November 20th, 2023 - Phase Four of the Fresh Hop Pale Ale

 

Hello metal maniacs and craft beer freaks!  The Meista here today rockin' the hell out to a pairing of the kick-ass "Phase Four", the latest album by Chicago metal band Spillage with a tasty and hoppy Fresh Hop Pale Ale from the folks at Offset Bier Company!  Hell yeah!  Oh, this pairing goes our to my friends Tony and Trish... thanks so very much for the album!!

Album Info:

• Artist: Spillage
• Title: "Phase Four"
• Recorded: 2023 in Chicago, Illinois
  Release date: September 8th, 2023 (4th studio album by Spillage)
• Record company: No Dust Records / Qumran Records
• Production: Bruce Franklin
• Album cover art: Billy McGuffey
• Personnel: Nick Bozidarevic (guitars), Chris "Bigman" Martins (drums), Billy McGuffey (bass), Paul Rau (keyboards), Elvin Rodriguez (lead vocals), and Tony Spillman (guitars)
• Musical style: Heavy metal, hard rock, progressive rock
• Sound: Blending classic metal/hard rock like Judas Priest and the Scorpions with Chicago style doom metal, Spillage creates a unique, richly textured, and totally rockin' vibe with all the great tacks on "Phase Four"!
• Major themes: Good vs. evil, man vs. machine, darkness, light, power, mythology, hope, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "Phase Four"
2. "Nail Biter"
3. "Love And Alchemy"
4. "Demon, I"
5. "Rise Of The Machines"
6. "Nothing To See"
7. "The Eleventh Hour"
8. "Again"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Offset Bier Company (Park City, Utah) 
• Website: https://offsetbier.com/ 
• Brew: Fresh Hop Pale Ale
• Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 5.0%
• Ingredients: Wet Zeus, Wet Comet, Segal Hop Ranch Cascade, Simcoe, and Columbus hops
• Pour: The Fresh Hop Pale Ale pours a clear, golden-yellow hue with a half-finger, frothy, bright white head with great retention and lots of sudsy lacing. 
• Nose: Hop-forward, the nose is citrusy, floral, earthy, and malty.  There are aromas of grapefruit rind, orange peel, wet pine needles, cedar, herbal tea, floral hops, fresh cut hay, light onion, doughy bread, crackery biscuit, and soft caramel.
• Taste: The taste is like the nose: citrusy, piney, spicy, and bready.  There are notes of grapefruit juice, lemon zest, orange pith, bitter herbs, pine resin, barley, black pepper, fresh, wet hops, and soft sweet toffee.
• Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel of the Fresh Hop Pale Ale is very crisp, slightly bitter, yet smooth with a clean, dry finish

Overall pairing: The Offset Fresh Hop Pale Ale is a great robust beer to crush whilst rockin' the hell out to the killer tunes on Spillage's latest offering, the wonderful "Phase Four" album!  Those crisp, hoppy notes really make for a great companion to those soaring guitars!  The crushable drinkability of the beer is perfect for the more fast-paced rockin' songs while those maltier notes go well with the slower, meatier numbers!

And if you haven't done so already, check out my interview with Spillage guitarist Tony Spillman: https://youtu.be/L6so1rc4Jkg

Cheers!!