May 11th, 2022 - The Cryptic Love Of The Hidden Folk

 

Greetings headbangers and hop-heads!  Your drinking buddy the Meista here rocking the hell out with a pairing dedicated to my main metal man Markus Eck, owner and operator of the wonderful Metal Message!  Prost Markus... "A man who drinks beer has nothing to fear!"  Today I'm pairing a tasty and punchy Cryptic Love West Coast IPA from Revision Brewing Company and "Huldufólk" by Italian folk/power metal band Celtic Hills! 

Album Info:

• Artist: Celtic Hills
• Title: "Huldufólk" 
• Recorded: late 2021 through early 2022 at the Groove Factory in Udine, Italy 
• Release date: April 1st, 2022 (3rd full-length studio album by Celtic Hills)
• Record company: Elevate Records 
• Production: Michele Guaitoli 
• Album cover art: Sheila Franco
• Personnel: Simone "Zigo" Cescutti (drums and lead vocals on "Living Out Of The Egg" (alternate version )), Jacopo Novello (bass), and Jonathan Vanderbilt (guitars and vocals) 
• Guest musician: Gabriele Pala (guitar on "Green Forest" and "Gate Of Hollow Earth")
• Musical style: Power metal, folk metal with elements of melodic death metal and thrash metal
• Sound: Combining traditional heavy metal and German-style power metal with a more progressive and folk approach, "Huldufólk" is a dynamic and richly complex album that totally rocks! 
• Major themes: Mythology, fantasy, heavy metal, nature, Mother Earth, life, might, power, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "The Secret Of The Grail"
2. "Metal Message"
3. "After The Earthquake"
4. "Hidden Folk"
5. "Green Forest"
6. "Gate Of Hollow Earth"
7. "Living Out Of The Egg"
8. "The Sound Of Earth"
9. "The Hammer Of Thor"
10. "Villacher Kirktag"
11. "Living Out Of The Egg" (alternate version)
12. "Words In Out" (2022 remix)

 Brew Info:

• Brewery: Revision Brewing Company (Sparks, Nevada)
• Website: https://revisionbrewing.com/
• Brew: Cryptic Love West Coast IPA
• Style: American India Pale Ale (IPA)
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 6.8%
• IBUs: 55 
• Ingredients: Mosaic®, Galaxy®, CRYO Simcoe®, and CRYO Mosaic® hops
• Pour: The Cryptic Love pours a very fairly clear golden-yellow with a frothy, bright white, half-finger head with good retention and lots of sudsy, sticky lacing.
• Nose: The nose is very citrusy, fruity, and floral.  There are aromas of mango, tangerine, passion fruit, pineapple, pine resin, cedar, herbal tea, wild flowers, and soft caramel/toffee.
• Taste: Hop-forward, the taste of the Cryptic Love is citrusy, fruity, earthy, and malty.  There are notes of tangerine, pink grapefruit juice, mango, pineapple, guava, pine, black tea, sweet caramel, and an ever so slight hint of booze.  
• Mouthfeel: Medium to full-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is very crisp and very juicy, yet smooth with a dry, slightly boozy finish.

Overall pairing: The Revision Cryptic Love is a complex and punchy brew with lots of citrus and pine flavor, which makes it a great beer to throw back whilst rocking to the complex intensity of the riffs, vocals, and thunderous rhythm section of Celtic Hills' latest monster of an album, "Huldufólk"!  'Nuff said! 

Salud and hails!!