Thelonious Monk, Belgian monks — get it?
Lars' fantastic Take Five feature pairing summery craft beers with some remarkably hip jazz records (with thanks to Washington City Paper's Beerspotter) got me thinking about something I tried not terribly long ago: Brother Thelonious Belgian Style Abbey Ale.
After having seen it advertised in various jazz publications, I picked up a four-pack one day last winter to share with friends. I found it to be a very solid Belgian-style dubbel, though I remember noting that it was oddly carbonated, and a bit stronger than I was expecting (9.3% alcohol by volume) — that part snuck up on me a bit. Didn't strike me as particularly Monkish, either — this was moody and dark, like, I don't know, a Miles Davis & Gil Evans record or something. Monk was a pretty heavy dude, but a quirky one: I see his natural analogue as more of a particularly saucy, robust IPA. But, I mean, what do I know — I'm no beer expert.
Anyway, Brother Thelonious is brewed by California's North Coast Brewing Company, and was even served at the Monterey Jazz Festival in at least 2007. Also, pianist (and newly-minted blogger) Geoff Keezer endorses it, if that accounts for anything. And part of the proceeds actually go to a good cause: the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz. A toast to that.
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