William Brand

Everyone should have a drink for William Brand today. He was a great beer writer, and a friend of Healthy Spirits. He will be missed.

SAN FRANCISCO — William Brand, a longtime reporter for the Oakland Tribune, died early Friday as a result of injuries suffered in a Muni train incident in San Francisco Feb. 8. He was 70.Brand died at San Francisco General Hospital, surrounded by family and friends, according to a friend of the family.A recently retired reporter, Brand was walking near Second and King streets around 9:10 p.m. Feb. 8 when he was hit by oncoming N-Judah train, SF police said.Brand was knocked into a nearby pole by the impact, police Inspector Dean Taylor said.The investigation is continuing, but it appears to have been an accident, Taylor said.Brand retired from regular news gathering at the Tribune in November after 27 years at the paper. He continued to write a well-read beer blog titled “What’s On Tap.”The night he was struck by the train, Brand was returning from the 21st Amendment Brewery on Second Street where he had attended a food and beer pairing event he was writing about for his blog.A memorial service is planned and details will be announced later today, a friend said.