January 5th, 2013 - Celebrating The Rainbow

Good evening!  The somewhat drunk Meista here with another pairing for you mein friends.  For tonight's pairing I'd like to take you back to the year my "little" brother was born, 1976... and take you to a magical tour that took place in Germany that year as well.  I'm pairing "Rainbow Live in Germany 1976" and the Privatbrauerei Franz Inselkammer KG / Brauerei Aying's (I don't even have an inkling of how to pronounce any of that!) Celebrator Doppelbock Bavarian Double Bock Beer! Oh, I'm also dedicated this to my friend Kevin Kirk, owner of the Heavy Metal Shop... a true metal hero of mine who has kept metal alive in my neck of the woods for over 25 years!  Cheers buddy!!

Cherry-picked from multiple shows in Germany in 1976 (Cologne on 25-9-76, Düsseldorf 27-9-76 Nuremberg 28-9-76 and Munich 29-9-76), the "Rainbow Live in Germany 1976" is a wonderful snap-shot of Rainbow history.  This two disc album includes the following:

Disc 1

1. "Kill the King" (Dio, Blackmore, Cozy Powell) – 5:25 (Munich)
2. "Mistreated" (David Coverdale, Ritchie Blackmore) – 16:00 (Munich)
3. "Sixteenth Century Greensleeves" – 7:50 (Cologne)
4. "Catch the Rainbow" – 14:50 (Düsseldorf)

Disc 2

1. "Man on the Silver Mountain" – 13:37 (Nuremberg)
2. "Stargazer" – 17:10 (Cologne)
3. "Still I'm Sad" (Paul Samwell-Smith, Jim McCarty) – 15:00 (Cologne)
4. "Do You Close Your Eyes" – 9:45 (Munich)

If that isn't the ultimate set list, then shit, I don't know what is... deeply rich in rock and roll texture, "Rainbow Live in Germany 1976" is shear live brilliance!!  This line-up FUCKING kills: Carey, Bain, Blacklmore, Dio, Powell!!  Need I say more??  There is depth, musical genius, and shear magic in every single goddamned note played on this album! Dio's voice is rich, robust, and profound.  Blackmore's guitar work is, as always, pure magic.  And Powell's drumming is the stuff of legend. 

And speaking of depth and magic, the Celebrator Doppelbock is a wonderfully rich and tantalizing double bock in the Germanic tradition.  It pours a deep and beautiful dark ruby with a thin, but decent tan head with slowly diminishing, yet robust lacing.  The nose is sweet and malty... notes of fig, dates, raisin, and cinnamon bread abound.  Dare I say there is something succulent and sexy about the aroma?  Hell yes I do!!  The flavor is deeply profound, sweet, and warming.  There are abundant notes of molasses, rum-soaked raisins, malty sweet bread, and prune along with a slight booziness.  Coming in at 6.7% ABV, there's a nice bite too, yet it finishes fairly clean with only a slight oaky aftertaste... a great ale to throw back with the wonderful depth and intensity of live Rainbow!!

Danke schön Rainbow, Danke schön Ayinger!!