How AB InBev Acquisitions Will Affect Beer Drinkers

The Impact Of Golden Road Brewing Purchase & Potential SAB Miller Takeover

Anheuser-Busch InBev is tapping the kegs of other breweries, yet how does this affect the people that count – us beer drinkers?

The company’s purchase of Los Angeles craft brewer Golden Road Brewing. And, like a guy in a bar who sees a cute girl at another table he wants to approach, it has its eye on SABMiller.

A Benefit For Craft Beer Lovers

As has been proven with its purchase of other craft beers, the Golden Road deal is a good one for beer drinkers. A-B has massive distribution and that means consumers throughout Los Angeles, California and, perhaps, all over the country, will now be able to get Golden Road.

AB In Bev also leaves the breweries pretty much alone so the quality of the craft beers remains what made it so popular in the first place. The only difference is now you can get it in a lot of bars and restaurants.

Goose Island, a Chicago craft brewery previously purchased by AB In Bev, is a prime example of this; you can now easily get it at places well outside the Windy City. And it’s very good beer.

Miller Deal Dominate U.S. Market

The potential deal with Miller is another matter. Combined, the two breweries would make up 70% of the beer market in the U.S. This could drive up prices.

Then again, it could also reduce the staggering number of beers the companies offer, which would save time at the grocery store when you’re just trying to pick up a quick 12-pack and spend half an hour wandering up and down the beer aisle.

Analysts suggest that for this deal to take place, Miller will have to end its relationship with Molson. Which is fine because PubClub.com loves Molson Canadian beer and has actually seen less of it in the USA after that acquisition. Plus, Canadians are very protective of their beer.

It could still keep Coors, meaning one company would control the three major beer makers in the U.S. Imagine if Ford, GM and Chrysler merged.

The real target, however, of this potential merger is not the USA. It’s Africa, which beer companies all over the world are targeting as the up-and-coming area of consumption.

So maybe In-Bev will – for now – leave the U.S. market alone, and keep the prices stable.