by Mike Laur

"Hello, my name is Michael Jackson. No, not that Michael Jackson, but I am on a world tour. My tour is in pursuit of exceptional beer. That's why they call me the Beer Hunter."

Michael Jackson, 65, - writer, thinker, the Bard of Beer - died of a heart attack at his home in London August 30. He had Parkinson's disease.

Mr. Jackson molded international opinion and revolutionized an industry with his seminal writings about beer. By elevating the art of brewing and appreciation of beer drinking, he introduced millions of nascent beer lovers to brews beyond the convenience store cooler. He was the focus of a successful series of TV programs produced by the BBC's Channel 4, and set the stage for many a beer drinker's pursuit of the perfect beer - the original beer hunter.

Mr. Jackson explored beer as a mystical, living component of human history and culture that was for the most part unappreciated and misunderstood. His scholarly yet lively thoughts on beer's place in civilization raised a few eyebrows among highbrows, and infuriated those who ranked human cultures based upon their ABV content.

At 16, he began his lifelong and prolific career as a journalist, working throughout England on newspapers as a reporter, columnist and editor. His devotion to improving beer coverage was considered distinctive, he said, in an era when "newspaper men talked beer, drank beer and wrote about wine."

He used reportage of local brews and pubs as a way to advocate "think global, drink local" in his first book, "The English Pub", published in 1976. Next year, his "World Guide to Beer" would tap a flow of thought and energy that helped create the microbrew revolution in the US, and give newfound credibility to beer as an artform.

He celebrated the drinking of beer with food, and his educated descriptions of the looks, scents and tastes of various beers set the standards for beer classifications that are in common use today throughout the world. His "Pocket Guide to Beer" has been reprinted nine times, in over 20 languages. Other best-selling books include "The New World Guide to Beer" in 1988 and "The Great Beers of Belgium" in 1992.

Not just a beer geek he had a parallel passion for whisky (and said about wine that, though a day might pass without his drinking wine, a week never did). In 2001 he wrote "Scotland and its Whiskies". In 1989 he had published the world's best-selling book on the subject, "Michael Jackson's Malt Whisky Companion", now in its fifth edition. His book "Whiskey" won a James Beard Foundation award last year.

He established the language and identification of beer styles. Before Jackson, all beer was essentially the same; today, beer experts recognize over 100 major styles. Many of those styles, especially obscure varieties from Belgium, would be extinct today if not for Jackson's writing. In 1994, as thanks for almost single-handedly reviving that nation's brewing tradition, Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium gave Jackson its Mercurius Award.

"He was simply the best beer writer we've ever known," said Tim Hampson, chairman of the British Guild of Beer Writers. "He told wonderful stories about beer, breweries and far away places. He told the story of beer through people, and he was humorous and erudite at the same time," Hampson told The Associated Press.

Michael Jackson, writer and journalist: born Leeds March 27 1942; married Maggie O'Connor (deceased); died London August 30 2007

- Compiled from wire, newspaper and internet accounts
- Picture courtesy of Wikipedia & Public Domain