections or in databases, consult with library staff. Most of the articles below were taken from databases provided by ProQuest and in many cases the articles are fully accessible electronically to members of the UWO community.
There are many books related to this topic in the Western Libraries. There are a number of good subject headings from which to choose. Here are some suggestions: Drinking of alcoholic beverages - Canada ; Liquor Laws ; and Prohibition. For an excellent reference source see: Alcoholic Beverage Taxation and Control Policies. This expensive resource is published periodically by the Brewers Association of Canada. It contains international data relating to such things as "The Government Approach to Control and Sale of Alcoholic Beverages;" "Pattern of Drinking and Beverages Consumed"; "Statistics on the Alcoholic Beverage Industries" and "Per Capita Consumption". Many countries are covered ranging from Australia to the United States (the latest edition is still the 9th from 1997 as of early 2004).
Material is also found on the web. Two union sites that take an interest in the issue are the National Union of Public and General Employees (http://www.nupge.ca ) and the [Liquor Board Employees Union (https://opseu.org/sector/liquor-board-employees ). ]At the latter site, links are provided to additional studies. The issue and related studies on privatization are often found at "Think Tanks".[link deleted]
There are two studies that are often referred to in the articles below. For your convenience they are provided here since they represent two approaches to the issue: 1) Douglas West, The Privatization of Liquor Retailing in Alberta and 2) Greg Flanagan, Sobering Result: The Alberta Liquor Retailing Industry Ten Years After Privatization.

Alberta:

