2 weeks Ago
The cost of going out for a few drinks has been rapidly rising for a number of years now. Only two years ago, the average cost of a pint of lager was below £4, but fast forward to 2024 and we’re facing an average cost of £4.70 for the amber nectar.
In a quest to save money and prove that not every pub will leave you cash strapped, I visited pubs in Bolton town centre, and asked how much their cheapest pint was. The "go to" place that springs to mind for bargain beers is, of course, Wetherspoons, with its Spinning Mule pub in Bolton’s Nelson Square offering a pint of Ruddles for £1.79, and its cheapest lager coming in at £1.
99 for a pint of Budlight. With the nationwide pub chain’s monopoly on low-priced lager, I was intrigued to see if any of Bolton’s pubs could compete. First stop, I arrived at The York, opposite Bolton railway station, their cheapest pint is £3.
45, and a man on the bar admitted: “We’re not the cheapest, try Wetherspoons,” a worrying omen on my mission to see if any of our pubs could beat Tim Martin’s pub powerhouse. (Image: NQ) The Keir Starmer-opposing Griffin was next up, a pint of Carlsberg coming in at £2.50, as was a John Smiths pint.
A pint of John Smiths at the Bob Inn in Bolton Market will set you back £2.80, One For The Road, a bar also in the market, narrowly beats it with real ales available from £2.70.
And then, in Nelson Square, opposite the odds-on favourite Wetherspoons, I entered the Northern Way. Could the local boozer upset the odds and beat its next-door neighbour for the prize of the cheapest pint? No, but just about, £2 for a Fosters means its cheapest lager is only one pence more expensive than Wetherspoon’s £1.99 Budlight.
A grand effort from the Northern Way. The Dragonfly, also on Nelson Square, charges £2.50 for their cheapest, John Smiths.
Moving onto Bradshawgate I then wandered into the Balmoral, John Smiths – I’m beginning to notice a theme here – is priced at £2.15, another reasonable hostelry. (Image: NQ) Yates, also on Bradshawgate, another big UK pub chain takes £2.
50 from punters for a John Smith, with the Prince Billy opposite charging the same for their house lager, both of which are each pub's cheapest. Next door, The Swan’s cheapest pint, Carlsberg, sells for £2.40, slightly edging Churchgate’s lowest-priced pint of £2.
45 John Smiths. At this point of my pub tour – I should make it clear I wasn’t having a pint at each, not a good idea – I was beginning to have a sense of faith developed in how cheap pints are in the town. Most places were offering ones for less than £3.
Brimming with hope, I entered The Man and Scythe, but the historic pub offered me the priciest cheapest pint of beer yet, £4.10 for a Fosters. (Image: NQ) It is of course one of the country’s oldest pubs and I’d be happy to pay an extra premium to drink there, It was definitely the best-looking interior of the tour.
Hogarths brought me straight back to Earth with a £2.30 John Smiths placing it on the cheaper end of pubs in the centre. I only had four pubs left to visit, any hopes of finding a cheaper pint than Wetherspoon’s were dwindling, the FA Cup-style upset didn’t look on the cards.
And spoiler alert, I didn’t find that sub-£1.79 pint. The Elephant and Castle came in low with a £2.
25 pint of Wainwrights – just grateful it wasn’t John Smiths at this point. The Millstone was on the pricier end, with £3.65 offered for a - you guessed it – John Smiths, The Three Crowns also has the Tadcaster bitter as its cheapest, charging £2.
60. My tour's final stop had arrived, the marathon was over, and my legs could finally rest. Going subterranean, I descended into Great Ales at the Vault underneath Marketplace Shopping Centre, their cheapest was £3.
50. I did visit the Hen and Chickens but they declined to say how much their cheapest pint was. And so there we have it, the cheapest pint at every pub in Bolton town centre – I think I need a sit-down! Full list of every pub’s cheapest pint of beer The Spinning Mule, Wetherspoons - £1.
79 Ruddles. The York - £3.45 Carlsberg The Griffin - £2.
50 Carlsberg or John Smiths The Bob Inn - £2.80 John Smiths One For The Road - £2.70 any real ale on a Tuesday Northern Way - £2 Fosters The Dragonfly - £2.
50 John Smiths The Balmoral - £2.15 John Smiths Yates – £2.50 John Smiths Prince Billy - £2.
50 house lager The Swan - £2.40 Carlsberg Churchgate - £2.45 John Smith The Man and Scythe - £4.
10 Fosters Hogarths - £2.30 John Smiths Elephant and Castle - £2.25 Wainwright’s Three Crowns - £2.
60 John Smiths Great Ales at the Vault - £3.50 selection of real ales Millstone - £3.65 John Smiths.
