November 7th, 2015 - Portrait Of A Fatal Fall Horn

Good evenin'!  Well, I'm a week late with getting this pairing posted, but I'm going with it none-the-less as it is style Fall and pumpkin brews abound... your pal the Meista here tonight pairing King Diamond's debut album "Fatal Portrait" with a Fall Hornin' Pumpkin Ale from Anderson Valley Brewing Company! Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: King Diamond
• Title: "Fatal Portrait"
• Recorded: July 1985
  Release date: February 17th, 1986 (debut album by King Diamond)
• Record company: Roadrunner Records
• Production: Rune Hoyer
• Album cover art: Dzyan, Thomas Holm, and Torbjörn Jörgensen
• Personnel: Mikkey Dee (drums), Michael Denner (lead guitars) Andy LaRocque (lead guitars), Timi Hansen (bass), and Kim Bendix Petersen aka King Diamond (lead and backing vocals and all guitars on "Voices from the Past")
• Musical style: Heavy metal, progressive metal, theatrical gothic horror metal, and neoclassical metal
• Sound: A favorite of mine, the sound on "Fatal Portrait" is huge!  The dual guitar work of Denner and LaRocque is otherworldly while the rhythm section of Dee and Hansen is a thunderous monster.  And of course, the King!  His vocals are a musical journey in themselves... wildly high, aggressively evil, and always amusing!
• Major themes: The first four songs and the finale tell a short story about a haunted portrait with themes of pain, betrayal, murder, death, and insanity.  Other themes on the album include the occult, mythology, evil, death, and All Hallow's Eve!
• Tracks: 

1. "The Candle"
2. "The Jonah"
3. "The Portrait"
4. "Dressed In White"
5. "Charon"
6. "Lurking In The Dark"
7. "Halloween"
8. "Voices From The Past"
9. "Haunted"
10. "No Presents For Christmas" (bonus track)
11. "The Lake" (bonus track)

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Anderson Valley Brewing Company (Boonville, California)
• Website: http://www.avbc.com/
• Brew: Fall Hornin' Pumpkin Ale
• Style: Pumpkin Ale
• Serving: 12 ounce bottle
• ABV: 6.0%
• IBUs: 20
• Ingredients: Pale Two-Row, Maris Otter, Munich, Crystal 120L, and Dark Chocolate, and Pumpkin Puree malts, and Bravo hops
• Pour: The Fall Hornin' pours a deep, opaque mahogany with a creamy light beige that slowly dissipates to a nice cap that leaves layered lacing.
• Nose: The nose is earthy, organic, spicy, and slightly sweet.  There are big aromas of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and other seasonal spices along with fresh pumpkin, spice bread, and soft caramel.
• Taste: Like the nose, the taste of the Fall Hornin' is characterized by big spice and pumpkin flavors.  The difference from the nose is that the spices dominate the flavor.  There are big notes of cinnamon sticks, fresh cloves, nutmeg, allspice, fresh pumpkin, cream, spice bread, and toffee.
• Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied and moderately carbonated, the mouthfeel of the Fall Hornin' is very creamy and smooth with a spicy, bitter, and biting finish.

Overall pairing: How can you go wrong with a pairing of any King Diamond album and a spicy pumpkin ale?  It is like a pairing made in hell.  Those spicy notes just go so well with both the subject matter and the exceptional musical delivery!  Oh, I picked up my copy of "Fatal Portrait" from my buddy Kevin down at the Heavy Metal Shop (www.heavymetalshop.com)... as should you!!

Skål and hails!!