The Fylde Institute of Applied Bus Studies · Glassware Division
On the detection, authentication and ceremonial logging of newly minted 2026 pint glasses encountered in the wild.
Filed under: things noticed while waiting for a bus that never came.
Every pint glass lawfully sold in the United Kingdom carries a small etched stamp certifying it holds a full pint — and, crucially for this study, the two-digit year in which it was minted. A glass marked M26 left the factory in 2026. It is, in the truest sense, box fresh. Fewer hands have held it than have held the Premier League trophy.
The Committee hereby opens a rolling census. Any fieldworker — member or civilian — who is served a pint in a verified M26 glass is required to enter it into the Captain's Log below (§3), recording the drink and the circumstances. This is science. Drink up.
Rotate the glass slowly under the light (this also looks connoisseurial). You are looking for the small etched cluster of markings — usually low on the glass near the base, or tucked beside the brewery branding. It will include a capacity statement (PINT or 57 cl), a conformity mark (CE or the post-Brexit UKCA), and the money shot: the letter M followed by two digits.
Under the loupe — the etching
PINT CE M26
The M plus two digits is the mint year. M26 = minted 2026. M19? Veteran. M08? Museum piece. M26? Log it immediately.
Open to all fieldworkers. False entries are a matter for your conscience and the Glassware Tribunal, which does not exist yet but could.
“Everyone. Everyone. Look at the glass. LOOK AT THE GLASS.” — Founding observation of the Glassware Division, delivered mid-round
“It's basically coin collecting for people who are already in the pub anyway.” — Committee member, correctly, before logging three in one evening