Bootlegging and speak-easy bars making a comeback?

Speakeasy Yes...

the booze is still flowing so 'full' bootlegging is a stretch... but I would not be shocked to see some 'creative accounting' to see that large whole sale purchases can be hidden to keep up

I was gonna say roughly the same (minus the creative accounting. You're correct there, but I hadn't thought about that). Grocery stores still have plenty of alcohol. I've developed a small schnapps collection (I usually plan on drinking more than I actually do, so I still have plenty of leftover).

I would think that business sized purchases of legal alcohol would not go unnoticed, But that’s just my perspective.

depends on how you do it...
- it was fairly early on that 'Drive thru"/Off sale alcohol purchases were ok'd (w/ a food purchase)... so the Purchase orders wouldn't be completely wiped out

add in Sams/Costco membership (plenty of small bars already used them for food items) and a friend or two with accounts as well, and you could easily Mask 50-75% of your stock purchases...

and if your patrons are smart enough to "Not Talk about Booze Club" you don't need to purchase same volume as you did Pre-Rona...
- and not to imply they'd short their clients but you can get some extra mileage out of diluting/making them slightly weaker
* remember a lot of today's Cocktails were invented or evolved from Prohibition era practices to stretch the hooch, and cover up poor quality (possibly lethal) of the Bootleg shine...

Bars are open again in my state despite the governor wanting to keep lockdown going so it probably won't be happening around me anytime soon. Plus liquor stores were deemed essential so we always had a steady supply of booze coming.

Yep. Heavy handed government has consequences.

Government should be local wherever possible in my opinion. The Feds are best regulating and monitoring - set the standards, let the state and local governments find their own ways to meet them and monitor for corruption, but stay the hell out of service delivery and broad brush initiatives. "National solutions" tend to create problems locally because there is no way to accomodate all the diverse conditions.

I agree wholeheartedly!

In Alberta?