Beer snobs weep

I was proud a few weeks back when I was dubbed a "Bold Explorer" by a beer focus group. I earned the appelation via my willingness to try new beers. That, and the fact that I will venture Indiana Jones-style for a good beer.

I didn't realize it at the time, but I probably owe a debt of thanks to Michael Jackson for ensuring people worldwide wouldn't be doomed to forever drink crappy beer.

Michael Jackson, not the singer, was a tireless beer critic, beer lecturer, beer author, and beer connoisseur, perhaps best known for his TV documentary series "The Beer Hunter." He died at age 65 at his home in West London, after a heart attack. While it's impossible to know for sure the reach of his influence, obituarists are crediting him with everything from starting the 1970's renaissance of interest in beer to being the English language's leading authority on beer.

Here's a funny line he wrote once:

But one glass of the Dublin stout and I would be transported from my desert island to a pub where the glistening black of the beer reflected the brass barrails, the polished mirrors and mahogany ... Two glasses and I would begin to enjoy my own company, three, and I would find myself as entertaining as Joyce, Wilde or O'Casey.

Next time I'm at my favorite bar, I'll have to pour out a $20 Belgian in Michael Jackson's memory. And after downing my own Belgian, maybe I'll find myself as entertaining as, say, Michael Jackson.