LAKEPORT being sold to LABATT!!!

[cattersley]

Say it ain't so! Lakeport is being sold to Labatt.

If you arn't living in Ontario, Lakeport is a brewery out of Hamilton that has faught for fair pricing in the brewing industry with keeping its product(s) at 26.40$ per 24 This is a price with deposit that kept beer at a 1$ per bottle.

This company single handly started the popular 'value brand' section at the Beer Store and the LCBO to directly compete with Molson and Labatt monopoly of over beer prices. Brand like Laker, Pabst BLue Ribbon, President Choice (PC), James Ready... and many more (www.thebeerstore.ca) are more value brands under the 24 for 24 category that wouldn't have benefited had it not been for Lakeport...

Lakeport Pilsner and Honey Lager are numbers 8, and 9 of Ontario 'Big Ten' favorites sold at the beer store. Until Lakeport came around the all the top 10 beers sold in Ontario were dominated by Labatt and Molson. Not even Sleeman cracked the top ten!

Now they are being sold... So it isn't going to be too long where the regular business of raising the price of beer every 1.5 - 2 years by 45 - 65 cents a case or more starts to happen, and this value brand market is slowly killed off screwing the Ontario beer drinker!

This is a dark day in Ontario Brewing...

- cattersly.

Here is the full story:

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20070201/labatt_beer_070201/20070201?hub=Canada

[jesskidden]

Having Canadian heritage and having lived on the border (upstate NY) I used to know the Canadian brewing industry pretty well- back in the 1970's and early 80's but, then, well... things happened down here in the US brewing industry and I lost touch with what was going on up there.

Back when I was up on things, you folks had a "Big 3"- Molson, Labatt and Carling-O'Keefe and, I thought, they were all about the same size. I knew that Molson merged with Carling, so I assumed they were the big brewer so these articles are a bit surprising that Labatt is the largest Canadian brewery.

Is there a good Canadian brewing history website someone could recommend to "catch up"? I mean, I was surprised to read about Sleeman's history when they were recently bought by the Japanese. I don't even remember a "Sleemans" at all- yet they were the new #3- where'd they come from?

Also, this Lakeport in Hamilton. Is this the same brewing facility that was once owned by the German Henninger and later Heineken's Amstel? I always wondered what became of that brewery (we used to get their Grizzly Beer down here in the states).

I still miss Molson Stock Ale- nice and hoppy, it reminded me of my favorite US pre-micro beer, Ballantine Ale- is that any good or is it all just nostalgia on my part.

[cattersley]

Molson merged with Coors, and imports alot of premium brands including Corona, and MGD to name a few. Molson Canadian and Coors light are the two biggest selling beers in Ontario. Labatt owns alot of breweries including Alexander Keiths, but Labatt is owned by Interbrew or Inbev, which own Stella Artois, Bass Pale Ale... and the list goes on. What is horrible is that Molson and Labatt are swollowing up alot of mirco's, and value brand brews.

In Ontario, beer is only sold at the Beerstore, and the LCBO. You can go the supermarket or corner store to buy it. The Brewers Retail is owned by the big three brewers, Molson, Labatt, and Sleeman, the LCBO is owned by the Provincal government. A monopoly... a clear monopoly. In the US. and Quebec is prices wars. We are paying alot for beer now, with these value brands being baught up, prices that are considered reasonable here are going to go up eventually.


www.molson.com
www.labatt.com
www.sleeman.ca

Those are some websites I could suggest for more info about Canadian beer history.

- cattersley.

[markaberrant]

I don't see why a local swill brewery being bought by an international swill brewery should make a lick of difference.

[Mill Rat]

From a craft brewery's perspective, this might be good news. If the bottom of the market comes up, the standard brands (e.g. Molson, Labatt) will also bump up a bit, and the craft brews will become more competitive without the craft brewers dropping their price.

[cattersley]

For most craft beers you are looking to Pay between 36 - 45$ for a 24. The Molson and Labatt are selling now at 36$

The value beers section that is in peral over this buying of Lakeport are prised at 26.40$, and are represented by 5 Lakeport brands and about 15 others brands from various breweries including some brands from Labatt and Molson.

What is going on here is Molson and Labatt trying to sqeese out these value brands because Ontarians have been buying them because of there low prices, and good qaulity.

This is loosing both Molson and Labatt alot of money, which they both have been in the practice of trying to up beer prices very 1 - 2 years.

With this aquisition Labatt is paving the way to eventually emliminate this value section and raise prices across the board. Everyone time Labatt raises prices, then Molson follows. There is a monopoly in the beer industry between the two as it was, and now even bigger. Yes this might help the craft brewing industry, but the consumer is going to be shelling out alot more for beer.

If you compare these to U.S. and U.K. pricing we are being ripped off by the big breweries, and over taxed by all levels of goverment... There is no competition in Ontario becasue the big brewers and goverment are responsible for selling and settng minimum prices and taxes!

The solution.?. Not buying there products, a practice which I have been doing for years, in tern has resulted in them loosing money, and is why Lakeport was baught in the first place. So... other than brew your own or home brew, what ithere left to do?


- cattersley.

[Mill Rat]

Homebrew sounds more and more appealing. It tastes better, too.