Michael Jackson Dead.

Beer Columnist Dies



may we all raise a glass...

Prost!

[Robin Garr]

Beer Columnist Dies

may we all raise a glass...

Prost!

Thanks for posting, Ethan. I posted this to the WineLovers forum this morning (Michael, of course, was a whisky guy AND a beer guy), but should have posted it here, too. Here's a cross-post:

Not a wine guy - in fact, he used to reserve some snickers for the fruit of the vine - but Michael Jackson (not the pale pedophile but the hefty, bearded and gregarious British whiskey and beer expert) has passed on, according to news reports. I had occasion to meet Michael now and then on the drinks-writing circuit and always enjoyed him, particularly when he presided over one of his educational "beer breakfasts," which invariably culminated with the seductive dessert, a Guinness and vanilla ice cream float with a brownie submerged in the mug.

Here's a note about him from CelticMalts.com:

This morning the sad news came across from the U.K. that the whisky world has lost a man of unqualified greatness; the wonderful Michael Jackson.

So many people have followed their own whisky trails with the guidance of Michael's amazing Single Malt Guides over the years. His numerous articles in Whisky Magazine and other publications have been everything from amusing to educational and have given so many of us the true insider's view we so appreciate.

Michael was one of the gentlest and most generous souls imaginable and anyone who has met him was touched by his kindness and patience. It is hard to imagine how many times in his life he had to answer the same questions over and over when approached by awed 'fans'. Yet he always did so without missing a beat or showing anything but the utmost interest in both his questioner and the topics raised.

Please take a moment today and raise a glass to Michael. I thank him deeply for all that he has given to so many. His knowledge and skill was unmatched and he will be missed and loved for a very long time. This tireless man now rests and we all benefit from his labours of love over the years.

To Michael! Cheers..

I saw this on Beer Advocate this morning.... truly a loss to the beer community.

His first beer guide book was my first peak into the beer world, and that there was more than Bud/Miller/Coors. I have used it as reference many times, and even though the last edition of it I bought was from the early 90's, it still had many relevant bits of information, especially on imports and Belgian beers in particular.

RIP Beer Traveler!

I posted this at my blog a few minutes ago. Thanks to Todd for breaking the news earlier.

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It always was my hope that there'd be a second visit to the Public House by beer writer Michael Jackson. Sadly, it isn't to be.

Joyfully, his role in teaching us about beer will be celebrated for as long as there is a craft brewing business.

As always, ironies abound. I'd just finished posting about essential beer books, smiled inwardly at my memories of meeting Jackson at Rich O's and later in Denver, and then I checked my e-mail, only to learn that Jackson died last evening.

There'll be eulogies by the thousands, written and spoken by people in good beer circles who recognize the almost unfathomable extent of Jackson's contribution to the success we enjoy today. The hyperbole is deserved, because he truly made us all.

I'll have more to write when there's time; the show must go on, and we have a Bamberg-centric draft beer event kicking off on Friday. If not for Jackson, would I have visited Bamberg when I did? Would I have chosen to make good beer my life's work?

The weekend's beers are going to have his imprint, and I'm having the first one now.

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(Note: What else but a Schlenkerla Marzen?)

I found an excellent write-up about Jackson on Lew Bryson's blog:

http://lewbryson.blogspot.com/2007/08/m ... ckson.html

I got to meet him and drive him around Louisville, KY in Nov. 1994. As he exited the jetway at the airport I noticed a funny looking "brief case" in his hand. It was a portable type writter! Even I had a notebook/laptop in those days. Michael prefered typing, what a character. He will be missed by the beer community.

I remember meeting him probably 5 or so years ago when he was in town. I think it surprised him that a young fella would know who he was. Shows how his love of beer and whiskey was being heard by the younger folks who typically dont care much about quality and taste. There needs to be a successor to the beer hunter title, I liked his articles.

Roger Protz probably now is the dean of British beer writers, and there are many, many people writing about beer on the Internet and in conventional print publications.

As Lew Bryson noted in his appreciation, it is in Jackson's association of beer with place that we find the best example of his brilliance. He wrote lyrically, descriptively and elegantly, and he wrote exceedingly well, but he did not write about technical brewing details of the sort that one must learn to be a beer judge. Rather, he wrote factual stories about beer, and he never failed to connect a particular beer to "teroirs" both physical and cultural.

Not to belabor the point, but Jackson was the finest writer of the beer writers. I see no one taking his place.

salud

a beer lovers beer lover

we devotees of fine hand crafted beer owe much to this literary wonder

celebrate the man, the myth, and the legend

review a beer today
and introduce a domestic beer drinker to better beer

there may be a tear in my beer

shawn

Mike and I were just speaking about him this weekend! We were in South Jersey/Philly having a beer discussion with a friend who is a beer snob and had never heard of Mr. Jackson. After a lenghty conversation at a local pub on Friday night, I made a point of stopping at a bookstore and picked up a copy for him, to get him on the right path. Whenever we travel, Mike makes sure to pack his tattered copy of his beer bible so he can cross another of Mr. Jackson's faves off of his to do list once he stumbles upon a local gem.

Rest In Peace Sir - you will surely be missed by many...

Nice article in today's Boston Globe:

http://www.boston.com/ae/food/wine/arti ... er?mode=PF