Listen Up, Booze Bags… Your Drinks Just Got a Teeny Bit Boujee 🍻

Published April 1, 2026

Bad news for your wallet… and your weekend personality.

As of today (April 1… because of course it is 🙄), the government has nudged up the tax on alcohol. Yes, your beloved beer, wine, and spirits just got hit with a tiny price glow-up… and not the good kind.

Before you panic and start hoarding cases like it’s the apocalypse, relax.

We’re talking about an increase of around two per cent, which basically translates to a few extra cents per drink. So no, your Friday night isn’t cancelled… It’s just mildly more expensive.

Wait, Why Does This Happen Every Year?

This isn’t some random “let’s ruin patio season” decision. The alcohol tax, officially called an excise duty, automatically adjusts each year based on inflation. Think of it as your drinks keeping up with the cost of living… like everything else lately (cool, cool, cool 🫠).

The tax bump doesn’t just stop at beer, either. Wine, spirits, and even tobacco are all invited to this not-so-fun price increase party.

It Could’ve Been Worse…

Here’s the slightly less annoying part: this year’s increase is actually pretty tame.

Back in 2024, there was talk of a much bigger jump, around 4.7 percent. Instead, the government put a cap in place, limiting increases to two per cent for a couple of years. That cap ends now, but thankfully, we’re still only seeing that smaller bump this time around.