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CALGARY – Thirsty cowboys and cowgirls will once again be able to grab a drink starting at 8 a.m. during the 2015 Calgary Stampede.

The Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission announced on Monday that bars, restaurants and lounges in the city will have the option of beginning liquor service two hours earlier than usual from July 3 to 12, 2015.

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“It will require staffing for earlier liquor services and consumption,” said regional manager of South AGLC Graham Wadsworth. “It also opens other opportunities for businesses to get involved in the Stampede breakfast trade. So it’s totally up to each individual business operator as to what they choose for their own business.”

Closing hours for liquor service are not changing.

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On parade day, some classes of licenses can ask to begin serving alcohol as early as 7 a.m.

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The relaxed drinking rules come after a relatively uneventful test run in 2014, which the AGLC called “successful” from its standpoint.

But the executive director of the Calgary Downtown Association says last year’s trial wasn’t particularly successful due to the short notice given; most businesses didn’t have time to increase staff for the event, she said.

“This time we got a little bit more notice, which is good,” said Maggie Schofield. “The other thing which I think is great, is that it gives people the opportunity to be creative, so maybe they’ll do a breakfast or something along those lines that they maybe wouldn’t have done before.

“But the economy is in such a state of flux that I don’t really know if it will make any difference at all this year.” Tweet This

Prior to the 2014 Stampede test, the AGLC had also relaxed liquor rules to allow bars and restaurants to open early for the Olympic gold medal game between Team Canada and Sweden in February 2014.

Several Calgary bars took advantage of the move, and began serving booze starting at 5 a.m.

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With files from Masha Scheele

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