Can you explain the global economy with beer?

Probably the only link between beer and economy that you have ever made is your curse at the café when "thanks to Inbev" your beer has been saved. Why is AB InBev such a large and all-determining player? And has the beer market only become so important in recent years? Or does this go much further back in time? KU Leuven economist Jo Swinnen wrote a book about it and with this he also launched the term "beeronomy" or "beeronomics".