Beverages: A state of the union

Beverages:

A STATE OF THE UNION, AND AN EYE TO THE YEAR AHEAD

BY TOM FIRTH

t’s been exceedingly difficult to get a true, honest sense of the emerging trends when it comes to I beverages this past year and what lies ahead in the near future. Covid-19 has so muddled the data and the established beverage trends that it might be nearly impossible to predict what we are going to be drinking but we might be able to foresee how we are drinking in 2022.

Industry-led research is practically bleating that folks just want to get back to normal, they want to spend as much as they used to in bars and restaurants, and that they want to go as frequently and with the same enthusiasm as they used to. It might be true, but many Canadians have also been taking a slower, more measured response when it comes to how they are approaching those past habits.

We are still (generally) having smaller get-togethers, with fewer households in attendance, we get out with friends less often, and most people are still more comfortable dining (or imbibing) at home. Younger adults might be heading out and partying like it was 2019, while other swaths of the population are returning to dine in a slightly different fashion.

While hopefully, people are more aware of the need to support local businesses, in some ways this is leading to a trend towards “craft” or “localwashing”, where sometimes tenuous connections to local considerations are being made. Local is good. But what really is local or craft, and is it enough? So, you are local? So what? Are you good too? What are you doing well, and how are you when stacked up against other offerings, including international ones?

Many producers are still using the craft banner, but choosing instead to focus on being independently owned and operated. Local, real people, making a quality product without corporate or foreign ownership is likely the best way to look at it. But it still has to be good, and still manage to compete in the market.

After a brief break (wonder why) from some of the national level beverage competitions, it was fantastic to be selected again to judge this past year at the Canadian Artisan Spirits Competition and once again at the National Wine Awards of Canada. At these national-level competitions, it’s heartening to see that the bar continues to be elevated year after year. Canadian wine is world class, but at the same time distinctly Canadian, so we are seeing unique expressions of classic grapes – showing off our unique terroirs. I still find prices slightly high for Canadian wine compared to international examples, but there is no doubting the quality is superb.

For the Canadian Artisan Spirits Competition, it’s most exciting to see how good everything is. There are very, very few lousy examples - poorly made or poorly executed in their style. Among other things, our base ingredients like barley or corn, are capable of making top quality, but we also seem to have the right sort of expertise and skill base, to push the bar forward with fine examples. Honestly, outside of a few spirit styles specific to a country or appellation (I’m

lookin’ at you tequila), I don’t see much reason to not buy a Canadian-made bottle.

On the beer front, The Establishment Brewing company is still fresh off the recent win at the Canadian Brewing Awards with the 2021 Brewery of the Year accolade. It’s incredibly refreshing to see Alberta-based producers winning national awards here within the province. No less significant, The Establishment, a few short weeks later, won the best Alberta brewery at the Alberta Brewing Awards. The big takeaway here is that our breweries are making exceptional product and stack up nicely against other provinces even those with a perhaps stronger, and longer habit of craft brewing. But more importantly to me, this brewery also winning at the provincial level means local competition is high, and the bar is set even higher. This can only mean that our quality of locally made beers will continue to get better.

Direct to consumer (DTC) was a big topic of discussion with the wine judges from across the country at the National Wine Awards of Canada, and while it’s a small part of the market – a drop in the bucket if you will - for wine purchases, it’s a big part of the picture for our national producers, of which even the largest are often quite small compared to international wineries, breweries, and distilleries. Currently, the powers that be in Alberta’s beverage alcohol system still take a dim view on Albertans ordering directly from these out of province producers (within Alberta is a-ok). And to their credit, our privately owned beverage retailers are generally locally owned businesses who rely on our support, as well as the importers or agents who find these products, bring them into Alberta, and spend a lot of effort marketing, banging the drum, and getting the word out on these products we see lining our shelves. Long story short, support our local retailers when you can, but if you really, really want to order directly from a winery…. there are ways, but I’m not going to suggest that you do.

One thing to consider is that while supply chains have been disrupted around the world since Covid-19 became a household name, knock-on effects are everywhere. It isn’t just bicycle spokes and computer chips, but moving into the winter months, shortages have been creeping up in a few spheres, such as champagne. Closer to home, it does mean that some products won’t be as easy to get, or things like hops or even new cans or bottles might be in short supply, but do use the opportunity to talk to your local liquor store and find out some recommendations. Again, as in years past, it’s worth mentioning that locally made products do support our communities, and if you can’t find something made nearby, it’s worth looking for Canadianmade options where possible too. In other, sobering drink news, it still boggles my mind how good non-alcoholic wines, beers, and spirits have become. Generally speaking, the alcohol in those drinks adds flavour, weight, and texture to them. Removing that alcohol can make the difference between a beautiful, dry gin, and a nice glass of juniper water. During the pandemic, there has been a shift in the how and why we drink. Like anything best enjoyed in moderation, some people have chosen to imbibe less, and others might have more compelling reasons to take a break or even abstain completely.