How to Count Cask Ale Stock

Last updated: 26 June 2026

Most pub licensees have no idea how much beer is actually left in a cask until it runs dry or the brewery stocktaker arrives with a clipboard. By then, you’re already three weeks into an untracked loss that could have cost you £150 to £200 in wasted margin. How to count cask ale stock properly comes down to one thing: a simple weekly routine with a dipstick, a set of scales, and the discipline to reconcile the number against what your till says you sold. This isn’t complicated, but it matters more than most pubs realise. A 1% stock loss on wet sales quietly costs a typical pub £3,000–£5,000 a year—and that loss is preventable.

Why Most Pubs Get Cask Stock Wrong

I spent the first five years of my pub running stock on a tangle of spreadsheets, a notebook, and a handshake memory of what was in the cellar. I thought I knew where I was. I didn’t. The variance between what I thought I had and what was actually there swung between -3% and +2% each month—completely untrustworthy. Spirits had the same problem. When I built a routine around a dipstick and a set of scales, the weekly variance collapsed to under 0.5% within a fortnight. The number that actually matters is wet GP by line, not a single headline stock figure.

Most stock loss isn’t theft. Spirits hide losses in over-pouring (a free-poured 25ml is often 32–35ml), draught hides it in poor cellar temperature and bad line cleaning waste, and most stock ‘theft’ is actually measurement error and forgotten wastage. You can’t fix what you don’t measure. The brewery stocktaker will count your casks when they arrive, but by then you are relying on their count, their method, and their schedule—not your own data. If you don’t know your own numbers, you can’t challenge a discrepancy or spot a trend.

The Dipstick Method: Step by Step

A dipstick is a metal rod marked in centimetres. You lower it into the bung hole of the cask until it touches the bottom, then read the level of liquid on the rod. The depth tells you how much beer is left. This is industry standard, costs £8–£15, and is the only honest way to measure a cask.

The process itself takes 90 seconds per cask.

Equipment you need

• A dipstick calibrated for cask depth (available from any brewery or cellar supplier)
• A notebook or digital record (spreadsheet, StockTap pub stock app, or pen and paper)
• The same day and time each week (usually Monday morning or Friday evening, before the weekend rush)

The count sequence

1. Lower the dipstick into the bung hole until you feel it touch the bottom of the cask.
2. Mark or read the depth where the liquid level sits on the rod.
3. Write down the cask identifier (brewery, batch, or location), the depth in centimetres, and the date.
4. If the cask is nearly empty (under 10cm), note it for replacement or finish.
5. Repeat for every cask on tap and every reserve cask in the racked area.

Do not eyeball. Do not guess. Do not trust what the last person said was in it. Lower the dipstick every time.

Measuring Partial Kegs and Open Casks

A partial keg is a nightmare if you don’t track it. I have found dozens of forgotten partials that were racked six weeks earlier, half-full and gathering dust. A partial should either be finished by the end of the service the day you open it, or it should be sealed and recorded with a clear finish date.

For open casks (ones actively being poured from), the dipstick method is the same. For sealed partials or reserve casks waiting to go on tap, use a combination of weight and the dip. A full 36-pint cask weighs roughly 55kg; a 18-pint kilderkin weighs roughly 30kg. If you have electronic scales in the cellar, weigh it. Write down both the weight and the dipstick depth. Over time, this gives you a physical record of exactly when the keg was opened and how much was used.

The most reliable way to track partial kegs is to mark the date it was opened on the cask itself, dip it every week, and set a hard finish date—usually within 10 days of opening for ale. Anything left after that date should be assumed to be waste or given to staff.

Recording and Variance Tracking

The count is useless if you don’t reconcile it. Every week, after you count the casks, pull your till data for the same period. Look at the number of pints (or half-pints) you rang through for ale. Now compare that to the dipstick data from the same casks.

If you had 150cm of depth across three casks at the start of the week, and you poured 45 pints of ale, you should have approximately 120–125cm at the end of the week (accounting for a small waste margin of 0.5–1 pint). If you have 100cm, you have a 20cm discrepancy. That is lost margin, and you need to know why.

Possible causes:

• Cellar temperature too warm (ale expands, foam increases, you lose pints to waste)
• Line cleaning waste (blocked line, disconnects, re-priming)
• Measurement error (you dipped wrong, or the till misread the pump)
• Spillage or forgotten pours (usually 2–4 pints per week in an average pub)
• Staff over-pouring or free pours not rung

A variance of +/- 2% is acceptable. Anything above that is worth investigating. Record the variance in a simple spreadsheet and watch for patterns. If your ale variance is consistently high, start with cellar temperature and line hygiene—those fix 80% of draught problems.

Common Cask Ale Counting Mistakes

After 15 years and dozens of conversations with other licensees, I have seen the same mistakes repeated:

Mistake 1: Counting monthly instead of weekly

A month is too long. By week four, you have lost visibility of what happened in week one. If there is a 5% loss in week two, you won’t know until week five. Weekly counts catch drift early.

Mistake 2: Relying on the brewery count

The brewery stocktaker comes once a month (or less). Their count tells you what you should have against what you paid for. It does not tell you what you sold, what you wasted, or where the loss is happening. You need your own weekly count to spot the problem before the brewery count flags it.

Mistake 3: Not adjusting for temperature and line prime

When you first tap a cask, the first 2–3 pints are foam or weak beer used to prime the line and clear the old stock. That is not a sale; it is waste. Your dipstick should reflect that loss, or your till variance will look worse than it is.

Mistake 4: Forgetting partial kegs in the racked area

A sealed partial from three weeks ago is still taking up space and tying up capital. You need a list of every partial, when it was opened, and when it will be used. If it will not be used within 10 days, finish it or give it away. Do not let it sit.

Mistake 5: Writing numbers down and never looking at them again

A spreadsheet full of dipstick readings is not useful unless you reconcile it against till sales and look for patterns. Spend 15 minutes each week comparing the count to the till. If something is odd, write it down and check it again next week.

Weekly Routine That Actually Works

This is what I do. It takes 45 minutes and is done before opening on a Monday morning.

Step 1: Count all casks on tap and all partials in the racked area (15 minutes). Use the dipstick. Write down the cask ID, depth, and date. If any cask is under 15cm, note it for replacement today.

Step 2: Pull the till report for the previous seven days (5 minutes). Extract ale sales by line (your till should break this down). Write down total pints sold.

Step 3: Compare depth to sales (10 minutes). If you had 180cm of ale at the start of last Monday, and you sold 50 pints, and you have 130cm now, your variance is +/- 2cm (acceptable). If you have 110cm, your variance is -20cm (investigate line cleanliness, temperature, or measurement).

Step 4: Update your spreadsheet or app (10 minutes). A simple spreadsheet with date, cask ID, depth, sales, and variance is enough. If you use a stock app like SmartPubTools, log it there and let the system calculate variance for you.

Step 5: Take action (5 minutes). If variance is high, clean the line or check cellar temperature. If a cask is nearly empty, arrange replacement with the brewery. Do not wait for Wednesday.

That is it. 45 minutes a week, and you will know your cask ale stock position better than 90% of pubs in the UK.

For the practical side of measuring what is actually left in a part-used container, see our full guide on how to measure a part-used keg or cask with the dipstick and weight methods.

This is part of our complete guide to cask ale wastage and loss control — where cask money disappears and how to protect your GP.