When Size Matters

I noticed this a while back, and meant to raise the matter on this blog, but as usual, got side tracked. But last night I got a text from Tony Helmet, raising the same issue. Why are pubs now only selling the most excellent Holsten Pils in tidgy 275ml bottles instead of the old 330ml, and at the same price?!?!? Of course the reason will come down to money, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out the brewers are making more if they charge for less. I am almost certain that the pubs, of which the majority are owned by faceless corporations that force landlords to buy what they are told are not seeing the extra dosh. The worrying thing is, if it is a success, how long will it be before other brands follow? Not long, in these soulless profit driven times. But this also raises another question. I am old enough to remember the days when the breweries ran the pubs, often being able to keep less profitable village Inns going with subsidies from the more successful one's. But in the early 1980's, the Tory government, decided this was a monopoly, and forced the sell off of thousands of boozers. The breweries, as you would expect, held on the most lucrative. The rest were sold off, apart from the one's that made little or no money, and small village pubs, some that had been around for a couple of centuries, were closed down, and faded into history.

So what happened next? Well firstly, the breweries were swallowed up by huge multi nationals, who couldn't give a toss about community pubs, so these then were sold off, in most cases to other companies, such as Enterprise and Punch, who then leased them out to individuals. Of course this was done at great expense, so the people who took on these businesses were nailed down to what they could sell, and had to pay the leasing companies handsomley for their beer. This in turn created a bigger monopoly than before. That is why, unless you are in a freehold, you are pretty much confronted with a uniform choice of beers in most pubs. A perfect example is the ubiquitous Carling, served in just about every pub in the land. For these firms, at first, all will have seemed gravy. I should imagine the were making money hand over fist. But they had planned without an Empire even more ruthless and profit driven than themselves. The supermarkets. All of a sudden, the over priced drinks on offer, in tatty pubs shorn of investment, were being hugely undercut by the take out market. Why spend a tenner on four pints, when you can get a case of 20 cans for under £20? But did these companies lower the burden on their struggling tenants? Of course not. So what happens next? Pubs start going bust, that's what. And not in dribs and drabs, but by the busload. A lot blame the smoking ban, which I don't buy. Wetherspoons seems to do all right. But then, are 'Spoons they part of the problem? I did for a spell think they were, but I am not so sure now. Why can they sell their beer so much cheaper? Is it because they are a proper company, one that runs it's own business. You cannot tell me, that a company like Enterprise doesn't have the same buying clout, and could afford to sell their drinks cheaper. It is something illustrated perfectly on this link. An historic pub in Southampton has had to close it doors, because 'Spoons is selling a pint of lager for 99p, whilst the landlord of The Grapes, famous as the Titanic pub, is being forced to buy his ale at £1.57, which means he has to sell it to the public at £3.15 to make his overheads. His pleas for a reduction in his rent, or beer prices fell on deaf ears. And still they try and blame the smoking ban.

So now we have smaller bottles. That is the least of our worries. At this rate, we will soon have no pubs.