November 21st, 2017 - Eroica Elects The Dead

Good evening!  The Meista here tonight pairing an Eroica from Lagunitas Brewing Company and Serj Tankian's debut solo album "Elect The Dead"!

Album Info:

• Artist: Serj Tankian
• Title: "Elect The Dead"
• Recorded: 2007 at The Pass in Los Angeles, California
• Release date: October 22, 2007 (1st solo album by Serj Tankian) 
• Record company: Serjical Strike / Reprise Records
• Production: Serj Tankian
• Album cover art: Sako Shahinian
• Personnel: Serj Tankian (lead and backing vocals, guitars, bass, piano, synthesizers, drum programming, melodica, and bells)
• Additional musicians: Brain (drums), John Dolmayan (drums), Fabrice Favre (additional synthesizers), Ani Maldjian (vocals), Dan Monti (additional drum programming, additional guitar, additional bass, and additional synthesizers), Diran Noubar (additional guitar), Antonio Pontarelli (violin), and Cameron Stone (cello)
• Musical style: Alternative metal, experimental rock, art rock, progressive metal / rock, nu metal
• Sound: Of the album's sound, Tankian stated: "It's very wide sounding — lots of different sounding instruments. The excitement I had making this record was the same excitement I had making the first System [of a Down] record."
• Major themes: Socially and politically critical and charged, themes on the album include human relationships, greed, isolation, mediocrity, violence, gun culture, power struggles, deception, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "Empty Walls"
2. "The Unthinking Majority"
3. "Money"
4. "Feed Us"
5. "Saving Us"
6. "Sky Is Over"
7. "Baby"
8. "Honking Antelope"
9. "Lie Lie Lie"
10. "Praise The Lord And Pass The Ammunition"
11. "Beethoven's Cunt"
12. "Elect The Dead"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Lagunitas Brewing Company (Petaluma, California)
• Website: https://lagunitas.com/
• Brew: Eroica
• Style: Flanders Oud Bruin / Flemish Farmhouse
• Serving: 12 ounce bottle
• ABV: 7.4%
• IBUs: 10.8
• Pour: The Eroica pours a deep bronze with frothy, 1+ finger off-white head that dissipates to a thin ring with soapy lacing.
• Nose: The nose is tart, fruity, somewhat funky, and woodsy.  There are aromas of red wine, apple cider vinegar, lemon, plum, green apple, orange peel, horse blanket, leather, and oak.
• Taste: Aged in red wine oak barrels and funked up with Brettanomyces yeast, the taste of the Eroica is very sour, fruity, and slightly sweet and spicy.  There are notes of port, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, dried apricots, golden raisin, pear, orange peel, and grassy hops.
• Mouthfeel: Light to medium in body with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is very tart, with a dry, slightly bitter, and lip-puckering sour finish.

Overall pairing: The complex, sharp, and attention-grabbing flavors and aromas of Lagunitas' Eroica works wonderfully well with the artistic depth, emotional intensity, and blunt honesty of Serj Tankian's wonderful "Elect The Dead"!
    

Cheers!!  Hails!!