Movie Tagline: The one... The only... The FABULOUS
I don't think I need to explain what Dumbo is about. Everyone has seen Dumbo, right? Goofy-looking elephant with giant ears. Uses giant ears to fly and shut down all the haters out there. Super racist depiction of crows. We're all on the same page here. Alcohol is one of the most dangerous drugs to withdraw from. Delirium tremens is a hallucinogenic state caused by intense alcohol withdrawal. It is sometimes referred to as seeing pink elephants, which is so much more whimsical sounding than it actually is. Delirium Tremens, the beer, has numerous pink elephants on its label. If you want to scar your kids for life, have them watch the "Pink Elephants on Parade" bit from Dumbo. Nightmare fuel, that's what you call that. But that's what's great about those old Disney cartoons from the 40s: they don't shy away from showing kids how dark the world can be. It's not to scare them. Not really. It's just being honest and saying that sometimes things are hard, but you shouldn't let that get you down. There's a dark sense of humor in those movies that you don't get nowadays. If you think Disney was dark, you should check out some of the Bimbo the Dog cartoons from the 30s. Bimbo was a Fleischer Studios creation, the same studio that gave us Betty Boop. In fact, Betty was once Bimbo's girlfriend (she was a dog back then, too). Fleischer Studios rivaled anything Disney put out in terms of being weird and dark. That same dark humor is present in the Delirium series of beers from Brouwerij Huyghe. Sure, alcohol can be dangerous and addictive, but that doesn't mean we can't use it for entertainment purposes, too. Life is too short to be taken seriously all the time. So calm your own crippling DTs with some Delirium Tremens and join us in watching a goofy cartoon elephant have his spirit crushed for 60 minutes or so before rising above it all to achieve his full potential. Around here, we call that a normal Thursday night.
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Movie Tagline: Behind every great love is a great story
It is loved by millions, most of whom are younger women, to the bewilderment and annoyance of countless other millions. Now, am I referring to the movie or the beer (whose full name is the inexplicably long Blue Moon Belgian White Belgian-Style Wheat Ale)? Yes. Yes, I am. The Notebook is the story of a poor but passionate guy who falls in love with a rich but passionate girl. Their passionate relationship is torn apart by societal norms, parental concerns, and World War II. It features obsessive letter writing (in a world where telephones exist), home renovation as a romantic gesture, terrible 40s-era driving, and getting caught in a rainstorm while rowing a boat through a lake overrun with geese that naturally leads to making out in the rain. Blue Moon is brewed by the Blue Moon Brewing Company, an entity of the Tenth and Blake Beer Company, the craft and import division of MillerCoors. The Brewers Association has objected to the fact that Blue Moon's labels do not state that they are a MiilerCoors product, thereby allowing the beer to masquerade as a craft beer. The Confederation of Belgian Breweries had also expressed their disdain for Blue Moon being referred to as a Belgian White, and Blue Moon was forced to add the "Belgian-style" to the name. If Nicholas Sparks is the Coors Brewing Company of authors (and he totally is), then The Notebook is his Blue Moon Belgian White. It's a movie that manipulates its viewers into thinking it is heartfelt and romantic, when in reality it is simply derivative and trite. Kind of like how Blue Moon manipulates its drinkers into thinking it is an artfully crafted beer made by flannel-wearing craft brewers with great big bushy beards. Despite being insulting to the people who partake in them, these two travesties have gone on to become highly popular. Well regarded, even. They have encouraged their makers to create a plethora of other, similarly hackneyed products. Dear John, The Last Song, The Lucky One, Safe Haven, The Best of Me, The Longest Ride. Batch 19, Keystone Light Lime, Third Shift Amber Lager, Blue Moon Cinnamon Horchata Ale, Coors Light Iced T, Blue Moon Blackberry Tart Ale. None of these things would exist without The Notebook and Blue Moon Belgian White. But, for now, try to forget about all that. Crack open a crafty beer and watch the cinematic equivalent of a Valentine's Day card. If you're one of those sentimental drunks, you will definitely be crying before it's all said and done.
Movie Tagline: Flesh seduces. Passion kills.
This pairing is not as obvious as many of the previous pairings. There is no conjoining pun or overlap in the names of these two things. There is no taste comparison to be made here. But, despite all that, I believe this to be a near-perfect pairing. Both are hot and spicy to the point that they may be hard to finish. Both are, ostensibly, about a killer. Both could be considered the most notorious of their kind: Ghost Face Killah as a chile beer and Basic Instinct as an early 90s Hollywood erotic thriller. As such, they have both offended a large percentage of those who have taken part in them. One could even question why either of them exist at all. But for those who like their beer to have extreme heat and not much else going for them, and their movies to be full of heavy-handed metaphors and violent simulated sex (and psycho lesbians, and tired movie-cop cliches, and an arbitrary ending), you simply can't go wrong here. These two are a pairing made in weirdo heaven. But consider yourself warned: Ghost Face Killah, like Sharon Stone's vagina, has a piquancy to it that is not suited to all tastes.
Movie Tagline: The man with the hat is back. And this time, he's bringing his Dad.
Ha! Tricked you there, didn't I? You thought I was going to go with the Monty Python and the Holy Grail, but I switched it up on you. Really I just didn't want to be that on-the-nose with the Monty Python flick. It seemed too easy. So I went with my second-favorite movie about questing for the Holy Grail: The Last Crusade, which is also, I would say, my second-favorite Indiana Jones movie. That tagline, however, is atrocious. The Last Crusade met with some skepticism upon its release, which is perfectly understandable after the whole Temple of Doom fiasco (although, full disclosure here: my inner eight year old still freaking loves Temple of Doom and he always will). Just so, many approach the super-gimmicky Holy Grail Ale from the Black Sheep Brewery with similar skepticism. The great part about both of them is they are both really good. Better than they have any right to be, honestly. There is a comedic sensibility that runs through both the movie and the beer. Indiana Jones has always been very tongue-in-cheek; it wouldn't work without that humor. If your movie is about a college professor battling Nazis with his elderly father and you play it straight, that's never going to fly. Just like if the Holy Grail Ale had only been a solid English Pale Ale left to survive solely on its own merits (without a single reference to burning witches), it would never have taken off like it did. It's that gimmick that has kept people buying this beer, and the fact that it is a good beer is really just an added bonus. Kind of like River Phoenix as Young Indy. Bonus Indy! |
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