Don’t expect to see pints of wine in the shops

After the Government published its response to the imperial units consultation in late December 2023, they said that they will add a 568 ml (pint-size) to the list of permitted sizes for wine bottles as well as the new 200 ml size for still wine and the new 500 ml size for sparkling wine. The headlines in the Government press release and in the media suggesting that pint-sized wine bottles will appear in the shops are misleading because it depends on winemakers making them but there has been a lack of interest in making them.

The Government press release was headlined “‘Pints’ of wine stocked on Britain’s shelves for the first time ever“. Media headlines on this story were:

One thing that the Government and the whole media missed is that the availability of pint-sized wine bottles in the shops depends on the willingness of winemakers to make them. So far, winemakers have shown a lack of interest in making them. Winemakers across the industry have said that they are not willing the produce pint-sized wine bottles. 1 2 3 4 6 7 Wine merchants have also expressed hostility to this proposal. 5

The Grocer quotes a wine importer’s comments about the new pint size, saying:

“Writing on social platform X, wine importer Daniel Lambert described the pint of wine as “a bottle format nobody asked for and isn’t produced anywhere”, adding he had spoken to buyers at “a number of big companies” and none were planning to ask their suppliers for pint bottles.

Lambert told The Grocer he believed there was “less than a 0.01% chance” of any foreign winemakers electing to adopt the pint bottle.” 6

The Grocer continues, “Domestic winemakers have also shown little appetite for the measure. Hattingley Valley, a sparkling producer based in Hampshire, said the introduction of pint-sized bottles would be “prohibitively expensive” and “bring in more complexities to our production processes” without benefiting customers or consumers.” 6

While the 568 ml size will be added to the list of Specified Quantities for wine (i.e. the list of permitted sizes), there is no legal obligation on producers and traders to supply this new size. If the new size is not adopted by anyone, it will be a flop like thirds of a pint of draught beer and cider.

Sources and further reading:

  1. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/champagne-pint-bottles-b2007990.html (“French champagne makers say they have no plans to sell UK government’s Brexit pint bottles” by Jon Stone, The Independent, 5 February 2022)
  2. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/dec/27/pint-of-wine-anyone-uk-looks-to-bring-back-silly-measure (“Pint of wine, anyone? UK looks to bring back ‘silly measure’: Winemakers question plan as government champions Brexit ‘freedom’ to allow old-fashioned size” by Jasper Jolly, The Guardian, 27 December 2023)
  3. https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/dec/29/english-wine-producers-unlikely-to-adopt-redundant-pint-option (“English wine producers unlikely to adopt ‘redundant’ pint option: Environmental, economic and taste reasons cited as why makers may not take size opportunity” by Rob Davies, The Guardian, 29 December 2023)
  4. https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/tory-pint-plan-falls-flat-31774518 (“Tory pint plan falls flat as makers of Churchill’s favourite plonk bottle idea for smaller servings” by Ben Turner, The Mirror, 30 December 2023)
  5. https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2024/01/pint-sized-wine-bottles-permitted/ (“Pint-sized wine bottles permitted” by Louis Thomas, The Drinks Business, 2 January 2024)
  6. https://www.thegrocer.co.uk/alcohol/fizz-fiasco-or-sparkling-opportunity-can-pint-sized-bottles-boost-wine-sales/686696.article (“Why pint-sized bottles won’t deliver the boost Britain’s beleaguered wine category needs” by James Beeson, The Grocer, 3 January 2024)
  7. https://www.regencypurchasing.co.uk/challenges-of-pint-sized-bottles-in-the-uk-wine-sector/ (“Challenges of pint-sized bottles in the UK wine sector”, Regency Purchasing Group, 16 January 2024)
  8. https://www.gov.uk/weights-measures-and-packaging-the-law/specified-quantities

12 thoughts on “Don’t expect to see pints of wine in the shops”

  1. Pint bottles? Bah, humbug! Good riddance to bad rubbish is more like it, eh?

    Guess it’s another victory for common sense and metric, eh? :-)

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  2. The non-news story continues to unfold. The BBC came in for some criticism in the unbalanced way in which it reported on the forthcoming availability of pint bottles. We see now that it suffered the consequences of being first with the news. It had simply copied the biased press release from the Government. Subsequently the Independent, Guardian and Mirror gave more-balanced reports of the reality.

