Some of them are, yes.JeffPorter wrote:I was going to ask, are Magnotta wines VQA?
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Labatt PR Fail
I'm curious about the politics... is there more to the story than the LCBO simply did not have the shelf space for them when they opened?JerCraigs wrote: Define "What's the deal?" They only sell (i think) from their own stores.
http://www.magnotta.com/About.aspx
Do they have to acquire (pre-NAFTA) existing retail stores? I think they likely do, which can't be cheap, but they have 7 of them. It's really too bad they couldn't sell their beer at the retail outlets as well (not just brewed on-premise). Then again, Molbatt would probably get into the wine business just to close out competition.Direct Pricing
By selling our exemplary wines directly to you through our seven retail locations, you save the 58% LCBO mark-up and $1.62/L distribution charges. That means when you buy a $20 wine from Magnotta, you would pay significantly more for the same premium quality wine elsewhere.
I've bought a couple of their wort kits and I use to have an outlet nearby, so it was a quick and handy source for US-05 yeast. Yeah, I sampled some wines and bought a few bottles... I thought they were fine... but people often slag their 'quality'.
Why do they even bother with the VQA if they're not going through the LCBO. Perceived quality? Marketing?
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A guy from Carrick Wines in Bruce County told me that getting VQA status reduces the taxation on the wine, meaning he could sell it for cheaper and/or make more profit.Derek wrote:Why do they even bother with the VQA if they're not going through the LCBO. Perceived quality? Marketing?
No idea if there's any truth to that; just passing along the information without looking it up myself

http://www.vqaontario.com/Regulations/Standards
I think there are probably enough people who want to support Ontario wines and seek out VQA products that it helps, I think that VQA wines are often better or perceived to be better (speaking in broad generalities) than "Cellared in Canada" wines.
I think there are probably enough people who want to support Ontario wines and seek out VQA products that it helps, I think that VQA wines are often better or perceived to be better (speaking in broad generalities) than "Cellared in Canada" wines.