Craft beer is finally getting the Amazon treatment here in B.C.
Port Moody鈥檚 announced last month it was , allowing anyone in the province to order its beer directly, and have it shipped right to their doorstep. As far as I can tell, it鈥檚 the first brewery in the province to do so.
While online beer stores are common in Ontario, they are almost unheard of in B.C. Why? Ontario鈥檚 ridiculously restrictive liquor laws mean that many craft breweries can鈥檛 get their products placed in stores, so they have to resort to direct sales. As archaic as B.C.鈥檚 liquor distribution system is, it鈥檚 light years more progressive than Ontario鈥檚 state-run quasi-monopoly, so getting beer on to store shelves here is nowhere near as difficult. As a result, breweries haven鈥檛 bothered to open online stores, until now.
鈥淲e got the concept from Ontario,鈥� says Twin Sails co-owner and director of sales Cody Allmin. 鈥淚t鈥檚 another revenue stream, so it just makes sense. Why wouldn鈥檛 we sell our beer online? The margins are better when we sell our own beer directly.鈥�
For people all over the province who are limited by the one B.C. Liquor Store in their town that鈥檚 stocked to the brim with macro swill and little (if any) craft options, this is a godsend. Everyone in B.C. now has easy access to Twin Sails beers.
And, if you鈥檙e thinking, big whoop, I live a block away from a super legit beer store, I can get my hazy double IPA fix around the corner, Allmin says Twin Sails is going to be offering limited edition, small batch brews you won鈥檛 find in stores.
鈥淲e do a lot of tasting room only releases and this is a way to get those beers to people outside of the city,鈥� says Allmin. 鈥淎 lot of these beers never even make it to stores.鈥�
So, how does it work? I ordered a bunch of beer last week to find out.
on a Monday and by Thursday I had a box of slightly chilled beer and a fully intact long-stemmed glass in which to drink it. Easy peasy. Canada Post requires you to sign for the package and in theory they鈥檙e supposed to check your ID to make sure you鈥檙e of age (even though my mail carrier didn鈥檛, but she knows me and it鈥檚 sadly really obvious that I鈥檓 not 18 anymore).
Shipping for 10 tall cans of beer was about $16, which seems steep, but it gets comparatively cheaper the more you order, conveniently. As far as I could tell, the cost per can is only slightly higher than if I had actually left my house and bought the beer in person, like some sort of peasant.
Other breweries have taken note: Pitt Meadows鈥� Foamer鈥檚 Folly Brewing Co. recently announced it plans to add beer to its online store in short order. I hope more breweries follow suit, and so does Allmin.
鈥淚t鈥檒l normalize the idea of shopping online for beer,鈥� he says.
- You can find B.C.鈥檚 favourite craft beer guide at your local brewery, select private liquor stores, and on newsstands across the province.
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