May 13th, 2016 - A Little Hole In The Sun

Good afternoon!  The Meista here with another pairing for you... Night Ranger's very underrated "Hole In The Sun" and a Little Hole Lager (2 of 'em actually... see below) from Vernal Brewing Company! 

Album Info:

• Artist: Night Ranger
• Title: "Hole In The Sun"
• Recorded: 2006 and 2007
  Release date: April 23rd, 2007 (9th studio album by Night Ranger) (2007-04-23)
• Record company: Frontiers Records
• Production: Night Ranger
• Album cover art: Bill O'Neill
• Personnel: Jack Blades (lead and backing vocals, and bass guitar), Brad Gillis (lead and rhythm guitars, and backing vocals), Kelly Keagy (drums, percussion, and backing and lead vocals), Michael Lardie (keyboards, piano, and backing vocals), and Jeff Watson (lead and rhythm guitars, and backing vocals)
• Musical style: Hard rock, rock, power pop
• Sound: With elements of their early '80s glory years, but very modern and well-produced and well-written, "Hole In The Sun" is quite possibly the band's best album!  It is richly textured, lyrically interesting, catchy, and freakin' rocks!  The guitar work of Gillis and Watson alone is worth every penny!!
• Major themes: Relationships, life, love, lust, sex, betrayal, rock and roll, etc.
• Notes: Sadly this was the last album to feature guitarist Jeff Watson.  He left the band before the album was released.
• Tracks:   

1. "Tell Your Vision"
2. "Drama Queen"
3. "You're Gonna Hear It From Me"
4. "Whatever Happened"
5. "There Is Life"
6. "Rock Star"
7. "Hole In The Sun"
8. "Fool In Me"
9. "White Knuckle Ride"
10. "Revelation 4 A.M."
11. "Wrap It Up"
12. "Being"
13. "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" (acoustic version)
14. "Sister Christian" (acoustic version)

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Vernal Brewing Company (Vernal, Utah)
• Website: http://www.vernalbrewingco.com/           
• Brew: Little Hole Lager
• Style: American Pale Lager (APL)
• Serving: 12 ounce can
• ABV: 4.0% and 6.0%
• Pour: It pours a clear, bright straw gold with a frothy, 1-finger head that dissipates quickly leaving a thin ring and only trace lacing.
• Nose: The nose of the Little Hole Lager is a blend of light grains, light fruit, and hints of summer grass.  There are aromas of cracked wheat, crackery biscuit, honey, honeysuckle, apple, pear, and hoppy grass.
• Taste: Following the nose, the taste of the Little Hole Lager is biscuity, fruity, and grassy.  There are wonderfully well-blended notes of grassy hops, soft caramel, sweet honey, pear juice, white grape juice, crackery biscuit, and a hint of white pepper in the finish.
• Mouthfeel: Light-bodied and well-carbonated, the mouthfeel of the Little Hole is crisp, smooth, slightly sticky, and refreshing with a clean, yet slightly sweet finish.  (There's a hint of booziness in the 6.0% AVB version and it is slightly sweeter.)

Overall pairing: The simple easy drinkability, yet well-blended flavors of the Little Hole Lager from the great folks at Vernal Brewing Company is a great brew for a sunny spring day whilst kicking back to the rockin' tunes of Night Ranger's "Hole In The Sun"... trust me!! 

Cheers!!