Explainer: How much will beer, wine and spirits cost under new minimum alcohol pricing?

Most lagers and ciders in and around the 4-5% strength range will cost at least €1.60-1.90 a can, or €1.10-1.40 a bottle under the system. Photo: RollingNews.ie

New rules on the sale of alcohol are going to have a big impact on prices when they come into effect this week.

For some products, it will mean prices rise. For some it won’t. 

But, as we will have seen around Christmas time, slabs of beer are often heavily discounted, working out a lot cheaper than they would be if you were buying the same cans or bottle in packs of eight or four.

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Such slabs will now have to cost more under the new minimum unit alcohol pricing system that has come into effect. Furthermore, cheap spirits, wines, and beers will also see price rises under the new system.

So how does it work?

The outline on how it works is contained in the Public Health Alcohol Bill (2018).

The headline part of that legislation dealing with the minimum price says: “The minimum price per gram of alcohol… shall be €0.10”.

The law also says that the minister has the power to increase the minimum price per gram, but must wait three years after these measures take effect. There’s a formula set out in the legislation for it all, so let’s take an example.

Galahad is a cheap beer sold in Aldi. It was 75c a can.

To work out how much it could cost under the new system, we multiply how much is in the can (500ml) by how strong it is (4%) and then multiply by .789. Then, we multiply it by the 10c minimum unit price per gram.

So, in practice, a can of Galahad would have to be €1.57 under the new system. Most lagers and ciders in and around the 4-5% strength range will cost at least €1.60-1.90 a can, or €1.10-1.40 a bottle under the system.

How much will other things cost?

Let’s try these formulas out on a few other popular drinks (taking their price and details from a number of supermarkets and off licences).

• Guinness - a four-pack of cans in Supervalu costs €7.50. This same pack would have to cost at least €6.63 under the new system (or €1.66 a can).
• However, that same retailer was yesterday selling a slab of 24 cans of Guinness for €18. Under minimum pricing, that same slab would cost at least €39.77 now.
• Heineken is another popular brand. You can get an eight pack on the Tesco website for €14. Under minimum pricing, that eight pack will need to cost at least €13.57.
• However, a slab of 24 cans of Heineken would need to cost at least €40.71.
• Having analysed a range of beers, a typical slab of 24 cans would cost in the region of €37-42 under minimum pricing.
• Wine - When it comes to wine, it’ll very much vary by how strong it is. An 11% wine in a 750ml bottle, for example, will need to cost at least €6.50. A stronger 13.5% wine will cost at least €7.89. Given the range in selection of wines on the market, some of the cheaper products on the market will certainly increase in price, while others already priced higher than the limit will not have to change.
• Spirits - Again, this will depend on the brand. Popular brands such as Jameson and Cork Dry Gin will have to cost at least €22.10 and €20.71 for a 700ml bottle, respectively. However, cheaper brands selling the likes of whiskey, gin, and vodka below €20 for 700ml will all most likely rise, depending on how strong each drink is. A 1 litre bottle of a spirit of 40% alcohol strength, meanwhile, will cost €31.56.