Wetherspoons Is Scrapping Champagne and German Beer Because of Brexit

The pub chain JD Wetherspoon, which runs some 150 venues in London, is to swap the likes of champagne and German beers for British and non-EU alternatives as Brexit approaches, its founder has announced.

According to numerous reports, Brexity boss Tim Martin, who campaigned vigorously for the UK to leave the EU, says that Continental drinks would be switched for the likes of Hardys Sparkling Pinot Chardonnay from Australia and UK-brewed Blue Moon Belgian White, which he says will be cheaper. “This move helps us to broaden our horizons so that we create an improved offer for the two million customers who visit our pubs each week,” he said.

The overhaul of the menus will begin on 9 July, with a further review of all products taking place in the next six to 24 months. Existing contracts that are yet to run their course will be honoured, and Koppaberg cider, which is relocating its operations to the UK from Sweden, will still be served post-Brexit.

Martin, who took over his first pub in Muswell Hill in 1979, hit the headlines in the run-up to the referendum when he distributed 200,000 ‘Vote Leave’ beer mats in JD Wetherspoon pubs across the country. Earlier this year, in what many felt was a publicity stunt, he closed the company’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts, calling them a “waste of time”.

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