Guinness stocks run dry as pubs forced to ration pints
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UK hit with nationwide shortage of the stout days before Christmas. Pubs across the UK are having to ration pints of Guinness amid a national shortage of the iconic Irish stout ahead of Christmas. Establishments have been panic buying the beverage in the hope they don’t run dry over the festive period, as some say they have already run out of stock completely.
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Pubs such as the Old Ivy House, in Clerkenwell, London, introduced rationing rules last week to preserve their stock - but still found themselves short of supply. The landlady Katie Davidson told The Times that they had issued cards to customers allowing them to purchase one pint of the black stuff - but only once they had bought two other drinks first.
“I normally make sure I have seven barrels per week and I would up that in the run-up to Christmas,” she told the paper. “But I was restricted to only four [by our brewery]. So on Wednesday, when I got my order, we only had half a barrel left in the cellar at the busiest time of the year. And we’d run out by 10pm on Friday night.”.
She said that most people understood the situation and were happy to abide by the rules, but one customer did walk away. The strain on supply has been brought on by a surge in demand which has seen the brand boom in popularity among young people and women.