    The championing of Sir Winston Churchill continues, advocating the pint bottle because it was his “choice”.

    So here’s an idea. Sir Winston Churchill was also very fond of cigars, as is well known. So, regardless of the restrictions on other tobacco products, let’s make it legal for cigars to be sold to anyone of any age.

    Liked by 2 people

  3. The whole ‘pint’ fiasco was and still is a massive waste of public time, money and effort for the infantile gratification of the very few.

    Never before have so many suffered for the will of so few.

    Hardly a victory in any way whatsoever I would say.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. The Imperial Pint of champagne produced by French champagne houses years ago would seem to have been a bottle of 600 ml, not the 568 ml that corresponds to the English imperial pint (of beer or cider). If Winston Churchill did express his desire for the 600 ml ‘pint’ bottle, I doubt very much whether he would have known, or cared, that it was not the same as the pint served in a pub, and he would have been using the term in a very general manner. So all the exalting about bringing back a ‘pint’ of champagne is a bit of a joke, especially as none of the champagne producers in France or sparking wine producers in England seem to have any interest in creating a size between 500 ml and 750 ml.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. The UK government is too feeble on liberalisation. Fixed sizes of wine should be abolished. Wine is an exception in requiring fixed sizes and even that exception might eventually disappear.

    The law on fixed sizes in the EU was a mess prior to EU liberalisation in 2007. For example prior to that, UK producers could not use 500 gram containers in UK shops but non-UK producers could. The nearest legal sizes for UK producers of jam were 454 g and 680 g.

    This is what the EU said:

    “Therefore, in the context of the SLIM exercise for simpler legislation, liberalisation of pack sizes (except for EU sizes for wines and spirits) was introduced in 2007. Based on an impact assessment, including a wide consultation of all interested stakeholders, it aimed in many sectors, by means of free nominal quantities to increase the freedom of producers to provide goods according to consumer tastes and enhance competition as regards quality and price on the internal market. In wine and spirits, however, it was deemed more appropriate, in the interests of consumers and business, to retain mandatory nominal quantities for the time being. Consumer protection was considered already to be facilitated by the full application of then existing legislation, notably by the Directive on unit pricing”

    https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1467706973257&uri=SWD:2016:219:FIN

    Note the phrase “for the time being“. Six member states wanted to abolish fixed sizes of wine.

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  7. @Terry

    A neat bit of EU bashing there.

    “For example prior to that, UK producers could not use 500 gram containers in UK shops but non-UK producers could. The nearest legal sizes for UK producers of jam were 454 g and 680 g.”

    That was due to UK prescribed sizes of 1lb (454 g), not so sure I ever saw a 1.5lb jar (680 g), but the UK law was multiples of probably 8oz for preserves and honey. It was this UK restriction that prevent the use of 500 g containers.

    Even up to a year or so ago (elsewhere on these pages) I was having to avoid buying jam and honey in ozzes, presumably packed to satisfy the odd 0.4% that got a buzz from it.

    The fixed size of wine of 750 ml is in fact 1 sixth of a UK gallon established by the wine trade for European exporters to ship to the UK market. True it may hopefully be replaced by a “proper” metric size sometime.

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  8. Jam, marmalade, honey, syrup, treacle and molasses were the only exceptions in retaining imperial prescribed sizes (rounded to the nearest gram) in the UK, until 2009. This was not the fault of the EU, but a failure of the 1979 UK government to properly complete the metrication of prescribed package sizes.

    All other prescribed sizes were switched to round metric sizes in the 1970s, with some foodstuffs retaining their old imperial prescribed sizes (rounded to the nearest gram) in addition to new metric prescribed sizes. e.g. milk and prepacked potatoes.

