My Take On The UK Budget Beer Duty And What It Means For Breweries
- The Hopper
- Nov 27
- 3 min read
Right, the Budget’s landed, and I’ve been chewing it over with a pint and a raised eyebrow. I’m no economist, I’m just a bloke who drinks far too much craft beer and talks about it on the internet, but I know enough to see when small brewers are about to get kicked in the hops again.
The UK Budget beer duty changes have got me thinking about what this means for craft breweries and drinkers like me
These are my thoughts on what this Budget means for the beer world, and I’d genuinely love to hear your opinions in the comments.
How The UK Budget Beer Duty Could Push Prices Up
From what I can see, nothing meaningful has changed with alcohol duty. It’s still ABV based, and anything strong enough to put hair on your chest gets whacked the hardest. So higher strength IPAs, DIPAs, imperial stouts, the fun stuff, they’ll all creep up in price.
The macro giants like Heineken won’t care. BrewDog will probably turn it into a new marketing gimmick. But the small craft breweries, the ones hanging on by their fingertips, they’re the ones who’ll feel every penny of this.
Did Small Brewers Get Any Extra Relief? I’m Not Seeing It
We’ve still got the Small Producer Relief scheme, but it’s basically the newer, stingier cousin of the old Small Brewers Relief. Plenty of smaller breweries are already paying more duty than they used to.
From what I’ve read and seen today, there’s nothing new here to help them. No fresh relief, no extra breathing room, nothing to offset all the rising costs. It feels like they’ve been left to crack on with it.
Will This Push More Brewers Out Of Business? I honestly think yes
I hate saying it, but I’d be shocked if it didn’t. Breweries have been folding all year. Energy, ingredients, packaging, transport, duty, everything has shot up.If you’re a microbrewery producing small batches of high quality beer, already running on tight margins, this Budget is a punch in the ribs. I’m expecting more closures, more consolidations, and more brewers reducing output just to stay alive.
Will Beer Prices Go Up? Almost definitely
Lower ABV stuff might only nudge up slightly, but strong beer is going to feel it. Anything above four point five percent is living on borrowed time.
Pubs will move prices first because they have to. Supermarkets will hold steady for a bit, then quietly bump things up when no one’s paying attention.
What’s The Best ABV To Drink Now If You Want Value?
This is just my opinion, but the sweet spot now is between three point eight and four point five percent. Duty is kinder there, and you still get a beer that tastes like beer.Anything below three point four percent is dirt cheap duty wise, but most of them taste like someone strained a wet tea towel into a glass. If you know any session miracles, tell me, because I’d love to be proven wrong.
Will This Change How I Buy Beer? Probably
I think I’ll be leaning even harder into local breweries and independent pubs. If the government won’t help small producers, the least I can do is spend with the people who actually need the support. Supermarkets and macro breweries aren’t going anywhere.
Good Idea, Bad Idea? For me it’s a bad idea
Bad for small breweries. Bad for pubs. Bad for craft drinkers. Good for the giants who can soak up the costs without blinking.
If you care about the craft scene, this is the moment to speak up, support small brewers, and keep shouting about why independent beer matters.
What Do You Think?
Do you think this Budget hits small breweries too hard? Will it change what you drink? Will higher prices push you towards lower ABV beers?
Drop your thoughts in the comments. I want to hear what everyone else is seeing out there.
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