Best Fonts of 2008

Back in college, I was fortunate to find others who shared my then secret admiration and fascination with fonts. I thought maybe it was this odd personality trait, that I liked you know, letterforms. I actually had favorite fonts, and they weren't "Times" or "Geneva." Things like Poppl-Pontifex, Adobe Garamond, or Bodoni. As I met more folks with what might even be called fetishes for fonts, I realized just how expensive a proposition owning these things might become. It was likely the cost involved, and no professional access to the specimens I loved, that has excluded me from the coveted member's club. I took my oddball fascination with letterforms and then began committing to memory the catalog numbers of Bach's works (the so-called BWV system). I'm not sure what's hot on my mind today other than an odd collection of miscellany; collections of obscure things, like composer's dates, the members of boutique baroque orchestras, and published recipes that promise profound flavors and requisite emotional responses. It is then, a special thing, when I run across and article such as this, foretelling what one man considers the best fonts of 2008. I mean, it could be the best wines, the best hotels, the best cars, the best hi-fi equipment, or the best investments. But no, it's the best fonts, and that tickles me. I liked Utility, Soho, and Skolar, especially, not to mention a few specialty typefaces such as Compendium. I picture that one on a classy wine bottle. I think those of us who dabble in the design of things, but don't find it our daily passion or means for sustainability, ought to be allowed a font a year. A little personal vice, if you will, healthier than cigar smoking, less expensive than a truffle dinner, and something that we are in special, limited company to appreciate and savor.