Beer promoters without their own brewery have been called various names: from beer firms, gypsies and virtuals to cuckoos, imposters, pseudos and fakes. The connotations attached to each name, ranging from the neutral to the pejorative, are far from accidental.

When is Netflix turning VJ Mallya’s colourful life into a TV series? The script could run to several seasons. The most recent development in the convoluted plot saw Mr Mallya step down as director of his Force India Formula 1 team at the end of May 2018.

If you were to cross Eataly with Denver’s Wynkoop brewery you will get – at least conceptually – LaM.U, La Manufacture Urbaine, a café-restaurant with a brewery, bakery and coffee roaster, which opened its doors in the Belgian city of Charleroi, south of Brussels, last year.

Per Me una Birra Artigianale

Beer in Italy | When it comes to fashion, Italians go for the new and ultra-modern. Same with craft beer. Consumers tend to be on the look-out for the next big thing and craft brewers comply with imagination and experimentation. How come that the Big Brewers’ own craft beer offerings embrace a retro sentimentality for an imagined era when men were men and life was full of little wonders?

Jupiler may be Belgium’s major pils brand, but its new packaging, which it is hoped will boost sales during the FIFA World Cup, still raised a few eyebrows. Now, “Belgium” figures larger on the packaging than the brand’s name; actually, the name Jupiler does not appear on the front label.

It appears counterintuitive that Big Brewers, all the while trying to cut costs, are increasing their stock keeping units (SKUs). According to perceived wisdom, rising numbers of SKUs add complexity and thus costs. Therefore, traditional FMCG companies have often tried to eliminate SKUs in order to focus on bestsellers.

Beer and sports are such a great combo that more and more craft brewers are setting up shop inside sports stadiums. In May 2018, London’s Beavertown Brewery confirmed plans to open a brewery and taproom inside the newly developed stadium of Premier League soccer team Tottenham Hotspur.

Is this the next big thing in beer sales? Heineken has taken the idea from pizza delivery services and launched a courier service for beer and snacks in Amsterdam’s cool neighbourhood De Pijp. The service will be expanded to cover most of Amsterdam by July, Dutch media report.

The weedkiller glyphosate is in the news again. After the European Union in November 2017 controversially extended its use by five years, the issue was put on a back burner by media – only to come to the fore again in May 2018 when the German consumer association Stiftung Warentest published its review of 20 alcohol-free beers in Germany, available in the June issue of its magazine.

Creativity knows no bounds and is not exclusive to humans. To mark the opening of its first “Brew Pub” in London – a 500 seat venue – the Scottish craft brewer on 12 May 2018 invited dog owners plus four-legged pets to a sniffing competition.