October 10th, 2014 - One More Oktoberfest 'Round The Sun

Good afternoon and happy Oktoberfest!! 

It is a great time of year!  The leaves are changing color and the brewers are cranking out their seasonal Oktoberfest ales.  The Pyramid Oktoberfest Autumn Lager is a Bavarian Märzenbier style lager.  As defined on the Beer Advocate (www.beeradvocate.com), Märzenbiers are "full-bodied, rich, toasty, typically dark copper in color with a medium to high alcohol content."  The same can be said of the Pyramid Oktoberfest Autumn Lager.  It pours a deep copper-amber with a big, 2-finger, frothy head that displays strong and sustained lacing.  The nose is big barley and malt aromas with a bit of honey or molasses and just a hint of liquid smoke.  The flavor follows suit... a big malt and barley flavor upfront with some real nice hop bitterness giving it near perfect balance... like Mastodon's massive sound!  There are also some rather nice subtle toffee notes in the finish.  Medium-bodied with a refreshing dryness, the mouthfeel is .  Whereas most Oktoberfest lagers are generally lighter and "weaker", the Pyramid Oktoberfest has a heartier flavor and a nice little 6.7% ABV kick to boot... great a pairing to the sheer might that is MASTODON!!

"Once More 'Round  The Sun" is the 6th studio album by progressive metal band Mastodon.  It was released on June 24th, 2014.   Like the ingredients in the Pyramid Oktoberfest Autumn Lager, Mastodon is perfectly balanced by the talents of Brann Dailor (vocals and drums), Brent Hinds (vocals and guitars), Bill Kelliher (guitars), and Troy Sanders (vocals and bass guitar).  Scott Kelly of Neurosis provides vocals on "Diamond in the Witch House".  One of the pervading themes on the album is death.  Kelliher states, "I think we're kind of focusing more about living on this earth and what would happen if this was your last year to live. I think that's sort of maybe a little bit of what we might be kind of touching on."  Musically, "Once More 'Round The Sun" is powerfully complex... a massive wall of sound and intricate melodies, riffs, hooks, and rhythm.  Dailor described it as, "real weird, real math-y, real straightforward. It's up, down and all around."  Songs like "Tread Lightly", "The Motherload", "High Road", "Asleep In The Deep", "Aunt Lisa", "Ember City", Halloween", and "Diamond in the Witch House" are richly crafted, flawlessly executed, and heavy as hell!  The beautiful album cover was painted by one of my favorite artists, the amazing Oakland-based Skinner.  Check out his killer work here: http://www.theartofskinner.com/! 

PROST!!