October 7th, 2021 - Raising A Wheatwine Pint To Those Once Loyal

 

Greetings my metal brethren!  The Meista here with another great pairing for ya...  Bolt Thrower's kick-ass and sadly, final album "Those Once Loyal" and a dangerously tasty VII XXV XVII Wheatwine Ale from Level Crossing Brewing Company!  Hells yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: Bolt Thrower
• Title: "Those Once Loyal"
• Recorded: May through September 2005 at Sable Rose Studios in Coventry, England
• Release date: November 14th, 2005 (6th studio album released by Bolt Thrower)
• Record company: Metal Blade Records
• Production: Andy Faulkner 
• Album cover art: Levente Toth 
• Personnel: Jo Bench (bass), Martin Kearns (drums), Baz Thomson (guitars), Gavin Ward (guitars), and Karl Willetts (vocals)
• Musical style: Death metal 
• Sound: More akin to their earlier sound, with "Those Once Loyal", Bolt Thrower brings the death metal hammer down in stunning display!  This is that classic English death metal sound... aggressive, powerful, and brutal!
• Major themes/lyrical content: Death, war, violence, valor, bravery, loss, sacrifice, brotherhood, etc.
• Tracks:

1. "At First Light"
2. "Entrenched"
3. "The Killchain"
4. "Granite Wall"
5. "Those Once Loyal"
6. "Anti-Tank (Dead Armour)"
7. "Last Stand Of Humanity"
8. "Salvo"
9. "When Cannons Fade"
10. "A Symbol Of Eight" (bonus track)

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Level Crossing Brewing Company (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: http://www.levelcrossingbrewing.com/ 
• Brew: VII XXV XVII Wheatwine Ale
• Style: American wheat wine
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 10.5%
• Pour: The VII XXV XVII Wheatwine Ale pours a slightly hazy, copper-amber with a somewhat thin, off-white head with good retention and soapy lacing.
• Nose: The nose is characterized by sweet, malty, fruity, and hoppy aromas.  There are notes of cracked wheat, dark fruits (raisins, figs, and dates), sweet caramel/toffee, and butterscotch.
• Taste: Following the nose, the taste of the VII XXV XVII Wheatwine Ale is a blend of sweet and resinous flavors.  There are notes of caramel, sweet malt, herbal tea, bitter hops, dark fruits, and a bit of an alcohol burn in the finish.
• Mouthfeel: Medium to full-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is somewhat syrupy with a dry, bitter, and boozy finish.

Overall pairing: The Level Crossing VII XXV XVII Wheatwine Ale is wonderfully complex and bold with a hearty backbone and loads of intense flavors that go great with the aggressive power and honesty of all that is the mighty Bolt Thrower!!  Those sweeter flavors go great with the fiery guitars of  Thomson and Ward, and Bench's bass riffs while the boozy bite is right in line with the intense machine gun fire drumming of the late Martin Kearns (R.I.P.), and the bitterness is great with Willett's brutal vocals!

Cheers!!  Horns raised!!