December 4th, 2022 - Kennedy Was A Night Owl

 

Hello and happy Sunday!  Your drinking pal the Meista here today getting a little mellow on this cold and rainy Sunday with a pairing of my wife's tart and tasty Kennedy Berliner Weisse from Schneeeule Brauerei and "Night Owl" by Gerry Rafferty!

Album Info:

• Artist: Gerry Rafferty
• Title: "Night Owl" 
• Recorded: 1978 through early 1979 at Chipping Norton Recording Studios and Lansdowne Recording Studios in England
• Release date: June 1979 (3rd studio album by Gerry Rafferty)
• Record company: United Artists
• Production: Hugh Murphy and Gerry Rafferty
• Album cover art: John Byrne
• Personnel: Gerry Rafferty (lead vocals, acoustic piano, Polymoog, acoustic guitars, and string arrangements)
• Additional musicians: Richard Brunton (electric and acoustic guitars, and lap steel guitar), Hugh Burns (electric and acoustic guitars), Betsy Cook (backing vocals), Barbara Dickson (backing vocals), Tommy Eyre (acoustic piano, electric piano, and synthesizers), Mo Foster (bass), Liam Genockey (drums), Richard Harvey (penny whistle, pipe organ, recorders, and synthesizers), John Kirkpatrick (accordion), Graham Preskett (acoustic piano, electric piano, string synthesizer, keyboards, fiddles, mandolin, string arrangements, string scoring. and conductor), Raphael Ravenscroft (Lyricon and saxophone), Frank Ricotti (percussion), Gary Taylor (bass), Linda Thompson (backing vocals), Richard Thompson (mandolin and electric guitar), Pete Wingfield (organ), and Gavyn Wright (string leader)
• Musical style: Folk rock, soft rock, pop rock
• Sound: Chalk full of great hooks, melodies, and harmonies, the tracks on "Night Owl" display the mastery of Rafferty's prolific songwriting skills. 
• Major themes: Life, relationships, isolation, love, loss, journeys, night, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "Days Gone Down (Still Got The Light In Your Eyes)"
2. "Night Owl"
3. "The Way That You Do It"
4. "Why Won't You Talk To Me?"
5. "Get It Right Next Time"
6. "Take The Money And Run"
7. "Family Tree"
8. "Already Gone"
9. "The Tourist"
10. "It's Going To Be A Long Night"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Schneeeule Brauerei (German)
• Website: https://schneeeule.berlin/en/portfolio/kennedy/
• Brew: Kennedy
• Style: Berliner Weisse
• Serving: 11.2 ounce bottle
• ABV: 3.5% 
• Ingredients: Monore and Callista hops and Brettanomyces yeast
• Pour: The Kennedy pours a cloudy bright yellow hue with a bright white, firm and billowy 1-finger head with good retention and lacing.
• Nose: The nose is fruity, tart, and lightly grainy with a little barnyard funk.  There are aromas of fresh grapefruit rind, orange zest, lemon juice, Brett, wet leather, and light wheat.
• Taste: The taste of the Kennedy follows the nose with lot of tart and light fruity flavors.  There are notes of lemon juice, lemon zest, Brett, apricot, and light grains.
• Mouthfeel: Light to medium-bodied and well-carbonated, the mouthfeel is very crisp, tart, effervescent, yet smooth with a dry, clean finish. 

Overall pairing: The Kennedy is a bright, tart, fruity, and crushable brew that wonderfully compliments the mellow grooves and melodies of Rafferty's great "Night Owl" album!  I also thought the album cover art and the label worked well together.  'Nuff said!

Cheers!!