January 1st, 2017 - I Got This Terrible Moontan On New Year's Eve!

Good afternoon and happy New Year!  The Meista today ringing in the new year with Golden Earring's classic "Moontan" and a Terrible from Unibroue!

Album Info:

• Artist: Golden Earring
• Title: "Moontan"
• Recorded: 1973
  Release date: July 1973 (9th studio album by Golden Earring)
• Record company: Tracks Records / MCA Records
• Production: Golden Earring
• Album cover art: ?
• Personnel: Bertus Borgers (saxophone), Eelco Gelling (guitar), Rinus Gerritsen (bass and keyboards), Barry Hay (flute and vocals), George Kooymans (guitar and vocals), and Cesar Zuiderwijk (drums)
• Additional musician: Patricia Paay (vocals)
• Musical style: Hard rock, progressive rock with elements of blues rock and jazz
• Sound: Wonderfully complex and rocking, "Moontan" is one of the great rock albums of the 1970s.  The songwriting is incredibly solid, the musicianship is fantastic, and the execution is flawless!
• Major themes: Love, lust, desire, strippers, shame, rock and roll,
• Tracks:  

1. "Radar Love"
2. "Candy's Going Bad"
3. "Vanilla Queen"
4. "Big Tree, Blue Sea"
5. "Are You Receiving Me"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Unibroue (Chambly, Quebec, Canada)
• Website: http://unibroue.com/
• Brew: Terrible
• Style: Belgian-Style Quadruple Ale / Belgian Strong Dark Ale
• Serving: 25 ounce bottle
• ABV: 10.5%
• IBUs: 15
• Pour: It pours an almost black and opaque chestnut with a frothy, 2-finger off-white head with great retention and lots of layered, sticky lacing.
• Nose: The nose is characterized by rich notes of fruit and spice... plum, slight banana, clove, coriander notes abound.
• Taste: As with good wines, the Terrible's complex flavors develop with aging, 5 years for this particular brew! As with nose, the flavor is also very rich and sweet, but the fruit notes are subtle and there is also a prevailing crispness to the Terrible.  There are notes of cola, prune, cherry, and vanilla in the finish along with those lovely spices: clove, nutmeg, and black pepper. 
• Mouthfeel: It is highly carbonated, so the mouthfeel is very bubbly and foams in your mouth.  There's also a little booziness on the front, but it mellows quickly and finishes nicely... really good for a meaty dish like "Moontan".

Overall pairing: The rich complexity, sweet and spicy flavors and aromas, and the boldness of Unibroue's fantastic Terrible is great for the big, progressive rock and roll prowess of Golden Earring's definitive "Moontan" album! 

Cheers!!  Proost!!  Gezondheid!!  À votre santé!!