July 9th, 2022 - Last In Line In The Cascade Parade

 

Hello and happy Saturday metal maniacs!  The Meista here rockin' the hell out to Dio's kick-ass sophomore album "The Last In Line" with a tasty and hoppy Cascade Parade Pale Ale from the fine folks at Fisher Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!  

Album Info:

• Artist: Dio
• Title: "The Last In Line"
• Recorded: 1984 at Caribou Ranch in Colorado
• Release date: July 2nd, 1984 (2nd studio album by Dio)
• Record company: Warner Bros. Records
• Production: Ronnie James Dio
• Album cover art: Barry Jackson
• Personnel: Vinny Appice (drums), Jimmy Bain (bass), Vivian Campbell (guitars), Ronnie James Dio (lead vocals and keyboards), and Claude Schnell (keyboards)
• Musical style: Heavy metal, power metal, hard rock, heavy blues
• Sound: With that classic Dio sound, "The Last In Line" is full of richly textured metal anthems, mid-tempo rockers, and RJD's incredible vocals. 
• Major themes: Rock and roll, fantasy, good and evil, life and death, dreams and nightmares, sorrow and happiness, history, and degrees of sanity.
• Tracks:  

1. "We Rock"
2. "The Last In Line"
3. "Breathless"
4. "I Speed At Night"
5. "One Night In The City"
6. "Evil Eyes"
7. "Mystery"
8. "Eat Your Heart Out"
9. "Egypt (The Chains Are On)"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Fisher Brewing Company (Salt Lake City, Utah)
• Website: http://www.fisherbeer.com/
• Brew: Cascade Parade Pale Ale
• Style: West Coast-style American Pale Ale (APA)
• Serving: 32 ounce crowler can
• ABV: 5.0%
• Ingredients: Cascade and Amarillo hops
• Pour: The Cascade Parade Pale Ale pours a fairly clear, copper-amber hue with a frothy, bright white, 1+ finger head with great sustain and lots of sudsy, sticky, and layered lacing.
• Nose: The nose is characterized by citrus, floral hops, bitter herbs, and sweeter malts.  There are aromas of grapefruit rind, tangerine, pineapple, light mango, pine resin, wildflowers, barley, and sweet caramel.
• Taste: The taste of the Cascade Parade Pale Ale follows the nose with lots of citrus and herbal flavors along with more subtle sweet malts.  There are notes of grapefruit, tangerine, orange pith, mango, black tea, pine, crackery biscuit, and soft caramel.
• Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel is crisp with a dry, slightly bitter finish.

Overall pairing: The complex, yet straight-forward hoppy bitterness of the Fisher Cascade Parade is an excellent brew to pair with the powerhouse rockin' goodness that the songs on "The Last In Line" express!  RJD's vocal range is wonderfully enhanced by those citrus and tropical fruit flavors, while the bitter pine notes and heartier malts are great for Campbell's monster guitar work and the rhythm beast that is Appice/Bain!

Cheers and hails!!  Keepin' it metal and keepin' it craft!!