A New Era in Liquor Administration: The Alberta Experience.
Out of Control: Paying the Price for Privatizing Alberta's Liquor Control Board
Brownsey, Keith, "Selling the Store: Privatizing Alberta's Liquor Stores," in Public Administration And Policy: Governing In Challenging Times.
David MacLean ." Union's Liquor Store Analysis Untrustworthy,"(Oct 30, 2003), Star - Phoenix (Saskatoon) p. A15
"Distilling the Facts: Flaws in Liquor Retailing Industry Don't Justify Return to Monopoly," (Jun 5, 2003). Calgary Herald p. A20.
Fred H. Smith, "Privatized Liquor Sales Pay Dividends," (Nov 4, 2003) Star - Phoenix p. A12
Kelly Cryderman . Private Liquor Stores Drink a Toast on 10th birthday: Consumers Were Skeptical in 1993," . (Dec 22, 2003) Edmonton Journal p. A1
Mairi MacLean, " Albertans Drinking More, and Better: Tastes Change, with Red Wine Overtaking White: StatsCan Review, (Aug 31, 2002). Edmonton Journal p. E1
Michelle Lang, " Study Toasts Success of Private Liquor Sales," (Mar 2, 2003). Calgary Herald p. A1 Sorcha McGinnis "Report Raps Liquor Privatization (Jun 5, 2003) Calgary Herald , p. A10
"Alberta Streamlining, Privatizing Paperwork" (Oct 15, 1999). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a.
"No Beer with your Cheerios, But the Critics were Wrong: The Province Rejects Grocery Chain Demands for a Wide Open Private Liquor Market" (Jul 21, 1997). Alberta Report 24 (32), p. 18-19.
"Liquor Privatization Costs Albertans" (Jun 30, 1997). The Gazette, p. A7.
"Province Limiting its Revenues from Liquor Sales" (Jun 29, 1997). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a.
"Alberta's Liquor Store Privatization: Economic and Social Impacts Policy Options" (Apr 1997). Policy Options,Vol.18, (3), p. 24-27.
"Raise a Glass to Private Liquor Retailing in Alberta - Byfield" (Aug 17/19, 1996). Financial Post , 90 (33), p. 18.
"The Privatization Hangover: Liquor Dealers are Battling for Survival" (Aug 11, 1996). Calgary Herald p. C7,C8.
"One Thumb up for Liquor Privatization: a University of Alberta Prof. says Alberta's new Booze Retail Industry is Mostly a Success (Douglas West's study)" (Jul 15, 1996). Western Report 11 (26), p. 8-9.
"Privatization Brings Mixed Results: Study (Centre for the Study of State & Market at University of Toronto and University of Alberta)" (Jun 25, 1996). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a.
"Report on Western Canada" (Feb 19, 1996). Marketing Magazine 101 (7), p.10-16.
"Spirit of the West: Everyone's talking about Privatized Liquor Stores in Alberta: Prices are Higher, Selection is Down, Crime is Rampant. Problem is, none of what they're Saying is True" (Dec 1995). Toronto Life 29 (18), p. 71-75.
"Beer Sales Fall Despite Liquor Privatization (1994 data)" (Aug 6, 1995). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a.
"Reports Show Two Faces of Liquor Privatization (Debate over Alberta's decision to privatize liquor retailing)" (Mar/Apr 1995). Addiction Research Foundation 24 (2), p. 3.
"A Crash Course in Security: Private Liquor Store Owners Cope with Drive-in Break-Ins" (Mar 27, 1995). Western Report 10 (9), p. 20-21.
"Crisp, with a Hint of Profits: Three Microbreweries Open in Alberta" (Mar 6, 1995). Western Report 10 (6), p. 20-21. "Klein's Free Market Utopia," Canadian Dimension" (Feb 1995) 29 (1), p.20
"Learning from Canada's Reagan," Wall Street Journal (Feb 23, 1995). p. A14.
"West Raises his Glass to Liquor Privatization: His One-Year-Later Report says the Nay-Sayers were all Wet " (Jan 9, 1995). Western Report 9 (50), p. 12-13.
"Alberta, Public Enemy #1: Another Left-Wing Lobby Arrives to Hunt for Hard-Luck Victims of Ralphonomics" (Sep 26, 1994). Western Report 9 (35), p. 16.
"Academic Studies come Cheap these days: a Liquor Privatization Report tells its Sponsors what they want to Hear" (Sep 19, 1994). Western Report 9 (34), p. 20-21.
"Liquor Privatization Leaves Hangover, Study Finds" (Alberta) (Sep 1, 1994). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a.
"Montana Just Keeps Getting Closer: Alberta too may soon let Grocery Chains Sell Beer, Wine and Spirits" (Jul 25, 1994). Western Report 9 (26), p. 14-15.
"A Vintage Deal for Wine Merchants: ALCB Subsidies to Wine Stores Smack of Getty-style Cronyism (Alberta Liquor Control Board)". (Jul 11, 1994). Western Report 9 (24), p. 14-15.
"Any Benefits for Grocers Rest with Patience and Time: a Toast to Alberta for its Move to Privatize Liquor Sales" (Nov 1993). Canadian Grocer 107 (11), p. 5.
"Brewing Up a Storm: Alberta's Beer Industry Bubbles Despite a Flat Market " (Nov 1, 1993). Western Report 8 (40), p.15.
"Alberta Leaves Grocers Out of Liquor Store Privatization" (Oct 1993). Canadian Grocer 107 (10), p. 7.
"Union to Sue Province Over Privatization (of liquor stores)" (Oct 12, 1993). Calgary Herald (index-only) p. A2.
"West's ALCB master stroke (Alberta Liquor Control Board): the Historic Semi-Privatization of Liquor Sales has one Motive, Money" (Sep 20, 1993). Western Report 8 (34), p. 6-9.
"Liquor Privatization Assailed" (Sep 16, 1993). Financial Post (index-only) 6 (130), p. 50.
"Privatizing the Booze Trade: Taxpayers could Benefit if the ALCB Sold off its Retail Outlets" (Aug 23, 1993). Western Report 8 (30), p. 8-9.
"Aid for Roughriders Angers Social Critics: Liquor Plan Raises Privatization Fears" (Feb 9, 1990). The Globe And Mail p. A1,A4.

