27-06-2025
How inflation is killing off the pint
Nothing is as emblematic of Britain's drinking culture as the pint. For hundreds of years, the imperial measure has been served in the nation's pubs.
Yet as inflation pushes the price of a pint to record highs, smaller servings are increasingly being poured across the country.
Pub owners say they are selling more beer in so-called 'schooner' glasses, which hold two thirds of a pint, because drinkers are striving to keep the cost of a night out under control.
'Nowadays, two thirds are becoming a little bit more popular in general, regardless of what the beer style is,' says Gabor Csupity, of the Friendship Pub Company, which runs a string of pubs in London.
'I think there is a simple answer to [why] which is the price of beer.'
It raises the question: could the pint be facing extinction in Britain's pubs?
Rise of the £8 pint
The cost of a pint has soared across Britain in recent years, with the average rising above £5 nationally for the first time this year. In many pubs it is already pushing £7. In London, £8 pints are not uncommon.
Hospitality companies have had to grapple with surging energy bills and skyrocketing labour costs – including higher National Insurance (NI) bills levied on them by Rachel Reeves in her maiden Budget – making price rises inevitable.
Big chains such as JD Wetherspoon have been able to keep their prices lower by using their scale to leverage better deals with brewers. But most smaller groups and independent pubs have been forced to pay a much higher price to keep the beer flowing.
