November 5th, 2021 - Testimony And Sage Advice From The Ancients

 

Good evening evil-doers, headbangers, and craft brew freaks!  The Meista here tonight with another killer pairing for ya!  This one is with "Testimony Of the Ancients" by Pestilence and a very tasty Utah Sage Saison from Epic Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!  This pairing goes out to my oldest friend, John and to fan of the page Richard S.!  Thanks for the beer John!  Thanks for the pairing request/idea Richard! 

Album Info:

• Artist: Pestilence
• Title: "Testimony Of the Ancients"
• Recorded: 1991 at Morrisound Recording in Tampa, Florida; 1992 Dynamo Open Air Festival in Kunstijsbaan, Eindhoven, Netherlands 
• Release date: September 6th, 1991 (3rd full-length studio album by Pestilence)
• Record company: R/C Records / Hammerheart Records (July 23rd, 2021 reissue)
• Production: Scott Burns and Pestilence
• Album cover art: Dan SeaGrave 
• Personnel: Tony Choy (bass), Marco Foddis (drums), Patrick Mameli (guitars and vocals), and Patrick Uterwijk (guitars)
• Guest musician: Kent Smith (keyboards)
• Musical style: Death metal with elements of thrash metal and progressive death metal
• Sound: Somewhat similar to Atheist and Death, with "Testimony Of the Ancients" took a more technical and progressive approach and created a masterful, heavy, and very intriguing sonic journey!  With wonderful melodies, riffs, and solos, the tracks here provide some of the best technical/progress death metal produced... not just at the time, but in the last 30+ years!  It is a crowning achievement! 
• Major themes: Lyrical themes on the album include death, darkness, anger, deception, sorrow, suffering, horror, anti-religion, etc.  
• Tracks: 

LP 1: "Testimony Of the Ancients"

1. "The Secrecies Of Horror"
2. "Bitterness"
3. "Twisted Truth"
4. "Darkening"
5. "Lost Souls"
6. "Blood"
7. "Land Of Tears"
8. "Free Us From Temptation"
9. "Prophetic Revelations"
10. "Impure"
11. "Testimony"
12. "Soulless"
13. "Presence Of The Dead"
14. "Mindwarp"
    
15. "Stigmatized"
16. "In Sorrow"

LP 2: "Live At Dynamo Open Air 1992"

1. "Chemo Therapy"
2. "Presence Of The Dead"
3. "The Process Of Suffocation"
4. "Lost Souls"
5. "Twisted Truth"
6. "Testimony"
7. "Chronic Infection"
8. "Stigmatized"
9. "Out Of The Body"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Epic Brewing Company (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: https://www.epicbrewing.com/
• Brew: Utah Sage Saison
• Style: Saison / Farmhouse Ale 
• Serving: 22 ounce bottle
• ABV: 6.7% 
• Ingredients: Weyermann Pilsner, Muttons Maris Otter, Briess Two-Row Brewers Malt, Rye Malt, Muttons Wheat Malt, and Briess Barley Flakes, along with Centennial, Citra, and Calypso hops.  Sage, thyme, and rosemary make up the added spices along with additional Citra dry-hopping
• Pour: The Utah Sage Saison pours a fairly cloudy, golden peach hue with a big, frothy, egg white head that dissipates rather quickly leaving minimal lacing.
• Nose: The nose is a wonderful combination of sweet and yeasty Belgian Saison goodness with floral and spicy herbs.  There are notes of malty biscuit, tangy lemon, soft banana, cloves, leather, and robust sage.
• Taste: The flavor follows the same lines as the nose... it is very herbal, very spicy, somewhat funky, very old-world.  There are notes of citrus, soft banana, malty biscuit, a hint of barnyard funk, and big herb flavors of sage, basil, white pepper, thyme, rosemary, and clove.
• Mouthfeel: Medium bodied and moderately carbonated, the mouthfeel is somewhat creamy and frothy with some sharp acidity and subtle dryness in the finish.  The finish is dry and very spicy, very herbal.  Those sage notes really linger... in a very good way!

Overall pairing: Epic's Utah Sage Saison is a very complex and flavorful brew that demands your full attention... a perfect companion to the death metal intricacies and overall sonic metal onslaught of Pestilence's brilliant "Testimony Of The Ancients" album and bonus live LP!  

Cheers and hails headbangers!!  Keep it craft and keep it heavy!