Heineken heiress gets her wish
When S&N's shareholders finally accepted Heineken and Carlsberg's overtures, the ink on the contract was barely dry before the Campaign for Real Ale made it's predictable rallying cry condemning the deal.
In many ways its sentiments are correct, after all it's sad that this country's top brewery could not escape the clutches of a global player, especially as it has held its own so successfully on foreign turf.
Decisions about possible brewery closures and job losses are some way off and there are certainly also question marks over how all this will affect the real-ale drinker.
Looking to another industry for a
parallel, let's hope Camra's interjection is more effective than issuing a press release stating: "Turkeys have renewed calls to cancel Christmas". Just what impact will it have?
Because, let's face it, the industry has long lamented the way InBev's bosses in Belgium failed to respond to Britain's love of Bass and Boddingtons - in spite of the criticism nothing has persuaded it to give ale a real go even though both brands were once national treasures.
One person who must be delighted to see the deal go through is Charlene de Carvalho Heineken, daughter of beer magnate Freddie and the heiress of the family crown jewels. Although her £3bn inheritance was said to have made her the richest woman in her native Holland, she chose London as her home. According to sources at Heineken's Wimbledon office, her only complaint about the UK was not seeing the family's brand sold in every pub, reflecting its status around the rest of the world. So money can't buy you everything - or can it?
Now it seems she will get her wish. And while all the current noises coming from Heineken HQ suggest Kronenbourg will be given equal status, somehow I bet it will be the Dutch beer that comes out winning.
