July 13th, 2012 - Black Country Stout Communion

Good evening and happy Friday the 13th everyone!  The Meista here... tonight I thought I would go bold - a doubly whammy of Black Country Communion albums and Epic Brewing Company's 825 Stout, part of their Elevated Series.  Truthfully, I love both of Black Country Communion's albums and could not decide which to pair with the 825 Stout so I thought, "what the hell... pair them both!"  And the 825 Stout is a good "sipper" that deserves some heavy rocking with longevity.



The 825 Stout is smooth, velvety, and chocolaty... so what better pairing than the bold, rich flavor of Glenn Hughes amazing and soulful voice and bass work, Joe Bonamassa's wonderful guitar work and distinct and smooth voice, Derek Sherinian's blistering keys, and Jason Bonham's thunderous and brutal drumming?  There's a nice organic nose to the 825 and the flavors are coffee, maple, and roasted barley.  This full-bodied stout is rich and smooth like a good mocha.  It goes down smooth and has a nice finish.

Both Black Country Communion albums are rich, complex, and bold with a sound like early 1970's hard rock in the style of Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, yet there is a freshness to the musical voice that is very rare these days.  Essentially a "super group," the members of Black Country Communion bring their own unique styles to both albums (mostly written by Hughes), yet they mesh in a beautiful and organic way as if having played together for years and years.  Between these two albums there are so many amazing, brilliant, rocking songs... I don't even know where to start.  "Black Country Communion" hits you from the first bass note on "Black Country" on through "The Great Divide," "Beggarman," the cover of Trapeze's "Medusa," and the epic "Too Late For The Sun."  And then... "Black Country Communion 2" is just as amazing, just as deep, just as rich with songs like "The Outsider," "Save Me," "Smokestack Woman," the slow, but heavy bluesy "Little Secret," and the amazing finale, "Cold."

If you are a fan of a good, solid, no-frills stout, grab a bottle of Epic's 825 Stout and check out Epic online at www.epicbrewing.com.  And if you love good old-fashioned hard rock (especially when fronted by the amazing Glenn Hughes) like I do, hit up the Heavy Metal Shop (www.heavymetalshop.com) for either or both of the Black Country Communion's albums... and tell Kevin that Victor sent ya!