August 7th, 2019 - Tales Of The Twilight Summer Ale World

Guten abend!  The Meista here starting the weekend off right with a pairing of Blind Guardian's fantastic "Tales Of the Twilight World" and Twilight Summer Ale from Deschutes Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: Blind Guardian
• Title: "Tales Of the Twilight World"
• Recorded: April through May 1990 at Karo Musik Studios in Brackel / Hanburg, Germany
• Release date: October 3rd, 1990 (3rd studio album by Blind Guardian)
• Record company: No Remorse Records
• Production: Kalle Trapp
• Album cover art: Andreas Marschall
• Personnel: Hansi Kürsch (vocals and bass), André Olbrich (lead, rhythm, and acoustic guitars), Marcus Siepen (rhythm guitar), and Thomen "The Omen" Stauch (drums and percussion)
• Additional musicians: "Hacky" Hackmann (backing vocals), Kai Hansen (guest and backing vocals and guitar), Rolf Köhler (backing vocals), Piet Sielck (backing vocals), and Mathias Wiesner (effects)
• Musical style: Speed metal, power metal, progressive metal
• Sound: "Tales Of the Twilight World" is powerful and fast-paced musical delivery and the album band states helped define their signature sound.  Combining the aggression of speed metal with the complexity of progressive metal, and the punch of power metal, Blind Guardian creates a wonderfully rich tapestry!
• Major themes: Folklore, mythology, life and death, valor, dreams, quests, wizardry, power, war, magic, good vs. evil, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "Traveller In Time"
2. "Welcome To Dying"
3. "Weird Dreams"
4. "Lord Of The Rings"
5. "Goodbye My Friend"
6. "Lost In The Twighlight Hall"
7. "Tommyknockers"
8. "Altair 4"
9. "The Last Candle"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Deschutes Brewing Company (Portland, Oregon)
• Website: https://www.deschutesbrewery.com/
• Brew: Twilight Summer Ale
• Style: American Blonde Ale
• Serving: 12 ounce bottle
• ABV: 5.0%
• IBUs: 38
• Ingredients: Pale, Carapils, Crystal, and Munich malts with Sterling, Celeia, Cascade, and Tettnang hops
• Pour: The Twilight Summer Ale pours a clear golden-orange hue with a 1-finger, white, frothy/creamy head with great retention and lots of soapy lacing.
• Nose: The nose is filled with lots of grainy, grassy, citrusy, spicy, and floral notes.  There are aromas of lemon zest, orange, tangerine, cracked wheat, toasted bread, wild flowers, summer grass, caramel, and light honey.
• Taste: The taste of the Twilight Summer Ale follows the nose with lots of .  There are notes of orange, lemon zest, cracked wheat, crackery biscuit, grassy hops, light apple, light spice, and soft caramel.
• Mouthfeel: Light-bodied and well-carbonation, the mouthfeel of is very crisp, bright, and smooth with a clean finish.

Overall pairing: The Deschutes Twilight Summer Ale is wonderfully light and easy drinking, yet flavorful little brew... a perfect foil for the fast, progressive heavy metal might of Blind Guardian's brilliant "Tales Of the Twilight World"!  'Nuff said!

PROST!!    

Prost!!  Hails!!