Hey there! Your pal the Meista here with another rockin' pairing for you this afternoon... I'm going with Hop Syndrome Pils Lager from Epic Brewing Company and "Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow" by Rainbow! Yeah baby!!
Crisp and hoppy, the Hop Syndrome Pils Lager from Epic Brewing Company is a thirst-quenching lager with a kick. Brewed with crackery Pilsner malt and an abundance of grassy hops, the Hop Syndrome Pils Lager is a refreshingly nice spin on the traditional Pilsner. It is very drinkable and crisp with a nice, yet subtle bitterness and even some sour/sweet tartness from the hops. The Hop Syndrome Pils Lager pours a clear, very pale straw gold with a thin white cap. The nose is earthy, grassy, slightly fruity, and grainy. There are aromas of summer grasses, lemon zest, and crackery malts. The flavor is very similar to the nose with light grains, hops, bitter herbs, citrus, and more subtle fruit notes. Light in body with a crisp, yet smooth finish, Epic's Hop Syndrome Pils Lager is great summer brew and great companion to the classic rockin' sound of Rainbow!
Released 39 years ago this week (August 4th, 1975), "Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow" is the debut album by hard rock giants Rainbow. Blackmore had left Deep Purple as lead guitarist in 1975 and had set out to record a solo album. He enlisted the help of most of Elf (vocalist Ronnie James Dio, keyboardist Micky Lee Soule, bassist Craig Gruber, and drummer Gary Driscoll). With the assistance of such accomplished and talented musicians, the solo project progressed into a new band project... thus Rainbow was born! Probably one of the most important and enjoyable albums in my collection, "Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow" is a perfectly balanced work of rock and roll art. It has a bit more a bluesy/honky-tonk sound than later more progressive Rainbow albums, which I attribute to the Elf influence. This is most evident in "Snake Charmer", "Black Sheep Of The Family", and "If You Don't Like Rock 'N' Roll". This album of course also contains some of the band's most recognizable songs and fan favorites: "Man On The Silver Mountain", "Catch The Rainbow", "The Temple Of The King", and "Sixteenth Century Greensleeves". (Side note: sadly, soon after the album was released, all of the former Elf members, apart from Dio, were fired by Blackmore and replaced for the tour.)
Cheers!!
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