Diageo is at heart a financial construct. It lacks the romanticism of its brands by design: the company's soulless corporate identity was created in 1997 after the merger of Guinness and Grand Metropolitan, deliberately playing up "everyday" mundanity. Diageo is just a portfolio of much livelier brands, with attendant cost savings and the benefits of diversification. If an unlikely gin craze sweeps the world, it can benefit; if tequila booms, it is ready and waiting.