Interbrew strives to boost profitability and become the world's second-largest beer maker by marketing Stella Artois, a run-of-the-mill brew in Belgium, as a premium label and insisting foreign customers pay dearly for it.

"In Belgium, Stella is a beer fit for old peasants," Mr. De Boek says. "Americans must be insane."

Interbrew strives to boost profitability and become the world's second-largest beer maker by marketing Stella Artois, a run-of-the-mill brew in Belgium, as a premium label and insisting foreign customers pay dearly for it.

"In Belgium, Stella is a beer fit for old peasants," Mr. De Boek says. "Americans must be insane."