Duty changes on 1 August

1 August 2023 will see major changes in duty and the price of wine, when the government's new tax system will mean the duty on alcoholic drinks rises in line with their alcohol level. When first announced in 2021, the new duty for most wines between 8.5% and 22% was to be based on the amount of alcohol in the drink. This would give a price advantage to lower alcohol wines.

After it was scrapped by the Liz Truss government and then brought back once Rishi Sunak became Prime minister, the new duty calculations are not quite what were originally proposed. Wines between 11.5% and 14% will initially have their duty calculated as if the wine was 12.5%. However this will change on the 31st January 2025 and for every 0.5% abv on your wine the duty will cost more.

Currently the duty on a 750ml bottle of wine is £2.23. When the new duty comes into force wines between 11.5 and 14.5% will rise to £2.67. This is a 44p increase in duty on a bottle of wine, or 53p extra on the shelf price, when VAT is added.