To coincide with the announcement of the New Year’s Honours, Jeff doles out his own alternative awards – for services rendered to the bottled beer industry in 2009.

Knighthood
Arise Sir John Keeling (pictured right) for not only the consistently excellent 1845, Vintage Ale, Golden Pride and London Porter, but for bravely extending the Fuller’s range through limited-edition beers such as the wood-aged Brewer’s Reserve and Gale’s Prize Old Ale.

CBE (Commander of the Order of Bottling Excellence)
Long-overdue recognition for Steve Wellington for giving Worthington’s White Shield the kiss
of life a few years ago and reviving it so well that Molson Coors now actually spend money promoting it.

OBE (Officer of the Order of Bottling Excellence)
For services beyond the call of duty, an OBE goes to Stuart Howe of Sharp’s who, when his daily head brewer’s duties are over, stays on to hand-craft some remarkable small-run bottled beers in his spare time.

MBE (Member of the Order of Bottling Excellence)
To the little-known but admirable Alan Thomson of Old Chimneys Brewery in Norfolk, for his range of excellent bottle-conditioned beers, topped by the outstanding Good King Henry Special Reserve imperial stout.

BEM (Bottling Excellence Medal)
An award for the best newcomer that goes to Nigel Wright of Hopshackle Brewery in Lincolnshire for imaginative beers outstandingly produced.

KBE (Honorary Knighthood)
An award presented to non-British or Commonwealth brewers. For a lifetime of beery brilliance, the winner is Fritz Maytag of Anchor Brewery, San Francisco, whose glorious Old Foghorn returned to my beer stock this year and seduced me all over again. Thanks for saving the brewery, Fritz, and kick-starting the US craft brewing movement.

Mentioned in Dispatches
St Austell for committing to bottled beer with a new bottling hall; Thwaites for also adding a new bottling line and for bottle-conditioning a mild; Thornbridge, who not only built a new brewery but also developed some astonishing new beers; and Vale Brewery, Buckinghamshire, for great consistency over a wide range of bottled beers.