He was known to drinkers in scores of pubs across the district and yesterday hundreds of friends and family turned out for a huge pub crawl at his funeral.
Dray horses were provided by Theakston's Brewery to pull a wagon, carrying his coffin, from the Barge and Barrel in Elland to nearby Park Wood crematorium.
A huge pint of beer made out of flowers rested in the hearse following the coffin, and a large crowd walked to the crematorium carrying pints of beer and glasses of wine as a symbolic gesture to the man who made pubs his hobby and his livelihood.
Mr Stokes, 57, who died of coronary heart disease, single-handedly ran the Pub Paper, distributed weekly to about 200 pubs in the area for the last seven years.
A special edition of his paper has been produced in tribute to him, and landlords say they are determined to keep it going.
As the horses turned out of the pub car park to begin the procession to the crematorium, Mr Stokes's friends and family stood in the street clapping him on his way.
Before the funeral service, about 400 friends took part in Mr Stokes's regular Monday night crawl of six pubs.
Two 70-seater coaches ferried some of them around while many others made their way from pub to pub on foot.
They met at the Big Six, King Cross, Halifax, before moving on to The George, also at King Cross, and the Shepherd's Rest, at Bolton Brow.
The party then moved to Sowerby Bridge for a beer at The Works and The Puzzle Hall Inn, before moving on to the Barge and Barrel.
After the service it was back to the Puzzle Hall Inn for live music by some of Mr Stokes's favourite local bands. A fireworks display rounded off the evening.
Nigel Mount, landlord of the Puzzle Hall Inn, who organised the pub crawl with other licensees, said: "On a Monday night we used to do this pub crawl so we thought it would be fitting to do the same run for his funeral.
"It's been quite an upbeat atmosphere.
"People have found it quite funny, which is what he would have wanted."
Mr Mount said Mr Stokes was involved in the Campaign for Real Ale and was also a champion for the causes of customers and licensees, regularly helping new licensees to get their own premisesMr Mount added: "Mick was a fount of knowledge. What he didn't know about beer and pubs wasn't worth knowing."
Mr Stokes, from Mirey Lane in Sowerby, leaves his wife, Eileen, and two grown-up sons, Neville, 29, and Oliver, 21. He also has two sisters, Alison and Diane, and two brothers Kevin and Nigel.
Nigel Stokes said yesterday: "Mick had agood bunch of friends and the atmosphere hasbeen brilliant today. It'san absolutely wonderful testament to the man because it is how he lived his life. We wanted to send him off in his own way and he is laughing now at what we are doing.
"The special issue of the Pub Paper is the best issue he's never written and he would be happy with the send-off we have given to him.
"He was not one for solemn ceremony for himself, although he was happy if that's what other people wanted."
Mr Stokes added: "Hewas all things to everybody and everyone will have their own special memories of him. As you can tell
by the numbers here today, he will be missed by an awful lot of people."
lizzie.murphy@ypn.co.uk