December 27th, 2016 - ELP In The Blanche De Chambly

Good evening!  The Meista here tonight pairing a Blanche de Chambly from Unibroue with Emerson, Lake, and Powell's (sometimes referred to as ELP2) self-title 1986 album!  This pairing is dedicated to all 3 late members of ELP2!  Rest in peace Keith Emerson, Greg Lake, and Cozy Powell.

Album Info:

• Artist: Emerson, Lake & Powell (ELP2)
• Title: "Emerson, Lake & Powell"
• Recorded: 1985 through 1986 at Maison Rouge in London, England and Fleetwood Mobile in Sussex, England
  Release date: May 26th, 1986 (1st and only album released by ELP2)
• Record company: Polydor
• Production: Tony Taverner and Greg Lake
• Album cover art: Debra Bishop of Koppel & Scher (design based on Haus Bergmann's work)
• Personnel: Keith Emerson (keyboards), Greg Lake (vocals, bass, and guitars), and Cozy Powell (drums and percussion)
• Musical style: Progressive rock
• Sound: With the release of "Emerson, Lake & Powell", fans saw (and heard) a return to their early 1970s form with long, epic progressive rock suites, melodic ballads, and classical themes and motifs.  This sounds like early ELP, but with a modern 1980s flair. 
• Major themes: Hope, perseverance, belief, honesty, integrity, peace, etc.
• Notes: Emerson and Lake had planned to re-form the original ELP line-up in 1985 with drummer Carl Palmer, but he was unavailable due to his contractual obligations with the band Asia.  After auditioning a series of drummers unwilling to commit to the band, they approached Cozy Powell, a longtime friend of Emerson's, who agreed, and the rest is history.
• Tracks:  

1. "The Score"
2. "Learning To Fly"
3. "The Miracle"
4. "Touch And Go"
5. "Love Blind"
6. "Step Aside"
7. "Lay Down Your Guns"
8. "Mars The Bringer Of War"
9. "The Locomotion" (bonus track)
10. "Vacant Possession" (bonus track)

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Unibroue (Chambly, Quebec, Canada)
• Website: www.unibroue.com
• Brew: Blanche de Chambly
• Style: Belgian Witbier
• Serving: 22 ounce bottle
• ABV: 5.0%
• IBUs: 10
• Pour: The Blanche de Chambly pours a wonderful, very pale, very cloudy, straw-gold color with a bright white, frothy, 2 finger head that leaves lots of intricate lacing.  The fact that it is unfiltered with high wheat content adds to the rich color.
• Nose: Not as pungent as most Unibroue ales, the nose has subtle notes of white grape juice, orange peel, lemon, banana, and a hint of zesty spice.
• Taste: The flavor of the Blanche de Chambly is a perfectly complete and complex balance of sweet and tart ester and spiced malts.  The flavors are somewhat mellow, but complex.  There are muted notes of tart citrus and sour Belgian yeast on the front end.  The mid-range finds notes of malt, soft banana, and bubblegum.  And then the Blanche de Chambly finishes with some really, really nice pepperiness from the spices: coriander and clove.
• Mouthfeel: The mouthfeel is light and refreshing with sharp carbonation like champagne with "fine and abundant" bubbles, which is perfectly accurate for this style.

Overall pairing: The various flavors make the Blanche de Chambly a great ale to truly accompany the fantastic songwriting and musicianship of ELP!   The sharpness of the carbonation, the mellowness of the fruit ester, and the spicy finish really bring out and compliment the emotional and musical complexities of the album.

Cheers!!