Alberta craft distillers seek equal playing field, say dated regulations hurting business [Video]

In 2020, Bryan Anderson pivoted in his corporate accounting career and opened Lone Pine Distilling Inc. in Edmonton.

It was an ambitious move, especially given the timing. The COVID-19 pandemic was tilting the odds further away from his new company, even though many might have appreciated a comforting shot of Lone Pine’s hand-crafted gins and vodkas in those days.

Anderson persevered and, as the pandemic receded, emerged with his business intact. But even with a global health crisis behind him, it hasn’t been an easy road.

“Getting noticed on the shelves, getting the customer awareness, getting their buy-in that it is a quality product, it’s tough,” Anderson said of the challenges. He noted that every distiller who sells in Alberta, from local to international, competes with 35,000 individual products on liquor store shelves.

Moreover, distilling is a costly business and it can take years for a product to finally reach …