The Meista proudly presents what very well may be my ultimate metal and beer pairing... Iron Maiden's 1985 double live album, "Live After Death" and a Trooper Premium British Beer from Robinsons Brewery!! This pairing is most definitely dedicated with brotherly love to fellow beer and music enthusiast (and fellow writer here on the blog), Fischbox... the man that generously sent me this lovely ale from across the Pond! I'm also dedicating this with love to my son, Apostolos, a die-hard Maiden fan in his own right! And... this is also dedicated to those bad-asses that call themselves IRON MAIDEN!! Cheers guys!!
Now the obvious pairing would be a Trooper with "Piece Of Mind," but I decided to go with "Live After Death" to better capture the power and live energy of this amazing band... especially during that mid-80s era. (However, I may do another pairing with this beer in the not too distant future with something a little newer... stay tuned!) Recorded at Long Beach Arena in Long Beach, California on March 14-17, 1985 and at the Hammersmith Odeon on October 8-12, 1984, "Live After Death" is monster of live album! This is high-octane, in-your-face, heavy fucking metal!! With perfect renditions of songs like "Aces High," "Rime Of The Ancient Mariner," "Powerslave," "The Number Of The Beast," "Hallowed By Thy Name," "Run To The Hills," "Wrathchild," "Die With Your Boots On," and "Phantom Opera" (among others), this is the ultimate live Maiden album and a wonderfully rich and captivating album in general... quite possibly my all-time favorite live album by any band!
For something this fast-paced and rocking, we definitely need the crisp flavor of a Trooper Premium British Beer ! So what does a heavy metal band's beer taste like anyway? Well, it tastes just how you would think ale enthusiast and Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson would develop it to taste! It is definitely a true English ale with a good balance of hops and malts and "depth of character." Trooper pours a clear deep copper with a thin white head. The nose is malty and hoppy with notes of freshly baked bread, roasted nuts, and a hint of lemon zest. Brewed with roasted malts, Bobec, Goldings, and Cascade hops, the flavor crisp, nutty, malty, and hearty. It is medium-bodied with a nice, clean and hoppy finish. And coming in at only 4.7% ABV, you can through back a few of these easy drinking ales whilst rocking out to the nearly 2 hours of NWOBHM goodness from "Live After Death"! I cannot think of anything better to go with the of "Live After Death"!
Check out Robinsons Brewery at http://www.robinsonsbrewery.com/ and if you have any good friends in the U.K., get on the horn and ask for a special delivery of the Trooper!!
Cheers and UP THE IRONS!!!
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