December 1st, 2019 - This Bourbon Barrel Quad Is Helping Me Deal With The Solitude, Dominance, And Tragedy

God eftermiddag and happy December 1st!  Your heavy metal drinking pal the Meista here.  Today I'm pairing the hauntingly beautiful and heavy "Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy", the sophomore album by Swedish progressive metal band Evergrey with a Bourbon Barrel Quad (BBQ) Barrel-Aged Ale from Boulevard Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!!

 

Album Info:

• Artist: Evergrey
• Title: "Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy"
• Recorded: February through April 1999 at Los Angered Recordings
• Release date: May 17th, 1999 (2nd studio album by Evergrey)
• Record company: Hall Of Sermon
• Production: Andy LaRocque
• Album cover art: Kristian Wåhlin
• Personnel: Dan Bronell (guitars), Patrick Carlsson (drums), Tom S. Englund (lead vocals and guitars), and Daniel Nojd (bass)
• Additional musicians: Erik Ask (harp), Carina Englund (backing vocals), Mercury Choir (backing choir vocals), Zachary Stephens (keyboards), and Stuart Wyatt (six-string violin)
• Musical style: Progressive metal, progressive rock, power metal, gothic metal
• Sound: Hauntingly emotive, wonderfully balanced between power and beauty, and mesmerizing, "Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy" displays the musical prowess of Evergrey and the amazing vision of a very young Englund!
• Major themes: With introspective, reflective, and soul-searching lyrics, themes on the album include life, darkness, relationships, loss, deception, horror, isolation, pain, etc.
• Tracks:   

1. "Solitude Within"
2. "Nosferatu"
3. "The Shocking Truth"
4. "A Scattered Me"
5. "She Speaks To The Dead"
6. "When Darkness Falls"
7. "Words Mean Nothing"
8. "Damnation"
9. "The Corey Curse"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Boulevard Brewing Company (Kansas City, Missouri)
• Website: https://www.boulevard.com/
• Brew: Bourbon Barrel Quad (BBQ) Barrel-Aged Ale
• Style: Belgian Quadrupel (Quad)
• Serving: 12 ounce bottle
• ABV: 11.2% 
• IBUs: 26
• Pour: The BBQ pours a very murky, dark copper hue with a frothy, light beige 2-finger head with good refrain and lacing.
• Nose: The nose is sweet, spicy, fruity, and very boozy.  There are aromas of vanilla, , oak, and a rich bourbon.
• Taste: The taste of the BBQ follows the nose with lots of sweet, fruity, spicy, malty, rich flavors.  There are notes of vanilla, toffee, bourbon, oak, Belgian yeast, cloves, dark fruits (plum, dates, raisin), fruitcake, and tart cherries.
• Mouthfeel: Full-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel of the BBQ is thick and velvety smooth with a dry, sweet, boozy finish.

Overall pairing: The Boulevard Bourbon Barrel Quad Barrel-Aged Ale is a dangerously drinkable and sweet brew, yet very complex, boozy, and very flavorful... much like the richly textured depth, darkness, and beauty of Evergrey's brilliant "Solitude, Dominance, Tragedy"!

Skål and hails!!