June 7th, 2014 - A Rye IPA ...For The Whole World To See

Hello friends!  The Meista here with another rockin' pairing for you today.  I'm going with a Rich & Dan's Rye IPA from Harpoon Brewery and "... For The Whole World To See" by Detroit proto punk band Death!  This pairing goes out to my pal Stephanie... cheers sista!!

Recorded 35 years before its release on February 17th, 2009,  "... For The Whole World To See" is a collection of 7 songs recorded and originally intended for a 12-song album back in 1975 by power trio Death (not to be confused with  Chuck Schuldiner's most excellent death metal band of the same name).  The band was compiled of 3 African-American brothers: Bobby Hackney (bass, vocals), Dannis Hackney (drums), and the late David Hackney (guitars).  Inspired by Sly And The Family Stone, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Alice Cooper, and The Who, Death's approach to music was fast, angry, aggressive, introspective, and loud.. quite the departure from the Motown sound of Detroit in the late 1960s and early 1970s.  Completely ahead of their time, each song on the album is richly textured rock monster!  Their music is truly pioneering, truly visionary, and truly pure rock and roll!  Make sure you track down and check out the great documentary about the band: A Band Called Death!  (It is available to stream on Netflix.)

I had the pleasure of sampling the Rich & Dan's Rye IPA from Harpoon Brewery (Massachusetts and Vermont) at Logan Airport in Boston in April (finally getting around to pairing it today!).  It pours a clear, deep reddish, honey amber with a 1-finger, frothy white head in a Pilsner glass.  The nose is both malty and spicy.  A wonderful blend of peppery rye, citrusy hops, bready malt aromas abound.  Medium bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is slightly sticky and oily, but still very refreshing and crisp.  Brewed with Pale, Rye, Caramel 60, Flaked Rye, and Vienna malt along with Centennial, Apollo, and Chinook, and the dry hop addition of Falconer’s Flight hops, the flavor is complex, yet crisp and refreshing.  There are big citrus and pine hop notes along with some nice caramel and toffee notes along with that lovely peppery rye kick.  It finishes with a nice dry, bitter spice bite!   Check out Rich & Dan's Rye IPA and all the other tasty brews from Harpoon at http://www.harpoonbrewery.com/!

Bottoms up!!