“I haven’t seen you in 15 years,” Schmidlin said to the beer, which he and his fraternity brothers bought by the pallet years ago. “No, it’s not you, it’s me,” Schmidlin said to the beer, explaining his reasons for not drinking “The Beast” in so long. “I’m different now, my tastes have changed.”

His closing statement included a spoof of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. It  lamented prohibition’s negative effects on America’s brewing culture, and celebrated the craft beer industry’s revival of American brewing.

“This is a tough competition and it’s intimidating,” Schmidlin said after winning his title. “But it’s also a lot of fun and a big honor for me to win it.”

The resume review panel for the 2006 Beerdrinker of the Year search was comprised of the nation’s top beer writers and beer experts, and previous Beerdrinker of the Year winners.