October 17th, 2025 - Ethel the Frog and the Toad are Friends

 

Hello rockers, rollers, and craft beer freaks!  Happy Friday!  The Meista here pairing the self-titled, debut album by Ethel The Frog and The Toad Cerveza Especial, a delicious Mexican-style amber lager from Roadhouse Brewing Company!  Hell yeah!

Album Info:

• Artist: Ethel The Frog
• Title: "Ethel The Frog"
• Recorded: 1980 in the UK
• Release date: 1980 (1st studio and only studio album by Ethel The Frog)
• Record company: EMI / High Roller Records
• Production: Doug Sheppard 
• Album cover art: David Dragon
• Personnel: Paul Conyers (drums), Terry Hopkinson (bass and vocals), Doug Sheppard (guitars and vocals), and Paul Tognola (guitars)
• Musical style: NWOBHM, heavy metal, hard rock
• Sound: This is a straight-forward, solid rocker of an album with plenty of killer guitar riffs, great melodies, and meaty rhythms!  This band and this album deserved much more notoriety than it initially received in 1980.
• Major themes: Life, rebellion, evil, honesty, love, freedom, truth, etc.
• Tracks: 

1. "Eleanor Rigby" (The Beatles cover)
2. "Apple Of Your Eye"
3. "Staying On My Mind"
4. "You Need Wheels"
5. "Bleeding Heart"
6. "Fight Back"
7. "Don't Do It"
8. "Why Don't You Ask"
9. "Whatever Happened To Love"
10. "Fire Bird"

Brew Info:

• Brewery: Roadhouse Brewing Company (Jackson Hole, Wyoming)
• Website: http://roadhousebrewery.com/
• Brew: The Toad Cerveza Especial
• Style: Mexican-style amber lager
• Serving: 16 ounce can
• ABV: 5.0%
• Pour: The The Toad Cerveza Especial pours a deep copper-amber hue with an off-white, creamy, 1-finger head with great retention and lots of sticky lacing
• Nose: The nose is malty, grainy, and slightly sweet.  There are aromas of toasted bread crust, barley, corn chips, light floral hops, a hint of citrus, and soft caramel/toffee.
• Taste: The taste of the The Toad Cerveza Especial is characterized by malty, grainy, flavors.  There are notes of toasted malts, corn meal, hearty grains, a hint of lime, and soft caramel. 
• Mouthfeel: light to medium in body with moderate carbonation, the mouthfeel of the The Toad Cerveza Especial is crisp and very smooth with a slightly sweet, but clean finish.

Overall pairing: The Toad Cerveza Especial from Roadhouse Brewing is a solid, very drinkable, and tasty brew... perfect for the hard rockin' NWOBHM stylings of the very underrated Ethel The Frog!  Both demand your undivided attention, both are full of flavor, and both are tasty as hell!  'Nuff said!

Cheers!!  Rock on!!