    This is detailed in the 1980 Report of the Metrication Board:

    Prepacked prescribed quantity foods

    2.6 Metrication of the basic ‘shopping basket’ foods, such as flour, instant coffee, tea, butter and margarine is largely complete. By the beginning of 1980 over 95 per cent by value of these foods was made up in rounded metric quantities. Jam, marmalade, honey, jelly preserves, syrup, cereal grains and starches, and coffee (beans and ground) are the only prescribed quantity foods for which ranges of metric sizes are not yet agreed.

    2.7 Manufacturers and importers of dried vegetables, dried fruits, flour and flour products, oat products, cocoa and chocolate powder finished the change to metric prepacks in the second half of 1978. in February 1979 margarine in 250 g and 500 g packs started to appear on retailers’ shelves. In July instant coffee and butter started to appear in metric sizes. In September white fats and dripping began the changeover.

    2.8 The changes were brought into effect by legislation embodying timetables agreed by the sector concerned. Manufacturing cut-off dates were introduced for imperial packs of pasta, dried fruits, dried vegetables, and flour and flour products. Additionally, cut-off dates for retail sales of imperial packs were approved for biscuits, bread, chocolate bars, cocoa and drinking chocolate, oat products, sugar, cornflakes, salt, tea, butter, margarine, white fats and dripping, and shredded suet. There are two retail cut-off dates in 1980; for tea on 29 June and for shredded suet on 28 September. Legislation permitting metric ranges for instant coffee and prepacked potatoes has resulted in a widespread change of the former product, but little change of the latter.

    Liked by 1 person

  9. It’s amazing how many of the fake news outlets reported a return of pint bottles in 2024 based on either a government spokesperson’s claim or the reporters/editors own made-up nonsense. Even those reporters that bothered to interview those in the wine industry and print their quotes where they said they would not produce a 570 mL pint, insisted on claiming boldly that pints will return. 

    Then there is Rathfinny, a company that a few years ago did produce 800 bottles of sparkling wines in what they called a pint. But to them and to the rest of the industry a pint means 500 mL, yet the media Luddites despite pointing this out with one side of their mouth kept insisting in the articles that 570 mL pint bottles will appear this year (2024). Yellow journalism at its finest. 

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Back in the real world, whilst this pointless idea for ‘pints of wine’ has been grabbing the headlines, one of the leading supermarkets, Iceland, has recently dropped pint containers from their range of fresh milk.
    This is a major step forward and we should congratulate them for being the first major supermarket to do so.
    Fresh supermarket cows milk, unlike the various filtered, organic, oat, and almond varieties etc has always been sold in rounded pint sizes.
    It will be interesting to see if the other major supermarkets follow suit in taking Iceland’s lead. There have been some inevitable ‘shrinkflation’ jibes against Iceland, despite them reducing the prices.
    What I do find intriguing about Iceland’s metric switch is the backstory of their high profile executive chair’s changing political affiliations. Not too long ago, he was mooted as a potential Conservative parliamentary candidate before labelling them ‘out of touch’ and backing Sir Kier Starmer for the next prime minster.

    Liked by 2 people

  11. @BrianAC wrote: “Terry A neat bit of EU bashing there.”

    I’m not sure what part of my comment made you conclude it was EU bashing. I’m aware the UK prescribed size 454 g is a metrication of 1 lb and it was this UK restriction that prevent the use of 500 g containers. EU member states had legacy legislation at national level that was incompatible with other EU member states yet they could only enforce such legislation on their own national producers. That’s why I described it as a mess that the EU cleared up by abolishing many fixed sizes.

    Several member states and commentators wanted to abolish fixed sizes for wine but there wasn’t consensus. This leaves the EU with anomalies such as 500 ml bottles being permitted for still wine but forbidden for sparkling wine, and 700 ml bottles of whisky forbidden in the EU despite this being a size important to exporters.

    If the ‘pint of wine’ is important to voters, perhaps the UK government in 2007 should have claimed credit for 454 gram jars of jam now being permitted throughout the EU. They could have released a press release saying “We will now see 1 lb jars of jam in Paris shops”.

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  12. Correction to my previous comment:

    • “700 ml bottles of whisky”

    should have been

    • “750 ml bottles of whisky“

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