AB-InBev is to cut the alcohol content of their Stella Artois, Budweiser and Beck’s brands in a move to offset escalating duty costs.

Stranger things have happened. Many still wonder why AB-InBev has purchased Budejovicky mestansky pivovar (BMP) from Czech brewer Pivovar Samson, the smaller of the two Budweiser breweries located in the town of Ceske Budejovice, in December 2011. Will AB-InBev put the BMP brand Budweiser Bier to sleep for good or will they use it as a fighting brand in export markets which are dominated by Budweiser Budvar? In any case, the deal between AB-InBev and Czech brewer Pivovar Samson settles one of the two trademark disputes AB-InBev has been embroiled in for over a century.

On 19 January 2012, SABMiller reported a 3 percent rise in beer volumes in the last three months of 2011, as growth in emerging markets helped offset volume declines in North America and Europe.

How much madder can it get? According to estimates, German brewers have raised beer sales by perhaps 1 percent in 2011 but they paid dearly for the extra volume: by an inflationary use of price promotions.

Even long after the end of the harvest in Europe, there still is uncertainty about the availability of malting barley. Depending on the concessions of the maltsters and brewers, this amount can vary. The weather conditions in 2011 have lead to substantial quality problems.

Cologne and Belgium: the competition watchdogs have been working overtime. In the German city of Cologne, best known for its eponymous perfume and beer, 25 cartel busters with 15 policemen in tow raided five Kölsch breweries and a private apartment on 15 December 2011 as part of an investigation into illegal price fixing.

About time too. On 9 January 2011, SABMiller announced that, after years of competing against each other in Nigeria and Angola, the two companies would combine the management in these two markets with SABMiller managing Nigeria and Castel Angola. In the rest of Africa, however, they will continue to go their separate ways.

The UK Pensions Ombudsman is to investigate allegations by tens of thousands of pensioners of former brewer Scottish & Newcastle that they have suffered “a raw deal” following its takeover by Heineken in 2008.

Almost 1000 pubs have closed in Ireland since 2006 and Irish publicans are warning that a further 5000 jobs will be lost during 2012. According to a report in the Financial Times on 8 January 2012, bar sales have fallen by almost a third since 2006 and there are now just 7509 licensed pubs in a country of 4.5 million people.

Finally. The news we have been waiting for. At the end of November 2011 Schörghuber Group, which owns the majority stake (75 percent – the rest is owned by Heineken) in Munich’s Paulaner brewery, announced it would relocate the brewery to a larger outskirts site (190,000 sqm). Ground will be broken in 2012.