What to buy, supermarket by supermarket
Pick your supermarket. Each page takes the beers whose product page there is on record and sorts them into the ones imported from the country on the label, the British ones that say so, the ones to check on the can, and the ones sold as foreign and brewed in Britain. Every entry links to the retailer's own page, which is where the price is. The number on each card is how many product pages are on record.
Tesco · 75
24 imported from the country on the label, 11 British and say so, 7 split, 27 sold as foreign and brewed here
Ocado · 34
15 imported from the country on the label, 3 British and say so, 4 split, 7 sold as foreign and brewed here
Morrisons · 32
6 imported from the country on the label, 4 British and say so, 5 split, 15 sold as foreign and brewed here
Asda · 22
5 imported from the country on the label, 2 British and say so, 4 split, 6 sold as foreign and brewed here
Sainsbury's · 9
2 imported from the country on the label, 1 British and says so, 1 split, 5 sold as foreign and brewed here
Not enough on record yet
A page is built only where at least 5 product pages have been read and at least 3 of the beers are worth pointing at. The rest so far:
- Aldi: 5 product pages on record, none worth pointing at. Its beers are own-label lagers whose producer is not published; the own-label page has what is known.
- Booths: 1 product page on record, 1 worth pointing at.
- Lidl: 1 product page on record, none worth pointing at. Its beers are own-label lagers whose producer is not published; the own-label page has what is known.
- Waitrose: 1 product page on record, none worth pointing at.
- Co-op: no product pages read yet.
- Marks & Spencer: no product pages read yet.
What to look for on any shelf
- Turn the can round. The one thing the pack has to carry is the producer's name and address. "Brewed and packed by" followed by a British town means brewed in Britain, whatever the front says. How to read the small print.
- Check the country of origin field online. The supermarket's product page usually copies the same panel, under "Country of origin" or "Manufacturer". That is how the listings linked from these pages were read.
- Compare the strength. An import brewed weaker for Britain is still an import, but it is not the beer sold at home. Exactly 3.4% is the strength the duty band makes cheapest. The strength gap, beer by beer.
- Read the two flags on each card. The first is the country the branding points at, the second is where the beer is brewed. When they differ and the second is the Union flag, it is brewed under licence in Britain. Every beer that is.
The full list of what to buy instead · Alternatives, beer by beer