Of course - but as with everything in life, a little investment in building those relationships can make service that little bit more personal - not necessarily better or quicker, but more suited to you. No criticism of the staff here (I agree with c-w-s that things have changed very much for the better), but of course if the staff member has never seen you before then they have to start from "standard" service.

In terms of cask beer, I think it would prove to be complicated to get this through the security processes to get airside. I might well be talking out of my rear-end of course, but I know that getting some products airside is easier than others...