a new bar opened up on King st W. they make their own wine on premises.
it got me thinking: how hard could it be to have a set-up a la Bar Volo and do in-house brews? Like, enough to make a keg at a time with 2-4 kegs per week (if need be).
are there laws in Ontario preventing a restaurant from making their own beer and selling it on tap?
what if they wanted to bottle it and sell it on premises? kind of do what Great Lakes does with their one-offs.
can it be done? Volo's obviously doing it. so is it a zoning issue or health inspector issue or alcohol law issue?
Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 3:19 pm
by Cass
You need to get a brew pub license which is an add on to your liquor license. And you have to pay tax on the production, and beer can't be more than 6.5%.
Considering that a pub like Reservoir in Montreal or Bar Volo basically have breweries that can fit into a closet, I'm surprised we don't see more brewpubs for a city the size of Toronto. But that's been a long standing discussion over the years here!
Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 3:58 pm
by andrewrg
Hasn't House Ales made beers that were above 6.5% though? Are they just flouting the rules or do they have some kind of exception?
Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 4:39 pm
by TwoPint
andrewrg wrote:Are they just flaunting the rules
They're also flouting them.
Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 4:56 pm
by GregClow
andrewrg wrote:Hasn't House Ales made beers that were above 6.5% though? Are they just flaunting the rules or do they have some kind of exception?
Not all of the House Ales beers have been brewed at Volo. Some of the collaborations - including, I'm assuming, any over 6.5% - have been brewed elsewhere (i.e. the collaborating brewery).
Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 6:04 pm
by atomeyes
so who comes in and checks the beer's gravity to verify the % of alcohol?
and why does that rule exist?
such a strange, backwards province we have.
Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2012 9:06 pm
by Tapsucker
atomeyes wrote:
and why does that rule exist?
"social responsibility"
atomeyes wrote:
such a strange, backwards province we have.
oh come on, doesn't anybody think of the children anymore?
You are either with the government on this or you are a drunken pornographer.
Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2012 12:07 pm
by Bonesey
Tapsucker wrote:
oh come on, doesn't anybody think of the children anymore?
Helen Lovejoy still does!
I think nanos are a neat idea but the time and effort to make 100 L of beer is the same as 1000 L, and will end up crushing your soul and eat your profits. I would think a 10 hL system is where you'd want to be in terms of making a profit and staying sane.
