During September my library is featuring a display I put together where I pair up books with beers based on a theme. We're using it to help advertise an event we're having in October on home brewing called You Can Brew It! I had a lot of fun coming up with the pairings and lists, and I'm sharing a handful of them each week here on the blog.
This week's topic is the source of some of my greatest nightmares: The Apocalypse. The End, Game Over, Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect $200, Go Straight to Hell. Whether it's zombies, robots, demons, nukes, or demon zombie-robots made of nukes, might as well have a drink cause The End Is Near.
(See the end of the entry for thumbnails and links to the brewmarks!)
On Buffy the world was always ending in one way or another. As her one-time boyfriend Riley said in Season Four, "I suddenly find myself needing to know the plural of apocalypse." But the clip above with the always-delightful Nathan Fillion is from the second-to-last episode, "End of Days," which truly was the final almost-apocalypse for the show.
The list I'm featuring today goes by the same title: Pipeworks Brewing Company's End of Days. It's a milk/sweet stout that, according to its description, is made with "cacao nibs, vanilla beans, cinnamon sticks, and ancho chilies. The results is a rich chocolaty stout, with just a hint of spice." A friend of mine introduced this beer to me when I was seeking bottle donations for the library's display. I couldn't resist the artwork or the theme, as it is near and dear to my heart. In a sort of terrifying, yet mesmerizing way. I love apocalypse-themed literature and film, but it's kind of because I've sporadically had nightmares about the world ending since I was a kid. Not so fun, trust me.
The books I picked out for this theme include I AM LEGEND from the now late Richard Matheson, GOOD OMENS by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, and THE DOG STARS by Peter Heller. Now, I AM LEGEND lends itself well to being viewed in the many film versions that have been based on Matheson's story, although I recommend Vincent Price's THE LAST MAN ON EARTH. If you're looking for more novel/film crossovers, you could also try THE ROAD by Cormac McCarthy or CHILDREN OF MEN by P.D. James.
There are so many more films out there about the end of the world though, if you'd like to bypass the whole reading thing. Personally, I'd go for something like 28 DAYS LATER, a classic like THE TERMINATOR, or maybe 12 MONKEYS, which I haven't seen in a long time. I'm also a fan of THE STAND if you've got the time, or THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW. If you're looking for more action, there's always MAD MAX or ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK, which tend to pop up on lists of people's favorite post-apocalyptic movies pretty often.
Next week will be another straight-up horror theme, until then here's today's brewmark!
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