|
|
|
|
|
Kenmore, New York (just north of Buffalo) Tel. (716) 877-3574; Fax. (716) 873-9019 [Get Map] Incredible. Fantastic. Unbelievable.
Premier Gourmet is, simply put, the greatest selection of beer I have seen with my own eyes. This store puts Vintages, the LCBO and the Beer Store, our only sources for purchasing bottled beer in the province, to shame. The Premier Group is an unassuming store, located on a commercial street north of Buffalo, New York. Upon entering, sub-doors lead into two main sections, Premier Gourmet and Premier Group. Premier Group is the wine and spirits section, in its own right a fantastic store.
Premier Gourmet is not simply a beer store, but a superstore for all things gourmet. It is a heaven for connoisseurs of fine foods. They define the store as "Where Buffalo Meets The World", and this billing could not be more appropriate. Their website boasts that the store stocks "550 varieties of beer, 400 types of cheeses, 90 flavors of freshly-roasted coffee, 100 different mustards and more than 100 kinds of hot sauce". I have no doubt of the accuracy of these figures; in fact, they may even be understated. As well, they have meats, bakery products, desserts, housewares and art.
Not only was the selection tremendous, so too were the quality of the beers. All of the beers I had only read
about but never tried were on the shelves: the famous New Glarus Belgian Red and Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley
Wine from the US; the Boon Mariage Parfait Kriek and Cantillon Rose de Gambrinus from Belgium; the Kulmbacher
Eisbock from Germany; and Thomas Hardy's Ale from England.
I was aided at the store by their official "Beer Buyer", Lyle Ostrow. He was extremely helpful, and knew a
tremendous amount about beer, both brewing and tasting. He recommended beers and even specific vintages to me.
I have never met anyone at Vintages, the LCBO or the Beer Store who was so knowledgeable and passionate about beer.
However, as a beer lover could easily spend hundreds of dollars on fantastic beers at this
store, one must be very careful and mindful of the laws associated with the importation of
beer from New York to Ontario. Currently, you can bring across the border the equivalent
of one case (8.5L) duty and tax-free after a 48 hour stay in the United States. However,
if the stay is less than 48 hours, a series of duties and taxes
will be collected on any beer brought across the
border. Unfortunately, beer does not fall under the NAFTA
agreement, and US-made beer is not duty-free.
Please see the following example of the duties and
taxes charged on beer importation. In this example, the New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red is used, with a retail price of $8.99 (US$),
which is packaged in a 750mL bottle.
Download an Excel workbook to assist in the calculation of the
duties and taxes for a beer day trip to Buffalo!
I was simply overwhelmed by this store, and afterwards it was extremely disappointing to again reflect on the beer system in Ontario, when such a store can flourish in a smaller city like Buffalo, but is prevented from even opening in a cosmopolitan city like Toronto. The fight for beer freedom will definitely continue.
Click here to view
Premier Gourmet's Beer Listing from September 2002 - PDF
Click here to view
Premier Gourmet's 2002 Christmas Seasonal Releases - PDF
|
News Forum Awards About |
These words are apt to describe my feelings upon entering Premier Gourmet, a beer, wine, spirits and food superstore in Kenmore, New York, just north of Buffalo.
Upon entering the store, I wandered to the far back corner where the beer section is located. As I approached,
the size of the beer section seemed to increase. The section included head-to-toe shelving units and coolers
featuring bottled beers from all over the world. I had stumbled upon the largest selection of bottled beers
I had ever seen, with huge selections from the United States, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the
rest of the world.
There was so much for a beer lover at Premier Gourmet. Also featured in the beer store are different vintages
of various beers, such as the Samichlaus, Thomas Hardy's Ale and Stille Nacht from Belgium - enabling beer
lovers to have a vertical tasting without having to wait many years. As well, the breweries' beer glasses,
something sorely lacking from the LCBO, were also available. And if that's not enough, I even sampled the
cheeses made at the Chimay monastery and brewery in Belgium!
