Things are moving along with the 2009 edition of the Yule and Sundry Holiday Beer Photo Extravaganza. Need more UK entrants. Not teaming with Jeff in London this year has meant a real hit given his huge following there. It's been a crippling blow to the knee caps, frankly. Maybe I need a photo of me sitting on a cask of beer. He has all the best ideas. Maybe I should consider that his own entry. Very Oor Wullie if you ask me.

Ryan Hartigan of Vernon, NJ has sent in this aquatic photo to the right. The beer reference is rather subtle. Can you see it?

Next, Zak Rotello of the Olympic Tavern in Rockford, Illinois has forwarded these five photos below from his Siebel class expeditions as well as this explanation of what's going on in each one:

• Cantillon - a bung stopper on an active lambic barrel. every barrel had some sort of funk creeping out of the top.
• Floetzinger - probably the best stop on the trip due to fact that the brewmaster cooked us a wonderful dinner with his wife, showered us with gifts, and basically showed us the absolute best hospitality of our lives.
• Latrappe - brewer LJ Swinkels pouring a 750ml of their French oak aged Quad. we blamed him for making us late for the bus.
• Oettinger - one of Germany's largest breweries; the scale of things in the brewhouse was mind-boggling, and this stack of empty bottle crates looks like a cityscape to me.
• Augustiner - our home base while in Munich, the Augustiner Brau Stube (delicious schweinshaxe not pictured)

Let me just say that those are some outstanding and exotic photographs of some classic European beer scenes... but don't I speak for all of us when I note, compared to Ryan's photo, that there is an utter absence of a fish in each and every submission? I am not going to pre-judge but one has to be honest about these things.

Finally for now, Scott Mueller of Lawrence, Kansas forwards these five great shots.

OK, no fish but ROBOT PAJAMAS! Gold. Pure gold.

More later as I still have two more submissions in the queue. Thanks for you all taking the time to send these in. I will beat the bushes for more prizes and let you guys know what is on the table as soon as possible.