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The Austrian Federal Competition Authority seeks to fine Dutch Heineken and its Austrian subsidiary Brau Union potentially billions of euros for market abuse and violations of the anti-trust ban. In June, the watchdog submitted a 260-page application for an “appropriate fine” to the cartel court. It had found evidence that the beer market leader Brau Union “cemented” its dominant position by using unlawful methods.

In this podcast Ina Verstl and Ernst Faltermeier discuss the case, while drawing attention to Europe’s brewers and their previous cartel shenanigans. They wonder why Heineken Austria has been kept on a long leash and allowed...

In January, the Chinese government launched an anti-dumping inquiry into all brandy and cognac imported from the EU. Cognac producers deny the allegation. In reality, they have been caught in the crossfire of a tit-for-tat trade dispute between Brussels and Beijing. By targeting cognac, China is expressing its displeasure not just with the EU’s probe into China’s subsidies for electric vehicles, but also with the EU Commission’s plans to de-risk the bloc's bilateral relations with China.

In this podcast Ina Verstl and Ernst Faltermeier look at trade disputes past and present and explain why wines and spirits make for ideal...

The brewer of Modelo Especial, Constellation Brands, struck it lucky twice in the past 30 years: first in 1996, when Mexico’s Grupo Modelo awarded them an evergreen contract to import Corona Extra into the US; then in 2013 after trustbusters at the US Department of Justice forced a settlement on AB-InBev during its takeover of Grupo Modelo, which turned Constellation into an independent, fully integrated, and economically viable beer industry competitor. In this podcast Ina Verstl and Ernst Faltermeier lift the fog of history and tell an exciting story.

Given the recent evidence of Russia’s President Putin seizing Carlsberg’s Baltika breweries and Anheuser-Busch’s Bud Light marketing blunder, many observers wonder if brewers’ early-warning systems and contingency plans don’t need an overhaul in times of rising political and geopolitical risks. The board is supposed to be a company’s periscope to spot any danger on the horizon. But, what if brewers’ boards still seem to rely on their ability to dive under it?

After Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender actress, on 1 April, shared a video on Instagram for Bud Light with her followers, conservative politicians and celebrities condemned Anheuser-Busch for being a “woke company” and boycotted the brand. Throughout April, Bud Light’s sales tanked, which conservative media celebrated as proof that their boycott was working. Observers are scratching their heads: How could Anheuser-Busch’s leadership so obviously underestimate the risk of a pushback from consumers?

In 2022 there was a shift in the public discourse around corporate profits. Many suspect that wily corporations had spotted a chance to jack up prices by more than their own costs have increased. Entering into 2023, the conversation has moved away from that sense that profit is always good and hiking profits the essence of doing business. Many wonder: Why is turning a profit suddenly considered a bad thing?

The Big Brewers seem to be pushing brands that half of the world didn’t know they needed. But there is a risk to Big Brand thinking: Just because the Big Brewers have the muscle to push brands into a market does not mean that these brands have a unique customer value proposition. The rise and fall of the Foster’s beer brand can serve as a warning.

If the moral case against President Putin's attack on his neighbour is undeniable, the business arguments for and against pulling out of Russia can be more complicated. In this episode Ina Verstl and Ernst Faltermeier discuss why brewers balk at leaving Russia.

In June, San Diego’s craft brewer Stone was sold to Japan’s beer and beverage group Sapporo. This came after Stone’s founder, Greg Koch, had touted for years he would never sell and lashed out against those who did. Does this make Stone’s Koch a turncoat, who fell for a macro brewer’s lucre, or does the deal have wider implications?

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has upended the existing world order: from one that was based on rules to one in which naked power rules. The age of globalisation is coming to a catastrophic close. In the brewing industry it has even gone into reverse as the Big Brewers are exiting a major beer market. No one knows if the fighting will last for weeks, months or years How are brewers to plan ahead?