How time flies when you are drinking a lot of beer. Last year in 2006 and again the year before that in 2005 I posted a "best of the year" for a number of things beery - I even asked the question for 2004 though I never seem to have answered it. So why ever would I stop using a technique that basically allows me to make a post from previous posts? There's no reason at all.

2007 has been a great year for me and beer. I learned a lot through series like my Sour Beer Studies and Porter Season as well as through the multi-blog extravaganza that is The Session. But what are the best of the best from all this exbeeriential learning? Tonight I will look at my favorite photo, beer shop and beer book of 2007.

• Best Photo of the Year: the one above from Paul's trip to a beer festival in Ipswich, England. I am pretty fond of this shot of Gueuze Cuvée René as well as this one of a pint and a half not to mention this great one by Evan Rail of a kölschkranz in use.
• Beer Shop of the Year: without question Bello Vino in Ann Arbor, Michigan. A fantastic selection of 800 beers benefiting from careful handling of the stock in a refrigerated zone of a general fine foods shop all topped off with the skill and care brought to the job by Beer Manager, Jeremy McClelland.
• Beer Book of the Year: while I could be selfish and talk about Beer & Philosophy, I think that we have to admit perfection when we meet it and, for me, that most perfect beer book of the year and perhaps to date has got to be Land of Amber Waters by Doug Hoverson about the history of brewing in the state of Minnesota in the USA. Even just as an object it is a beautiful thing but the level of professionalism brought to the task of writing a history exposes the quality of other recent pretenders to the task.