The champion photo every year has spoken to me about the vitality of beer. In the contest's first year of 2006, it was about beer in the state of nature as captured by Dave Selden of Portland Oregon. In 2007, the quiet of the pub was the subject of John Lewington's photo "Two Pints of Bitter" - a candid photo John took of two old boys enjoying their Sunday afternoon ale in a 17th century pub in Aldeburgh, Suffolk. Last year, it was about the labours of the brewer captured in the photo submitted by Matt Wiater of Portland Oregon of Chip Conlon at Roots Organic Brewing.

This year, the theme is the same - the moment of human interaction with beer - but the moment captured is a new one, the tapping of a cask. Like the other grand prize winners, there is something captured - the light, the moment, the people and the interaction that makes them all partners of a sort. Taken by Kim Reed of Rochester, New York, it shows the second we all wait for, we all day dream of as we play our roles as desk jockey, dairy farmer, coal miner, bank teller. It is the moment beer's work becomes beer's pleasures. For this seeing this moment and placing it an image Kim gets:

• a signed copy of Hops and Glory from Pete Brown, last week's winner of the UK Beer Writer of the Year 2009;
• a great Jubelale gift pack from Deschutes Brewing including a Jubelale ornament, Jubelale long-sleeve T-shirt, Jubelale pint glass and a Jubelale poster signed by the artist;
• a bottle of Yule Tide, the Christmas release tripel from Clipper City; and
• a year's subscription to All About Beer magazine.

Kim also sent in four other strong entries which you can see here. All good and all for the goodness of beer photography. Merry Christmas, happy holidays and have a great 2010.