Bar promoting common beer for £8.90 a pint however punters warned it might ‘simply be £12’

It’s a story The Daily Star never hoped it would have to write.

The eternal churn of inflation, rising rents and costs of production meant this day was always likely to come. The day we paid almost £9 for a pint. Unlike The Star’s recent foray into the world of astonishingly priced beer – where we tried a rare delicacy third worth £20 at Cask in Pimlico – this adventure feels far less special. At Brick Lane Tap Room in Shoreditch, East London, normal enough bevvies are going for up to £8.90.

Of the 10 beers on tap, four were being sold at 8.70 or higher, three of which came in at the tear-inducing £8.90.

The Star had received a tip-off about an Octoberfest Hofbräuhaus München special, and went hoping to try it. But upon arrival not only was the beer no longer on tap, but we were shocked to find that nothing was available for less than £6.60 and that six of the 10 lines either sat on or substantially surpassed the £7 line.

That number isn’t particularly astonishing in London, especially not in trendy craft beer-focused spots like Brick Lane, but £8 and above is breaking new ground.

£9, which these three effectively are, is the final frontier in the forced march to £10, a price tag for a pint that not only seemed laughable for the centuries in which Britons have drunk beer, but even just five years ago. Getting a round in for you and two mates? £30? Get out of here.

Even the biggest beer-loving pub fiend, a troop among which the Daily Star counts itself, would be hard-pressed to justify that particular tipple. And yet, as we sat in the stylish and inviting atmosphere sipping away, a gentle flow of people came and went, buying pints at half past three in the afternoon on a Thursday.

What makes it even more remarkable is that this pint isn’t even particularly special. We ordered the Pale Ale from Kernel Brewery, a delicious 5.4% brew from one of the stalwart beer houses of the Bermondsey Beer Mile, a string of breweries nestled under the viaduct of the South East Mainline.

Kernel’s beers are very popular, a favourite among Londoners that has skyrocketed in popularity and availability throughout the capital in recent years. What it is not, is a mysterious luxury brand reserved only for top aficionados or those with more cash than sense. From Kernel’s online shop, a 330ml bottle of the same costs just £3.80.

A bar manager who worked around the Brick Lane area only painted a bleaker picture. They told The Star that the efforts of bars in the area to keep their selection of drinks fresh made it hard to keep costs low.

The neighbourhood is known as a go-to place for independent watering holes offering interesting beer selections, but they told us that meant they were unable to rely on lengthy contracts to help keep costs low.

The manager explained that were such bars to make 0p profit on their draught sales, the cost to consumers would still be very high. And, if they were to try and make the same profit margins on the revolving kegs as they do on ones they had more regular business with, they would need to be charging more than £12. In essence, their need to keep things fresh, purveying the best bevvies the city has to offer, means turning a profit and keeping costs low is an extremely difficult conundrum.

There had been hope that the Autumn budget may have at least eased the tax burden on the alcohol sector, allowing businesses to pass on savings to punters. But, in scenarios such as the one playing out at Brick Lane, the 1p saving expected to be made per pint means our Kernel is coming in at £8.89, which isn’t much of a sweetener.

Both Brick Lane Tap Room and The Kernel Brewery have been contacted for comment.

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