Another Promise for Change

The hot political topic these days is the New Democratic Party.  We saw them sweep through Quebec in the federal election after which their illustrious and charismatic leader passed away, leaving most of the country in mourning.  Despite the recent events, which have raised the popularity of the party, it is now time for the NDP to show the rest of Canada what they can really do.

Wine in Ontario is a political issue, one that is the cause of much frustration most notably, around election time, when voters are being courted. Furthermore, Ontario is one of the only regions in the world where enthusiastic support for the domestic wine industry is really lacking (and that’s putting it mildly). For example, British Columbia seem to have a much greater appreciation for their provincially-made wines and that appreciation is rewarded with a huge market share.

Recently, however, it looks as if Ontario wines may get a break as the NDP are promising Ontario wineries initiatives to get consumers to do more drinking of Ontario wine.  While the Conservatives promised to look at VQA-only wine stores, one would presume outside the LCBO’s current system, the NDP are promising to work with the LCBO to guarantee more shelf space for independently produced Ontario wines:  “There are still too many barriers stopping small wineries from getting to the shelves of LCBO outlets,” said NDP leader Andrea Horwath.

Furthermore, the NDP are also suggesting expanding the Ontario section in liquor stores, ridding Ontario shelves of the highly prized and much more profitable imports. Although this would be good news for Ontario wines,  it is highly unlikely that the LCBO would agree with this kind of change.

“We will examine a range of measures to give small wineries more access to more Ontarians, including allowing wine to be sold at designated farmers’ markets.”  This is something fruit wineries have been clamouring for for years with little to no results. Instead they have been met with a firm and resounding “no”, while watching other North American regions open up restrictions on farmers’ markets and other places to sell wine. Ontarians are still treated like small children who have to be protected from the evils of alcohol, and have been since the late 1920’s.  The fact that this discussion is even occurring during an election campaign in the year 2011 seems comical.  This issue should have been cleaned up years ago and wine policies should be advancing with the times.  Given that the Liberal Party has not altered the outdated wine policies to date, it is hard to image that the NDP r any other party, for that matter, may be able to make significant changes. As history has shown, “working with the LCBO”, as Andrea Horwath and the NDP propose, may be more difficult than anticipated. Only time will tell…