British Columbia

Demon Rum or Easy Money: Government Control of Liquor in British Columbia from Prohibition to Privatization
Liquor Policies for British Columbians
Liquor Policy Review: Background Information for a Consultative Process
"Tax cuts, Government Reform Largely imaginary in B.C.", Niels Veldhuis and Todd Gabel. National Post, Dec 29, 2003. p.FP09
"Flip-flop on Liquor is a Policy Mistake," Mark Milke. Times - Colonist Victoria,Oct 27, 2003. p. A6
Setting liquor free: B.C. Unions have quasi-monopolistic grip on Liquor Sales," Mark Milke. National Post, Oct 22, 2003. p. FP17
"Alberta can Toast our Stupidity -- Cheaply," Mark Milke. The Province ,Oct 16, 2003. p. A22
"Consumers' Association Commends British Columbia Government For Rejecting Alberta-Style Liquor Stores and Calls For Major Updating of BC Liquor Stores," Canada Newswire, Oct 13, 2003. p. 1
"Consumers the Losers in Gov't Backdown on Liquor Privatization," (Oct 14, 2003). The Province p. A20
"Privatization won't mean a jump in liquor prices," Anthony Gismondi. The Vancouver Sun , Jul 30, 2003. p. C.3
"B.C. government ponders best route for privatization of liquor business" Joyce, Greg. Canadian Press Newswire Jun 1, 2003. p.n/a
"Nanaimo liquor store among first to close," Judith Lavoie. Times - Colonist Victoria, Feb 21, 2003. p. A1
"Much to learn from Alberta's liquor privatization: Nine years on, the result is generally positive, Maurice Bridge finds," Maurice Bridge.The Vancouver Sun , Nov 6, 2002. p. D1
"B.C.'s Liquor Privatization Plan puts grocers at odds," Condon, George H. Canadian Grocer, Nov 2002. Vol. 116,Iss. 9, p. 80
"Pseudo-privatization: The BC government isn't going as far as Alberta in getting out of the booze business,"O'Neill, Terry. Report Newsmagazine, Sep 2, 2002. Vol. 29, Iss. 17, p. 19-20
"B.C. following same agenda as Ontario ; Huge cuts in ministry budgets can be accomplished with a simple sweep of the pen, but the cuts come at a cost," Ernie S. Lightman. Toronto Star, Jan 21, 2002. p. A17
"Setting Liquor Free: B.C. Unions have Quasi-Monopolistic Grip on Liquor Sales", National Post
Oct 22, 2003. p. FP.17.
"How to bring Cheap Liquor to BC: a Fraser Institute Conference says Privatization is the Key" (Jul 14, 1997). British Columbia Report 8 (46), p. 16.
"Crushed by High Taxes: Despite Subsidies, BC Wines Lose Ground to the Imports" (Sep 23, 1996). British Columbia Report 8 (4), p. 28-30.
"Scaled Back, Downsized or Sold Off: Privatization of some Provincial Assets seems Inevitable if the NDP is Removed from Office" (Jan 1, 1996). British Columbia Report 7 (18), p. 7.

Nova Scotia

"Government Workers Storm NS Legislature to Protest Privatization " (May 4, 2001). Canadian Press News Wire p. n/a.
"Hamm's Christmas Wish List Includes more Federal Money for Nova Scotia" (Dec 22, 2000). Canadian Press News Wire p. n/a.
"Nova Scotia Legislature Passes Bill to End 33-Year Involvement in Steel Business" (Nov 30, 2000). Canadian Press News Wire p. n/a.
"Privatization Fight Rages in Nova Scotia" (Jul 29, 2000). National Post (index-only) p. D11.
"Forgotten Promises: Joan Jessome on Nova Scotia's Tories" (Apr/May 2000). Our Times 19 (2),
p. 28.
"Nova Scotia Considering Privatizing Liquor Business" (Apr 11, 2000). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a.

Ontario

The Social Consequences of Privatizing Liquor and Beer Stores, Ted Glenn, Ontario Legislative Library.
"The Deficit; Looking at the LCBO," The Windsor Star, Jan 12, 2004. p. A6
Privatization Would Ruin Ontario's Liquor Business: LCBO boss," The Ottawa Citizen, Mar 19, 2003. p. B5
"Let the Private Sector Take Over," Kingston Whig - Standard, Aug 24, 2002. p. 7
"Privatizing Liquor Sales Makes Sense," Sudbury Star, Aug 11, 2002. p. A8
"Ontario to Grant Rural Liquor Franchises: Form of Privatization, Minister Says" (Sep 22, 2001). National Post,
p. A12.
"Cities Lining Up to Support LCBO" (Jul/Aug 1996). Addiction Research Foundation 25 (4), p. 3 .
"Ontario Gives Thumbs Up to Alberta's Liquor Privatization" (Jul 26, 1996). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a.
"Liquor Stores Top Privatization List" (Jul 20, 1996). The Globe And Mail p. B2.
"The Harris Revolution" (Jun 10, 1996). Maclean's 109 (24), (6 pp.).
"Molson Opposes Sell-off of LCBO" (Mar 08, 1996). Toronto Star.
"Liquor Privatization: Liquor Union Preparing Ad Blitz, (Addiction & Research Foundation Letter)" (Aug 3, 1995). The Globe And Mail p. A14.
"Liquor Store Union Financing Fight Against Privatization" (Jul 18, 1995). Canadian Press Newswire p. n/a .
"Tories nursing Decision on Liquor Reform: Privatization or Overhaul of LCBO will be studied for at Least Six Months"
(July, 12, 1995). The Globe And Mail p. A3.
"Privatizing the LCBO would put Union's Claims to the Test"- Forum" (Feb 8, 1995). Financial Post (index-only) 8 (4), p. 13.