July 14th, 2016 - Maximum Ghostlights For The Maximator

Guten Abend!  Your drinkin' pal the Meista here with a pairing tonight pairing a Munchner Bier Maximator from Augustiner-Bräu Wagner KG and "Ghostlights", the latest rock opera from the amazing Tobias Sammet's Avantasia!!  Hell yeah!!

Album Info:

• Artist: Tobias Sammet's Avantasia
• Title: "Ghostlights"
• Recorded: 2015 at Gatestudio in Wolfsburg, Germany
  Release date: January 29th, 2016
• Record company: Nuclear Blast
• Production: Sascha Paeth and Tobias Sammet
• Album cover art: Thomas Ewerhard
• Personnel: Tobias Sammet (lead vocals on all tracks, additional keyboards, and bass) with Felix Bohnke (drums), Sascha Paeth (lead guitar, rhythm guitar, bass, additional keyboards, engineering, and mixing), and Michael Rodenberg (orchestration, keyboards, and mastering)
• Guest musicians: Oliver Hartmann (lead guitar) and Bruce Kulick (lead guitar)
• Guest vocalists: Ronnie Atkins, Bob Catley, Sharon den Adel, Marco Hietala, Michael Kiske, Jørn Lande, Herbie Langhans, Robert Mason, Dee Snider, and Geoff Tate
• Musical style: Progressive metal, symphonic metal, power metal, gothic metal, hard rock
• Sound: Bombastic, complex, yet rocking as hell, the sound on "Ghostlights" is like all Avantasia albums... totally engrossing, inspirational, and an artistic delight!
• Major themes: "Ghostlights" is a concept album about "a journey where [the protagonist] is looking for answers for some questions about his own existence and that leaves its mark on his philosophical worldview as well. Those twelve songs represent key moments on this journey and then it's done." He left an open ending "so that people can think about the things that happen in the story. You should be able to interpret it for yourself in the end."  Of the albums themes, Sammet explained that "the whole concept of this album deals with questionable ideals you have in life.  It depends on which philosophy of life you have. Such ideals can be very different from each other.  And it's about distractions to find cross-fires on the way to find out what you really want from life."
• Tracks:   

1. "Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose"
2. "Let the Storm Descend Upon You"
3. "The Haunting"
4. "Seduction Of Decay"
5. "Ghostlights"
6. "Draconian Love"
7. "Master Of The Pendulum"
8. "Isle Of Evermore"
9. "Babylon Vampyres"
10. "Lucifer"
11. "Unchain The Light"
12. "A Restless Heart And Obsidian Skies"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Augustiner-Bräu Wagner KG (Munich, Germany)
• Website: www.augustiner-braeu.de           
• Brew: Munchner Bier Maximator
• Style: Doppelbock 
• Serving: 12 ounce bottle
• ABV: 7.5%
• Pour: It pours a deep ruby-mahogany with red flecks and a frothy, off-white head that dissipates quickly, leaving no lacing.
• Nose: The nose of the Maximator is sweet, fruity, and very malty.  There are big aromas of caramelized sugar, dark fruits (raisin, plum, prune, and fig), apple, cherry, sweet bread, and brown sugar.
• Taste: The taste follows the nose... big flavors of sweet caramel, brown sugar, molasses, raisin bread, plum, cherry, freshly baked bread, and sweet hops.
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is sticky, thick, and very smooth with a fairly clean, but sweet finish.

Overall pairing: The rich, bold, sweet flavors and aromas of the Munchner Bier Maximator from Augustiner-Bräu Wagner KG is a great brew for the powerful, intense, honest, and fun power metal style of the brilliant Tobias Sammet's Avantasia's latest endeavor!!   Those big malt notes blend wonderfully well with the meaty guitars, thunderous drums and bass, and the awe-inspiring vocal performances!!

Prost... Zum Wohl... Hails!!