THE WINE MERCHANT. An independent magazine for independent retailers
Issue 156, April 2026
Dog of the month: Barney Great Grog, Edinburgh
Wine prices under pressure as diesel surcharges spiral Conflict forces wine importers to consider passing on extra transport costs – which seems inevitable if war continues
S
oaring fuel costs are putting yet more pressure on wine prices in the UK,
even though importers say they are
doing all they can to avoid increases. With the crisis in the Middle East
showing no signs of abating as The Wine Merchant went to press, the prospect of suppliers passing on fuel surcharges to
their retail customers seems unavoidable. UK haulage firms have introduced
surcharges of between 15% and 20% to offset rising diesel prices, according to
Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine
& Spirit Trade Association (see page 6).
“Wine merchants will already be seeing
the knock-on effect from the conflict, even
if it’s just the increased costs of filling up a van,” he says.
Tom Platt, CEO of Liberty Wines, says:
“Given what has happened to oil prices, our
shippers have, not surprisingly, put an even higher fuel surcharge on their invoices.
“We’ve tried to offset this increase by
shipping in higher quantities, and so far
that has worked. It is likely to be several
months before we start selling those wines, as we carry an average of 10 to 12 weeks’ worth of stock.
“We’ll work our way through our current
stock and gauge the situation before
deciding to increase prices or not. We
don’t want to rush into anything like price increases, as our customers have enough pressure on them at the moment.”
Carole Bryon, aka The Lady of the Grapes, has the keys to new premises in a former chocolate factory near London Bridge. Read the full story about her expansion from her original Covent Garden site on page 4.