[This post was written by Blork…]
The workers of the liquor stores in Quebec are on strike. In any other place in Canada that would cause a small crisis, but Quebec is distinct in Canada for several reasons, one of which is the retail sales of beer and wine. While spirits can only be purchased at the government-run retail stores (the Société des alcools du Québec, or SAQ) beer and wine can be purchased at any grocery store or dépanneur (convenience store).
To my knowledge, the only other place in Canada where you can buy beer in convenience stores is Newfoundland. In that case it is only selected stores (I think) and you have to buy a “package.” Here in Quebec, beer and wine is available in every dépanneur, and you can buy individual bottles, not just packages.
Unfortunately, the selection of beers and wines at most dépanneurs is not great. In the case of wines, there is a clear distinction between the wines of a dépanneur and the wines of the SAQ. Essentially, wines that are shipped to Quebec in bulk to be bottled locally are sold in dépanneurs. Most are quite bad, although some — notably the ones from Chile — are serviceable as table wines. “Real” wines are only available at the SAQ.
As for beers, most dépanneurs handle the usual array of standard domestics — Labatt and Molson products, perhaps some Sleeman’s, and a few others. Most dépanneurs have a few “imports” which are invariably Grolsh, Heineken, and Corona. Dépanneurs in urban areas usually carry a selection of Quebec-made microbrews (usually from Brasseur du Nord and McAuslan), but the farther you get into the countryside the fewer you see of these — unless you find yourself in an enclave of urbanites in exile.
This system has the immediate benefit of having wine and cold beer available within walking distance of any home until 11:00 pm seven days a week. However, it is not without pitfalls. For example, the dépanneur wines are not only of lower quality than SAQ wines, but they seem, quite naturally, to be less expensive. Not necessarily, however, given that SAQ prices include all taxes and dépanneur prices do not include 15% sales tax. Most dépanneur wines are priced between $8 and $12 before tax, which I find outrageous. It is still possible to find a quite drinkable wine at the SAQ for under $11. Some dépanneurs — such as ones that are far from any SAQ outlet — gouge the consumer by cranking the prices even higher. I once was asked for $17 (after taxes) for a bottle of wine that usually retailed for about $10 (and was worth half of that in terms of quality).
In terms of beer, the SAQ handles an interesting — but not exhaustive — array of imported beers, and does not carry domestics. Thus, if you want to try something interesting from elsewhere, the SAQ is usually your only choice (but not always — more on that in another post). However, you can imagine my surprise when I found cans of Japanese Sapporo beer in my neighbourhood grocery store last week, stacked next to jars of mustard and cans of tomatoes. Sapporo is quite well known, and easy to find, but I have not had it for some time, so I bought one — partially because I’m rather fond of the heavy aluminum can in which it comes.
I cracked it open last night over a dinner of guacamole, artisanal tortilla chips, and home-made chili. It was much as I remembered it — a good sturdy lager with a nice lacy head and golden color. Sort of a summery beer, but robust enough to stand up to my beefy meal. Then I looked closely at the can and was shocked to see that it was made in Ontario by Sleeman’s, under license from Sapporo! Quel shock!
And there lies another pitfall of dépanneur shopping. A quick visit to the SAQ’s Web site revealed that “real” Sapporo from Japan is available in some SAQ stores. Those who like the convenience of dépanneurs, however, must bear with the imitations.
Since both are available, perhaps I should set up a taste test…
[Original comments…]
Alan – November 26, 2004 3:03 PM
We have moved from “taste test” to “science with beer”. Good post.
I am going to the Pixies concert Sunday in Hull and was hoping to do some SAQ browsing. How hot is the strike? I am not a picket line crosser genetically. There is a big depanneur in Hull that vendes les bieres according to the sign so I take the digital camera for a walk and just focus on that spot. See if I can find a six of Champlain porter with its eerie packaging with the floating head of Champlain on a butterscotch background.
Big tip – ask before you take photos in a beer store and if they say no, turn off the flash before you click.
blork – November 26, 2004 4:46 PM
http://blork.typepad.com
I’m not sure how “hot” things are. Most SAQ stores are closed (I should have specified that in my post). 50 of the 400 stores in Quebec are open, being run by managers. I don’t know if there are picketers or not — I suspect there are. You can find out which stores are open by checking the web site (www.saq.com).
Fortunately, I have a few bottles of wine in reserve (I usually have 8 or 10 laying around, just in case) so it hasn’t been much of a problem for me yet…
Alan – November 26, 2004 4:57 PM
A couple more weeks for you and it will be a dash to Hawksbury, Ontario I suppose.
lambic – November 27, 2004 10:23 PM
http://www.lambic.co.uk/blog
We drove out to Lancaster, Ontario today and visited their LCBO. The selection was very poor, but we managed to stock up on wine etc. for the holiday season.
Alan – November 27, 2004 10:27 PM
You gotta do what you gotta do – what was the difference, what was not there?
lambic – November 27, 2004 11:47 PM
http://www.lambic.co.uk/blog
It’s a small store so it has limited shelf space. Their target audience seems to be the quantity over quality crowd with big bottles of cheap plonk and little bottles of stuff that will knock you out in two gulps.
The big SAQs have a big selection of wine; I’d say this place had less than half of what we’re used to. The beer selection was slightly better, but there wasn’t much in the way of micro brews.
