Pub visitors have reacted to the news that the price of a pint has more than doubled since 2000 in the UK. The British Beer and Pub Association estimated that the average current cost of a pint is £4.07.
As the cost of living increases, so does the price of a pint in our local pubs. It was estimated that a pint of beer was just £1.90 in the year 2000 although that increased to £2.81 in 2010.
One person wrote: "Good. The brewing industry has been undervalued and kicked to the curb on price for years. £4 a pint should be the low end. The reason pints are ‘over priced’ is beer duty, the absurd rates the government sets, higher than any of Europe."
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The energy crisis has also played a part in increasing the prices that we can expect to pay for food and drink. Many pub visitors said that the cost of a pint was about the total amount of rent, wages and energy costs experienced by the sector and that other countries, such as Iceland have much higher prices.
One person wrote: "It’s not just the literal pint in front of you that you are paying for. You are paying for the whole process of making the beer, the cost of everything is rising, and the cost of making beer is not exempt from that."
Another shared: "Iceland £10.90 a pint - don’t complain! Our government could follow their lead."
Steve Westby from the Nottingham Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) commented on the increase of pints: "It's inevitable that beer prices are going to rise because the cost of everything is rising - in particular fuel. It takes energy to brew beer and then the cost of fuel to deliver it. It's a sad fact of life that the price of a price is going to increase."
Customers also shared where in Nottingham they had discovered the cheapest - or most expensive - pints. The cheapest pint was said to be £1.99 at a pub in Lenton and also in Newark. Pub chains such as Greene King and Wetherspoons also got a mention as some of the cheapest places to grab a drink in the city.
A Lenton local wrote: "Can get a pint for. 1.99 at White Hart Lenton."
Another shared that "Can get a pint for £2.20 in Newark."
A few older drinkers shared their experiences of pint prices in years gone by which was considerably lower than the £1.90 price in 2000. One customer said their local charged just 48p for a pint in 1979.
One person wrote: "1982 - 19p half a pint of Mansfield bitter."
Customers are also choosing to stay home thanks to the cost of living increases, energy and fuel crisis. This may have an effect on the number of bars open around the city as Covid lockdowns also saw many venues close their doors for good.
"More pubs to close - too expensive to go out. That’s what happens over the years," commented one customer.
Mr Westby commented: "It's the type of pub that has been closing, it's the suburban pubs that we have been losing. Yet there has been an increase in bars in the city centre. We have micropubs and new venues so it reflects a change in where people choose to go out socially. Where it is a very bad thing in situations where a pub is the only hub in a community."
