February 12th, 2024 - A Pilgrimage Into the Mystery of Illusion

 

Alright my metal friends... the Meista here today pairing another great craft brew with another great album for ya!  I'm going with the mighty Chastain and their killer debut album, "Mystery Of Illusion" (which turns 39 today!) along with a bold and hoppy Pilgrimage Extra Pale Ale from the fine folks at Vernal Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: Chastain
• Title: "Mystery Of Illusion"
• Recorded: November and December 1984 at Prairie Sun Recording Studios in Cotati, California 
• Release date: February 12th, 1985 (1st studio album by Chastain)
• Record company: Shrapnel Records  / Jolly Roger Records / BlackBeard Records
• Production: Peter Marrino and Mike Varney
• Album cover art: Lionel Baker II 
• Personnel: David T. Chastain (guitars), Fred Coury (drums), Leather Leone (lead vocals), and Mike Skimmerhorn (bass)
• Musical style: Heavy metal, power metal, hard rock
• Sound: Heavy as hell, in-your-face metal like only Chastain delivers, "Mystery Of Illusion" is a criminally underrated album!  David's fiery guitars soar over a thunderous and rollicking rhythm section and Leather Leone delivers like only she can... powerful, unique, and inspiring!
• Major themes: Bravery, valor, sacrifice, violence, evil, dark fantasy, mythology, glory, war, sword and sorcery, etc.
• Tracks:

1. "Black Knight"
2. "When The Battle's Over"
3. "Mystery Of Illusion"
4. "I've Seen Tomorrow"
5. "Endlessly"
6. "I Fear No Evil"
7. "Night Of The Gods"
8. "We Shall Overcome"
9. "The Winds Of Change"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Vernal Brewing Company (Vernal, Utah)
• Website: http://www.vernalbrewing.com/
• Brew: Pilgrimage Extra Pale Ale
• Style: American Pale Ale (APA)
• Serving: 12 ounce can
• ABV: 5.0%
• Pour: The Pilgrimage pours a hazy, golden orange hue with a frothy and firm, 2-finger, off-white head with great retention and lots of sticky, intricate spider web lacing.
• Nose: The nose is citrusy, fruity, herbal, and malty.  There are aromas of orange peel and pith, grapefruit rind, tangerine, dried apricot, herbal tea, fresh herbs, and rich toffee.
• Taste: The taste follows the nose with citrusy, stone fruit, and malty flavors.  There are notes of Pale malt, grapefruit juice, orange peel, tangerine, soft peach, fresh apricot, black tea, and soft caramel / toffee.
• Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied with good carbonation, the mouthfeel of the Pilgrimage is very crisp and slightly bitter, yet smooth with a dry, hoppy finish.

Overall pairing: The hoppy and very crushable and drinkable tastiness of the Pilgrimage is perfect for an evening of rocking the hell out to the fiery goodness that is the mighty Chastain!  Those bold, hoppy flavors are great for the soaring guitars while the malty backbone goes great with the heavy bass and drums as well as the tight musicianship and the hard rock sensibility and inventiveness.  Man, this album is just plain bad-ass metal from start to finish... a real joy to listen to... especially with a bold, frosty brew! 

Cheers!!  Rock on!!