"There's no weight or integrity to these brand "stories." HPL won't make you popular with people from all corners of society, just as Amstel won't make you a Dutch hipster and Corona won't transform you into a beach bum. We all know this."

Since "we all know this" it's high time we recognize the importance of these "stories" -- there is plenty of integrity when it comes to commercials. When, "The good or bad corporate citizenship of the brewer" is the last of only five criteria used to select a beer, I ask you, where does "good or bad corporate citizenship" come from? I'll venture to guess most beer drinkers aren't spending their evenings reading company philosophies and checking into fair business practices online. But rather, they're perched in front of a TV in their living room or at a bar watching B- commercials for Amstel Light.

(Beer) ads drive consumer behavior -- subconsciously, our minds store scenes from ads that make us feel comfortable, or happy, (or tropical), and associate brands with those feelings (thus... brand equity is established). When we're at a bar and we want to feel a bit more comfortable, or happy, (or tropical), our minds reach for the labels we remember associated with those feelings. Advertising 101!

So the ads we're seeing may not be rooted in one of the author's five core criteria for at least B+ beer ads, but lifestyle scenes sell -- when people can relate, (like the author's fond memories of Amsterdam), companies will sell more products. And what credible agency would want to use one of the five common beer criteria to sell their brand -- it's already been done. "Dam Good Bier" -- that's creative.