November 27th, 2016 - The Marvella Of The Tusk

Happy lazy Sunday afternoon!  The Meista here today pairing Fleetwood Mac's 1979 double album "Tusk" and a Marvella Belgian Style Tripel Ale from Red Rock Brewing Company!

Album Info:

• Artist: Fleetwood Mac
• Title: "Tusk"
• Recorded: 1978 through 1979
• Release date: October 12th, 1979 (12th studio album by Fleetwood Mac)1969-04-16)
• Record company: Warner Bros.
• Production: Fleetwood Mac, Ken Caillat, and Richard Dashut
• Album cover art: Vigon Nahas Vigon (art direction and design), Peter Beard (photography), Jayme Odgers (photography), and Norman Seeff (photography)
• Personnel: Lindsey Buckingham (vocals, guitars, bass guitar, piano, drums, and percussion), Mick Fleetwood (drums and percussion), Christine McVie (vocals and keyboards), John McVie (bass guitar), and Stevie Nicks (vocals and keyboards on "Sara")
• Additional musicians: Peter Green (guitar on "Brown Eyes") and the USC Trojan Marching Band (horns and percussion on "Tusk") 
• Musical style: Rock, pop, experimental art rock with elements of folk rock, blues rock, and country and influence from punk rock and new wave
• Sound: The band's most ambitious (and expensive) album and most experimental, "Tusk" stands out as Fleetwood Mac's most unique records.  Although still a rock/pop album, Buckingham's songwriting and production approach was heavily influenced by the punk rock and new wave music movements at the time.  Of the album's sound Buckingham stated: "For me, being sort of the culprit behind that particular album, it was done in a way to undermine just sort of following the formula of doing Rumours 2 and Rumours 3, which is kind of the business model Warner Bros. would have liked us to follow."
  Major themes: Relationships, love, loss, life, individuality, rebellion, honesty, deception, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "Over & Over"
2. "The Ledge"
3. "Think About Me"
4. "Save Me A Place"
5. "Sara"
6. "What Makes You Think You're The One"
7. "Storms"
8. "That's All For Everyone"
9. "Not That Funny"
10. "Sisters Of The Moon"
11. "Angel"
12. "That's Enough For Me"
13. "Brown Eyes"
14. "Never Make Me Cry"
15. "I Know I'm Not Wrong"
16. "Honey Hi"
17. "Beautiful Child"
18. "Walk A Thin Line"
19. "Tusk"
20. "Never Forget"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Red Rock Brewing (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: http://redrockbrewing.com/
• Brew: Marvella Belgian Style Tripel Ale
• Style: Belgian Tripel
• Serving: 16 ounce bottle
• ABV: 11.0%
• Ingredients: Pale malts, Belgian candy sugar, and unique yeast strain
• Pour: The Marvella pours a bright golden yellow with a thin, fizzy white head that dissipates quickly and leaves only trace lacing.
• Nose: The nose is yeasty, sweet and full of fruit ester, spicy, and floral.  There are aromas of soft banana, plantain, pink bubblegum, candied pears, jasmine, orange peel, and light spices.
• Taste: The taste sweet, fruity, yeasty, and slightly funky.  There are notes of pink bubblegum, soft banana, old-fashioned candies, orange zest, and a very light hop bitterness.
• Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied and well-carbonated, the mouthfeel of the Marvella is very smooth and dangerously drinkable with not trace of booziness and with a dry and sweet finish.

Overall pairing: Red Rock's Marvella is a wonderfully sweet and deceptively drinkable triple.  That sweetness and deception is why I chose "Tusk" to accompany the Marvella.  Like the brew, the album is wonderfully complex with sweet and lovely themes throughout, yet there is a darkness and a prankster quality that lingers underneath.

Cheers!!