‘Alegraza’ album art – El Guincho

El Guincho is the moniker for Spanish musician Pablo Diaz-Reixco. El Guincho is well-known for his use of sampling and balancing tropical reggae influences with them. “Palmitos Park” is off El Guinsho’s debut album Alegranza, which was released in 2008 via Discoteca Oceana. The hypnotic looping on the song mixed with the constant cheering makes for an upbeat dance song. Despite the song not being in English except for the sampled beginning and ending, it has a feel-good vibe that invokes imagery of roller coasters, parties, and tropical islands. Perhaps it is the applause, the palm trees in the video with the brightly colored geometric shapes, or the random fruit piles he is next to, but El Guincho’s “Palmitos Park” video is addicting to watch. Every play-through you find something new to look at. The song title is a throwback to the real Palmitos Park located in the Canary Islands in Spain, where El Guincho is from.

Typically we embed the artists’ Soundcloud or Bandcamp song if available; however El Guincho does not have one that we could find. His video for “Palmitos Park” will definitely make up for it though.

Chasin’ Freshies label found via DeschutesBrewery.com

Beer: Chasin’ Freshies

Brewery: Deschutes Brewing

Style: Fresh Hop IPA

ABV: 7.4%

Deschutes has been known to have a playful stance and their play on the phrase “Chasin’ Freshies” can be taken as either a snowboarding term or a throw at the quick turnaround during fresh hop season. The label itself features a snowy mountainside with foot tracks going up the hill, the font depicts a handwritten typography that aims for a laid-back vibe versus a more structured serif font. Looking at the label you can easily imagine being the one who made those foot tracks in the snow, the one who went walking up the hillside just to get the chance to catch the fresh powdery snow on your snowboard.

The beer is light golden yellow that has a white head. Your nose first picks up the lemon and floral aromas of Chasin’ Freshies. You also taste an earthiness that can only be described as fresh-cut grass, something you taste with most fresh (or “wet”) hop beers. Chasin’ Freshies has a small bite of carbonation as it hits your mouth but mellows out very quickly. While you can smell the sweetness you don’t taste it too much, There are hints of honey, orange, and floral all mixed together when taking a sip. The IBUs (International Bittering Unit, a measurement of how bitter a beer is) for Chasin’ Freshies is at 60, which suggest a higher than mid-range level for bitterness. This fresh hop ale is extremely smooth and has a phenomenal balance between sweet and bitter. This particular fresh hop is unique in that they use one specific hop: an heirloom varietal Cascade. This unique hop can only be found at Goschie Farms in Silverton, Oregon.

The real draw between Chasin’ Freshies and El Guincho’s “Palmitos Park” was the audience cheering in the song. The generated applause throughout the song seemed perfect for a beer with a snowboarding reference. The beer is laid-back and goes down easy, despite its 7.4% abv. The song itself can be a background song at a party or in the limelight on a playlist while your simply chasin’ freshies down the mountain.