April 16th, 2015 - Crossing Into MacPelican's Ale

Guid eenin!! The Meista here tonight getting back to my Scottish roots and pairing a MacPelican's Ale from Pelican Brewing Company and Big Country's debut album "The Crossing"!
 
Album Info:

• Artist: Big Country
• Title: "The Crossing"
• Recorded: May 1983 at The Manor, Oxfordshire and RAK Studios, London, England
• Release date: July 15th, 1983 (1st studio album by Big Country)
• Record company: Mercury Records
• Personnel: Stuart Adamson (lead vocals, guitar, piano, and e-bow), Mark Brzezicki – drums, percussion, and vocals), Tony Butler (bass and vocals), and Bruce Watson (guitar, mandolin, sitar, vocals, and e-bow)
• Musical style: Alternative rock, Celtic-folk rock, post-punk/new wave
• Sound: Poppy, but guitar driven rock with strong Celtic vibes from the mimicking of bagpipes with MXR Pitch Transposer 129 Guitar effects.  Upon the release of the album, music critic Kurt Loder said: "Here's a big-noise guitar band from Britain that blows the knobs off all the synth-pop diddlers and fake-funk frauds who are cluttering up the charts these days. Big Country mops up the fops with an air-raid guitar sound that's unlike anything else around, anywhere ... Like the Irish band U2 (with whom they share young, guitar-wise producer Steve Lillywhite), Big Country has no use for synthesizers, and their extraordinary twin-guitar sound should make The Crossing a must-own item for rock die-hards."
• Major themes: Love, life, loss, hope, honesty, self-discovery, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "In A Big Country"
2. "Inwards"
3. "Chance"
4. "A Thousand Stars"
5. "The Storm"
6. "Harvest Home"
7. "Lost Patrol"
8. "Close Action"
9. "Fields Of Fire (400 Miles)"
10. "Porrohman"

    Brew Info:

• Brewery: Pelican Brewing Company (Pacific City, Oregon)
• Website: http://www.pelicanbrewery.com/
• Brew: MacPelican's Ale
• Style: Scottish Ale
• Serving: 22 ounce bottle
• ABV: 5%
• IBUs: 16
• Gravity: 13 degrees Plato
• Ingredients: Caramel malt, Flaked barley, Golden Promise malt, pure ale yeast, and Willamette hops
• Pour: Clear, yet very dark copper-amber with a thin, soapy/bubbly head that dissipates quickly and leaves very little lacing. 
• Nose: The nose of the MacPelican's is malty and sweet with hints of grassy hops.  There are aromas of butterscotch, caramel/toffee, leafy hops, and minerals.
• Taste: Sweet, malty, and delicious, the MacPelican's has notes of butterscotch, caramel/toffee, some dark fruit, brown sugar, and grainy cereal notes.
• Mouthfeel: Sessionable and a very good example of the Scottish Ale style, the MacPelican's Ale has lower carbonation and a very smooth and velvety mouthfeel. 

Overall pairing: The MacPelican's Ale and "The Crossing" by Big Country make for great companions (and not just for the Scottish connection).  The sweet and mellow nature of the ale works very well with the poppier yet artistically honest songwriting and execution of Big Country's sound.  I think the song "Chance" really is the perfect song for the wonderful flavor of the MacPelican's Ale!

 Sláinte!!