February 20th, 2020 - A Starship Named Viridian... Or ...Start Another Round Of The Starship IPA!

Buona sera and hails metal heads and hop heads!  Your drinking buddy the Meista here rocking the hell out to "Viridian", the latest wonderful album from Italian melodic metal band Temperance and a juicy and delicious Voodoo Ranger Starship IPA from New Belgium Brewing Company!  Hells yeah!!


Album Info:

• Artist: Temperance
• Title: "Viridian"
• Recorded: 2019 
• Release date: January 24th, 2020 (5th full-length studio album by Temperance)
• Record company: Napalm Records
• Production: Marco Pastorino and Michele Guaitoli
• Album cover art: Yann Souetre
• Personnel: Liuk Abbott (bass), Michele Guaitoli (lead and backing vocals, keyboards, and piano), Alfonso Mocerino (drums), Marco Pastorino (guitars and lead and backing vocals), and Alessia Scolletti (lead vocals and backing)
• Additional musicians: Sara Bressani (harp), Adriano Cancro (strings), Alex Coghy (bagpipes), Giovanni Lanfranchi (strings), Laura Macrì (backing soprano vocals), Sarah Teets (flute), and Luca Zanon (Hammond B3 and piano)
• Musical style: Melodic metal, symphonic metal, power metal
• Sound: Upbeat and melodic, the sound on "Viridian" is an incredibly powerful, inviting, and complex music journey.  The band blends heavy guitar riffs with fast-paced drumming and bass in a style reminiscent of Helloween and Gamma Ray, but wholly their own.  The vocal trio of Guaitoli, Pastorino, and Scolletti is a force of nature!  They complement and play off of each other so very well!   
• Major themes: Life, nature, hope, science fiction/fantasy, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "Mission Impossible"
2. "I Am The Fire"
3. "Start Another Round"
4. "My Demons Can't Sleep"
5. "Viridian"
6. "Let It Beat"
7. "Scent Of Dye"
8. "The Cult Of Mystery"
9. "Nanook"
10. "Gaia"
11. "Catch The Dream"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: New Belgium Brewing Company (Fort Collins, Colorado)
• Website: http://www.newbelgium.com/
• Brew: Voodoo Ranger Starship IPA
• Style: American India Pale Ale (IPA)  
• Serving: 12 ounce can
• ABV: 7.7%
• IBUs: 50
• Ingredients: Pale, Munich, and Oat malts with Galaxy, Jester, El Dorado, and Idaho 7 hops
• Pour: The Voodoo Ranger Starship IPA pours a hazy bright orange-gold with a frothy and creamy, 1+ finger, bright white head that displays lots of intricate and layered lacing throughout.
• Nose: The nose is fruity, citrusy, juicy, and slightly bready.  There are aromas of grapefruit rind, tangerine, pineapple, orange juice, mango, and papaya along with more subtle notes of doughy bread, summer wild grass, pine resin, and caramel.
• Taste: The taste, like the nose is characterized by tropical, citrusy, and light malty flavors.  There are notes of fresh pink grapefruit juice, tangerine, orange juice, mango, guava, pineapple, light melon, pine, herbal tea, and hints of caramel. 
• Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation, the Voodoo Ranger Starship IPA's mouthfeel is very crisp and very juicy with a dry, slightly bitter, yet clean finish.

Overall pairing: The punchy and aggressive, yet fruity and complex flavors and aromas of New Belgium's great Voodoo Ranger Starship IPA are perfect for the power metal punch and high energy of Temperance!  Those big, hoppy citrus notes are great for the straightforward rocking depth, while the sweeter tropical and malt notes are great for the fast, melodic rhythms and vocal prowess!

Salute!!