February 1st, 2016 - Bremer Weisse And Cheap Tricks

Good evening rockers and rollers!  The Meista here tonight pairing Cheap Trick's self-titled 1997 album and a Bremer Weisse from Bohemian Brewery!

Album Info:

• Artist: Cheap Trick
• Title: "Cheap Trick" (also referred to as "Cheap Trick '97")
• Recorded: Between December 1995 and January 1997 at Pie Studios, Glen Cove, New York
• Release date: April 29th, 1997 (13th studio album by Cheap Trick)
• Record company: Red Ant Records/Alliance
• Production: Cheap Trick and Ian Taylor
• Album cover art: ?
• Personnel:  Bun E. Carlos (drums and tambourine), Rick Nielsen (backing vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, E-bow, piano, and electric saw), Tom Petersson (backing vocals, bass, 12-string bass, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, baritone guitar, E-bow, and tamboura), and Robin Zander (lead vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, baritone guitar, slide guitar, tiple, and piano)
• Additional musicians: Mike Beert (cello) and Richie Cannata (piano)
• Musical style: Rock and roll, hard rock, power pop
• Sound: Loud, crunchy guitars, powerful riffs, and sweet, sweet melodies, "Cheap Trick '97" is one of those albums that just floors you from the opening riff to the final fade out!  This is full-strength Cheap Trick with a sound harkening back to the early years but planted firmly in the modern world (well, the modern world of '97).  This album really rocks!
• Major themes: Relationships (lasting and broken), love, betrayal, life, lust, etc.
• Tracks:  

1. "Anytime"
2. "Hard To Tell"
3. "Carnival Game"
4. "Shelter"
5. "You Let A Lotta People Down"
6. "Baby No More"
7. "Yeah Yeah"
8. "Say Goodbye"
9. "Wong All Along"
10. "Eight Miles Low"
11. "It All Comes Back to You"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Bohemian Brewery (Murray, Utah)
• Website: http://www.bohemianbrewery.com/
• Brew: Bremer Weisse
• Style: German Hefeweizen
• Serving: 32 ounce growler
• ABV: 4.0%
• IBUs: 20
• Ingredients: Czech yeast, wheat malt, pale barley malt, German hops    
• Pour: Very cloudy lemon yellow with a thin, bright white head that dissipates quickly leaving a thin ring and light lacing.
• Nose: The nose is lovely blend of tart and citrusy fruit and cracked wheat.  There are aromas of lemon juice, crackery grains, light barley, and a hint of honey.
• Taste: Following the nose the taste of the Bremer Weisse is very acidic, very crisp, wheaty, and grainy.  There are notes of tart lemon juice, sour grapes, a sprinkling of apple cider vinegar, freshly baked wheat bread, crackery biscuit, light honey and cereal grain.
• Mouthfeel: Light-bodied and well-carbonated, the mouthfeel is very crisp and refreshing with a tart, clean finish.

Overall pairing: The tart, crisp, easy-drinkin' flavors of Bohemian's Bremer Weisse is great for the poppy rockin' goodness that is Cheap Trick!  Those lemony notes go really well with the screaming guitar power of Nielsen and the powerful, Lennon-esque vocals of Zander, while the wheat notes are go great with the overall rhythm of the album!

Cheers!!  Rock and roll baby!!