Beer Blast

Beer Blast: The Inside Story of the Brewing Industry's Bizarre Battles for Your Money. A third-generation beer exec Philip Van Munching has quit the biz, but he takes a look back and delivers an inside account of the great beer wars of the past few decades. From the disaster of the first "lite" beer (Gablinger's, which tasted "god-awful ... so metallic it would set your teeth on edge"), to the later marketing triumphs (and occasional embarrassments) that mark today's brewing industry, Van Munching tells the story with great detail and mostly good humor. How the brewers, the ad agencies, TV networks, and retailers all work to deliver the suds in your mug turns out to be an engaging and frequently funny story.

The rise and fall of beer trends--from sports sponsorships to low-cals, and status-conscious imports to creatively crafted microbrews--mirror, in many ways, the larger culture that embraces them. Philip Van Munching offers a clever and knowing look at its ups and downs in the industry.