Pubs doing “takeaway” alcohol

[Notcontent]

Just saw a notice on a neighbourhood website advertising that a local pub is doing takeaway pints this weekend. I can completely understand why a pub would want to do that. BUT, let’s be honest, people buying the “takeaway” pints will not be buying them to take them home. They will want to stand outside in the sun to drink them with friends - that’s the whole point. And that seems to raise all sorts of issues - like crowding outside the pub - and sorry to raise this again - LACK OF TOILETS!!!

Pubs are required, as a condition of their licence, to provide toilets - because drinkers need to go, even if they have bladders made of steel... I am just glad I don’t live near the pub in question as I would not want the front of my house being used as a toilet.

But beer normally doesn't come in a 2 litre plastic milk bottle.

It’s not actually a bottle that’s been used for milk. It’s just the SAME as the bottles you can buy milk in. Our landlord bulk buys brand new empty bottles and lids,. We wash and reuse our bottles a few times.

The beer is in casks on racks in the chiller room and poured straight from the cask into the bottles (It’s a micro pub and doesn’t have “pumps”. Once a beer has been tapped it is only good for a few days, our pub only has two beers “on” at a time to avoid waste, if he wasn’t selling it all he would reduce this to only one beer (in “normal” times there are usually three ales plus a cider to choose from).

Takeaway beer from pubs is not a new thing. I remember getting real ale takeaways from a pub when we were on holiday When DD was three (that was nearly 20 years ago).

I think that’s what’s next up. Pubs etc will reopen with social distancing rules and a bunch of people are going to get all sniffy and be checking everyone’s complying and if they spot someone who doesn’t, even for a split second, they will be on to the police saying everyone was at it and reporting the pub

Yep. It's heaven for killjoys in these times.

@Justanotherscumbag

True but if this goes on a long time it's pretty much the end for pubs.

In that respect I can see why the pubs that can make it work in terms of takeaways etc will be the ones that can survive. But I don't think the takeaway business is logistical for a lot of pubs to make money/cover costs. It probably works better in rural areas and where there's no off licenses or supermarkets etc nearby. On my road there is a pub but it's not doing takeaways. Within a 2 minute walk of the pub there's an off license, two co-ops and a corner shop that all sell beer/wine/spirits etc. They could presumably do takeaways and sell stuff but it wouldn't be a big amount.

It'll be the chain bars run by your Tim Martins who can withstand the losses for a period and then benefit when things are back to normal in a couple of years or whatever.

Yep. It's heaven for killjoys in these times.

Yep isn't it just!