We enjoyed ourselves far more than we really ought to last week, as we looked at both the rationale behind and the ramifications of SABMiller's bid for Foster's Group, valuing the business at AUD9.5bn (US$10bn), or AUD11.2bn including debt.

It's been something of a joy to finally have a concrete bid tabled for the Australian beer group, following a year of on-off speculation.

Yet, it emerged pretty quickly that Foster's is not going to fall easy.

For one thing, the group's skyrocketing share price makes it an expensive catch at a time when most global brewers are looking elsewhere.

For SABMiller specifically, analysts were quick to question the logic of the Peroni brewer's approach.

And, today, there are rumblings of an investor revolt brewing in SABMiller's ranks. After all, why does a brewer with such a healthy presence in the emerging markets, need to invest in a declining beer market with relatively little growth potential? So far, having read a lot of the arguments, it's hard not to go with our original analysis of the bid: SABMiller wants Foster's because it's there.

If you need to catch up on all things Foster's, don't miss our round-up of global coverage.

Also, last week, we ran the first part of this month's The Wehring Interview (part two runs this week). Now, you know how giddy I get about these monthly interviews, but you can hardly blame me. After all, this year alone we've had the head honchos at William Grant & Sons, Pernod Ricard, Beam Global Spirits & Wine, Carlsberg AND Heineken.

This month's is no exception.

I would say that, though, wouldn't I?

Until next time...

Olly Wehring
Managing Editor
Web: http://www.just-drinks.com
Email: editor@just-drinks.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/just_drinks