Alan – November 28, 2004 12:22 AM
Thanks for reply. I am a Maritimer in Ontario and when I have to hit the road and head home, I make sure I stop at the Riviere du Loup SAQ Selection shop which has an astounding selection of red wines, mainly french. I think that a good LCBO like the Kingston downtown one, can hold its own to a good SAQ but the focus is a little different. A small town LCBO can be a little ugly, espcially as it can be the only game in town, unlike Quebec. Shop for wine in PEI, however, as I have and you will know what bleak it.
Charles – December 3, 2004 12:24 AM
http://yellowfrog.gimpe.com/
There is a “depanneur” in Cap-Rouge, a Quebec City suburb, where you can find more than 350 different brands of beer. I grew up in that suburb and I assure you a visit to “Depanneur de la Rive” is a must if you happen to go to Quebec City. Maybe Montreal-based contributor Blork could make a day trip to Quebec City…
Check out the depanneur’s wicked website, especially the list of the beers they sell:
http://www.depdelarive.com
Beijing-based Charles
Alan – December 3, 2004 8:35 AM
That is handy info. I often stop at Levis on my Maritimes to Kingston tours.
Charles – December 7, 2004 12:32 PM
http://yellowfrog.gimpe.com/
Ask Danny, the owner of Dep de la Rive, to give you a tour. He usually is behind the counter. (God! do I miss this place now that I am in Beijing! I think I miss it as much as the outdoor ice rinks). Just tell Danny you know Beijing-based Charles, I often buy St-Ambroise (my favorite) there when I visit my parents. The place is quite unique. Awesome, and quite unexpected.
Charles – December 7, 2004 12:35 PM
http://yellowfrog.gimpe.com
If you go to Quebec City and plan to visit Depanneur de la Rive, I might as well hook you up with my dad, he would love to take you there. He knows everyone.
Alan – December 7, 2004 1:14 PM
That is a great invite. Likely won’t pass through until the spring at the earliest. The Great Lakes Brewing News I picked up in Sytacuse also mentions a great Montreal Depanneur. I may have to start a list.
Get your Dad to take some digital photos and we could do a story on la Rive. I am all in favour of free ads for good stores.
Andrew Mazanec – February 2, 2005 10:11 PM
Dear Sirs,
I am a firefighter in St. Louis, Mo.USA.I am heading to Quebec City, Quebec in the end of June through the first week of July for the World Police and Fire Games. I have a few alcohol related questions:
1)What is the cost for one case of beer domestic and Anheuser Busch products?
2) What is the cost of Canadian Blended whiskey approx. 400-500ML?
3) What time do establishments stop serving alcohol?
4) Are there any open container laws on public streets parks. etc.
Alan – February 2, 2005 10:16 PM
Good Questions. I am going to move it to the front page.
Andrew Mazanec – February 2, 2005 11:31 PM
Dear Alan,
Thank you for taking the time to answer some of my questions. I have e-mailed Blork for the other questions. You are correct in saying that if there is a strike continuing against SAQ. that myself, nor my union brothers and sisters will not patronize these outlets.
Andrew Mazanec
St. Louis, Mo. USA
Andrew Mazanec – February 2, 2005 11:35 PM
Dear Alan,
Thank you for taking the time to answer some of my questions. I have e-mailed Blork for the other questions. You are correct in saying that if there is a strike continuing against SAQ. that myself, nor my union brothers and sisters will patronize these outlets.
Andrew Mazanec
St. Louis, Mo. USA
Andrew Mazanec – February 2, 2005 11:36 PM
Sorry about that last message. A corrected message was resent.
Andrew Mazanec
Alan – February 3, 2005 8:19 AM
No problem at all.
Mosco – May 15, 2006 11:13 AM
Great info! We’re heading up to Laniel for a fishing trip and NEED to bring lots of beer…
what are the current proced for Blue and/or Export?
Sargent Starr – August 3, 2006 4:08 PM
http://thebeerstore.blogspot.com/
Buying Beer In Quebec at your local Dep does not work
Here Is a just one reason http://thebeerstore.blogspot.com/
aou – August 11, 2009 9:32 AM
http://notachain.blogspot.com
There are few good microbreweries around. barbarian brewery in Quebec City is on my must-to-visit-ebery-time list.
Another interesting thing about Quebec – Bring Your Own Wine program is way more developed comparing to one in Ontario.
Black Snake – August 11, 2009 4:13 PM
Can anyone recommend a dépanneur or other store very close to the Vermont border at Highgate (I-89/US-7), in Canada on 133, that would carry Québec brews? I’m interested in various Boréale and Unibroue products not available in the US, and I’d like to make it a very quick trip from the US and back.
billy harris – February 21, 2010 3:47 PM
I tried a beer in quebec a specialty beer, brown bottle with a purple knight on the front. It was AMAZING. never tasted anything like it. anyone know what it is called?
BIlly
Dee – January 1, 2011 9:19 PM
Can anyone tell me where I can find a store that sells beer near the Quebec border. Im from fredericton NB and would like to purchase cheap beer near Quebec??
Armin Karcher – September 1, 2012 1:12 AM
I just wanted to know if Parkbräu ( brewed by PARK Brewery Zweibrücken Pirmasens Germany ) is available in Quebec. Perhaps somebody knows…