Music to My Beers

What came first beer or music?  I know, it's a whole chicken and egg-type thing.

Not really, but on a serious note, beer does go nicely with music: an American light swill for the pre-show shotgun, a dark stout for a cold winter's night and some jazz on vinyl, a generously hopped full nose IPA for a bluegrass pick-a-thon, or a lemon infused summer wheat for flip-flops and Buffet (insert your favorite pairings here).

While a small handful of brewers have attempted to pair a band and a beer, see Lagunitas "Wilco Hotel Foxtrot" and the soon to be released MMMHop, by yes, you guessed it, no one has done as well representing music in the taste of yeast fermented grain better than Dogfish Head.

Bitches Brew, the first of three in their Music Seris so far, was created for the 40th anniversary of Miles Davis's seminal improvisational, electric jazz recording.  The brew is "three threads of imperial stout and one thread of honey beer with gesho root" coming in at 9.0% ABV and 38 IBU's.  Dogfish founder Sam Calagione draws the comparison between the exploratory, genre crossing album and the Delaware brewers innovative spirit as "analog beer for the digital age".

Hellhound on My Ale was brewed specifically for last years 100th anniversary of blues legend Robert Johnson's birth, and is fittingly a Centennial dry-hopped ale at 10% ABV and 58 IBU's with some bold lemon notes that will make you feel like the devil socked you in the head and left you at the crossroads, but still totally worth the price of your soul (or your Sunday recovering from the hangover).

Faithfull Ale was brewed to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the release of Ten, Pearl Jam's monster of a debut album and is a Belgian style golden ale brewed by adding black currants to the boil for a fruity deliciousness best enjoyed in flannel.  Again from Calagione, "As an off-centered brewery, we believe in celebrating the breadth of our whole portfolio and we feel an affinity for Pearl Jam - a long-player band in a singles-obsessed world."  

 

Please drink, and listen, responsibly.