December 13th, 2015 - Imperial Stout Black Like Sunday... Or... Going The Distance With King's X

Here's a special pairing going out to my good buddy Mike Sargent... cheers my friend and thanks VERY much for the brew!!  I'm getting heavy and deep with a pairing of  "Black Like Sunday" by King's X and a Furlong Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout from Red Rock Brewery!

Album Info:

• Artist: King's X
• Title: "Black Like Sunday"
• Recorded: November 2002 through March 2003 at Alien Beans Studios in Katy, Texas
• Release date: May 20th, 2003 (10th studio album by King's X)
• Record company: Metal Blade Records
• Production: Ty Tabor and King's X
• Album cover art: Danny Wilson
• Personnel: Jerry Gaskill (drums and vocals), Doug Pinnick (bass and vocals), and Ty Tabor (guitars and vocals)
• Musical style: Hard rock and progressive rock with elements of blues, R&B, soul, heavy metal, punk, and funk
• Sound: Heavy, rich, funky, steeped in honesty and artistic integrity, and just fun as hell to listen too... "Black Like Sunday" is another bold statement by the King's X boys!  There is a power and depth to this band's sound that cannot be defined in words. 
• Major themes: Relationships, pain, the blues, rock and roll, love, anger, joy, life and death, states of mind, states of being, and life in general, etc.
• Notes: The album is made up of rare and originally unreleased recordings that were re-recorded based on fan requests. Also, the album cover was made by a fan from an online contest.
• Tracks:  

1. "Black Like Sunday"
2. "Rock Pile"
3. "Danger Zone"
4. "Working Man"
5. "Dreams"
6. "Finished"
7. "Screamer"
8. "Bad Luck"
9. "Down"
10. "Won't Turn Back"
11. "Two"
12. "You're The Only One"
13. "Johnny"
14. "Save Us"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Red Rock Brewery (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: http://www.redrockbrewing.com/
• Brew: Furlong Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
• Style: Imperial Stout
• Serving: 16.9 ounce bottle
• ABV: 10.2%
• Pour: Opaque ink black with a very creamy and firm mocha head with good retention and lacing.
• Nose: The nose of the Furlong is a characterized by an immediate bourbon and bittersweet dark chocolate blast followed by more subtle aromas of roasted coffee, baker's chocolate, oak, and roasted coffee beans. 
• Taste: The taste is very roasty, hearty, toasty, chocolaty, earthy, and creamy.  There are big and complex notes of  milk chocolate, dark chocolate, rich coffee, vanilla bean, cream, marshmallow, barley, aged bourbon and roasted malts.  The bourbon notes become more prevalent as the beer warms.
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with very little carbonation, the mouthfeel is creamy, velvety, chunky, and smooth with a boozy finish.
• Notes: From the label: "The Furlong is brewed with roasted barley to impart notes of coffee and dark chocolate. RedRock's brewers used rich dark malts for bold flavor and then age it all in freshly used Kentucky Bourbon Barrels for a year."

Overall pairing:  In all honesty, I really cannot express how much I love the music of King's X and how well the pairing with this brew works.  But if you are going to go big, you better be willing to go really fucking BIG... especially when it comes to pairing any brew with a King's X album!  I will say that the rich complexity of the Furlong from Red Rock is perfect for the bold and boozy flavors you find on the tracks of "Black Like Sunday"!  Maybe it is the music talking... or the beer... or a wonderful combination of the two... anyway cheers!!  Keep it craft and keep it heavy!!