The wine warehouse chain said the average price of a bottle had already gone up from £5.75 to £5.98 in the year to the end of March.

“Over the course of the year, we will see prices rising by around 10 per cent unless we see the pound strengthening again but I’m not forecasting that,” said chief executive Tim How.

But he added customers might be able to avoid some of the rises by opting for wines from New Zealand, which had a bumper harvest, and Chile.

How was commenting as he unveiled his last set of annual results for the company before his retirement in August.

Majestic, which has grown from a small loss-maker to a 140-strong chain, increased yearly profits 3.4 per cent to £16.7million on sales up more than 3 per cent to £197million. The shares rose 17p to 217p.

Fine wines and champagne again enjoyed strong growth, with demand for bottles above £20 up more than a quarter.