Never Fear, America - the Belgians Won't Make Anheuser-Busch Beers Taste Good

With Anheuser-Busch's sale to Belgian-Brazilian conglomerate InBev, panic has set in.

How could foreigners dare buy that symbol of American brewing might?

Given my beer snobbishness, I'd show greater concern if InBev launched a buying spree of American microbreweries. Given the brands in their portfolio, A-B's 12 giant American breweries fit like a glove - albeit, a water-down one with little respect for malt or hop character.

Considering the company stole its Budweiser name from a flavor Bohemian pilsner sold here as Czechvar - which is too much symbol of Czech pride to be sold - I like the irony of a country known for great beer buying a brewer that's been dumbing down American taste buds more than 150 years.

Does the purchase represent the end of an era? Of course. All eras end. But don't hold up Bud Light as the shining beacon of American brewing. Barring bottle conditioning - causing the cloudiness that A-B and SABMiller have derided in commercials - local beer is always better and fresher.

A-B's beers are the result of mass production. Drink them if you like them, but until Jim Koch or Fritz Maytag sell out to InBev, I'm not worrying about American brewing.