Last year German beer consumption was the lowest that it had been in
thirty years, and thirty breweries went out of business.  (Source: a
Beck's Internet promo which noted that Beck's did very well in this
bad market for beer.)  May I ask German specialists for an
explanation?  Is this in line with the experience in other
beer-drinking European countries?  Australia and New
Zealand?  Certainly beer sales are flat in North America.