Wine and wine coolers purchased from on-site winery retail stores

Purchasers of wine and wine coolers from Ontario winery retail stores located on the winery’s production site are subject to the following taxes, which are included in the price of the product.

Wine basic tax:

  • does not apply to Ontario wine or Ontario wine coolers (for purchases made on or after April 1, 2024), and
  • applies to all other wine and wine coolers at a rate of 19.1% of the retail price of the wine or wine cooler.

Volume tax:

  • applies at a rate of 29 cents per litre for wine, or
  • applies at a rate of 28 cents per litre for wine coolers.

Environmental tax:

  • applies at a rate of 8.93 cents per non-refillable container.

Note: The volume and environmental tax did not change effective April 1, 2024 (unlike the wine basic tax) and still applies to Ontario wine and Ontario wine coolers.

Definitions

“Ontario wine” and “Ontario wine cooler” have their own meaning under the Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019 and may differ from what the wine industry may generally consider to be Ontario wine or an Ontario wine cooler.

Ontario wine means wine produced from agricultural products grown in Ontario, and may include agricultural products grown outside of Ontario in the prescribed amounts as set out in the Liquor Licence and Control Act, 2019.

Ontario wine cooler is Ontario wine, or a beverage containing Ontario wine, that contains not more than 7% alcohol by volume.

Retail price of wine or a wine cooler is the amount fixed by the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (or the winery, if the LCBO has not fixed a price) for the wine or wine cooler, less the sum of:

  1. the amount of any deposit on the container containing the wine or wine cooler that is required to be collected or remitted under the Ontario deposit return program
  2. all taxes imposed under Part IX of the Excise Tax Act (Canada) (i.e., HST) in respect of the purchase of the wine or wine cooler, and
  3. all taxes imposed under the Liquor Tax Act, 1996, in respect of the purchase of the wine or wine cooler (if applicable).

Disclaimer: The information on this page does not replace the law found in the Liquor Tax Act, 1996, and related regulations.