Snooty ale connoisseurs mock Budweiser’s usurped title of “King of Beers”. No one, however, quibbles that Bud’s purveyor, Anheuser-Busch InBev (abi), reigns over global brewing. The all-conquering firm now sells almost three Olympic-sized swimming pools of beer an hour—more than its three nearest rivals combined. Yet even as profits have frothed, weariness has descended upon the head that wears the crown. ABI’s prospects, once as golden as its Corona lager, have assumed the cloudier quality of a Belgian witbier.
