In anticipation of making my first trip to The Big Easy, I recently started buying a weekly bag of Zapp's potato chips despite the chips not actually being made in Louisiana and Zapp's now being a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Utz potato chip empire of Hanover, Pennsylvania. And so it's only appropriate to eat them while listening to Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Born On the Bayou", a fantastic slice of swamp rock by a band from California that I don't think had ever stepped foot on the bayou when they recorded that song. Thinking that I ought to consume something other than potato chips for this endeavor and something actually from New Orleans, I mistakenly bought some beer from Abita.
Although not brewed in New Orleans, Abita is at least brewed in Louisiana. Looks like 40ish miles north of there. That's close enough, I suppose, for them to legitimately use New Orleans iconography. Besides, they use more generic bayou stuff in their beer names too. It's like New Glarus. They use a lot of Wisconsin imagery on their labels but I don't think anyone would object if they brewed a smoked rye lager and put a flamingo standing on a hill on the label. I for one would welcome such a thing.
For my sampling, I recreated a small bit of my past. One time back in the days when I prepared food for a living, one of my fellow cooks brought in a Mardi Gras mixtape to celebrate the season. It was through this tape that I learned that New Orleans R&B extended way beyond Fats Domino. Irma Thomas, Earl King, Clarence "Frogman" Henry - ooh! - "Sea Cruise" by Frankie Ford. But there was this 3 song stretch that I listened to while sipping my Abita:
Fess!!! "Big Chief"! "Tipitina"! "Bald Head"!
Oh mama! I can remember many other songs from that tape but it's only those 3 that I can recall the order of.
While Mardi Gras is done and Christians the world over are enjoying Lententide by ignoring all of their chosen denomination's injunctions against fun, the season for pale bocks, a.k.a. - Maibocks, is not. As it happens, Abita is a fairly large brewery and their brews are found even here in Wisconsin. Furthermore, their Mardi Gras/Lenten seasonal is a Maibock called Mardi Gras Bock. A perfect choice as I get the New Orleans factor and the drinking seasonal element all in one fell swoop.
Looking at this lovely beer, I felt like I should have thrown some beads at it. It was a gorgeous gold and clear as day. The big, off-white head had staying power and the clarity allowed me to see a few bubbles inside. The aroma was a nice mix of the malty - caramel with a bit of bread - and the hoppy - grass with a hint of white pepper. If only there was a hop that smelled of cayenne.
A medium body and a medium dose of fizz greeted my tongue. There was a definite malty smoothness but it was cut by a bit of astringency. While there was a little taste of bread, the malts generally gave honey and caramel flavors. Despite this, the beer wasn't overly sweet with those flavors being balanced by some spicy/peppery hops.
The malty sweetness faded on the finish rather quickly with hops on the peppery side coming in to give a firm dose of bitterness and a solid dryness.
Would it have been cool to have a little plastic baby inside one of the bottles of my 6-pack? Yes. Would I have preferred some hot decoction action to strengthen that bready taste? Of course I would. But nonetheless, this stuff has a nice malty flavor and I really appreciate that the sweetness was moderated. Its 6.5% A.B.V. strength provided a little warmth on a chilly evening. Mardi Gras Bock is a fine brew as the pale lagery goodness just hit most of the Maibock notes for me.
Junk food pairing: I've been pairing Mardi Gras Bock with generous portions of Zapp's Evil Eye potato chips. Their Worcestershire sauce/tomato paste combo complements the beer's hoppy zing perfectly.
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