Just a week after the chancellor announced a 15% cut in business rates for pubs and grassroots music venues, the price of alcohol in pubs and supermarkets is set to increase.

The price of wine, spirits, lagers, and ciders is set to rise after the alcohol duty increase came into effect on 1 February 2026.

The latest RPI tax hike, set at 3.66%, will mean duty on a bottle of wine at 14.5% abv, has gone up by £1.10 a bottle since the new duty regime came in August 2023.

For a still wine at 14.5% the UK has now topped the tax table with the highest duty rate in Europe according to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA).