American Craft Beer’s Best Television Shows of 2016

It was a great year for craft beer and a terrific year for cutting-edge television and we overindulged in both.  So here (in no particular order) are some of our favorite television shows from last year along with a suggested beer pairing.

The Walking Dead (AMC) – It’s not just about its vision (which with its graphic novel source material to guide it, is consistently awesome) or its storytelling (which continues to impress) – in the end, this one’s about a thrown together family of survivors who learn to love and sometimes lose one another in a world lost to the undead. 2016’s two-part season introduced the Walking Dead’s most charismatic villain Negan into the mix. And Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s critically acclaimed performance as the charming and volatile leader of the vicious Saviors community was pure genius. Suggested Beer Pairing: 3 Floyds Zombie Dust

Game Of Thrones (HBO) – More times than not, a television series that’s run for more than five year’s gets weaker – not so for the sixth season of Game of Thrones. Now freed somewhat from author George R.R. Martin’s unfinished and sometimes meandering saga, GOT most recent season sharpened its storylines considerably. As we’ve grown to expect, beloved characters are extinguished in the blink of an eye and ancient debts brutally settled (one in particular). Television’s best adult fantasy amazingly got even better in 2016 and set a new standard of visual and conceptual brilliance. Suggested Beer Pairing (as if we had a choice): Ommegang’s Seven Kingdoms

The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story (FX) –Who knew that a dramatic portrayal of one of crime history’s most televised events (The OJ Simpson trial) even deserved a retelling or that Ryan Murphy’s treatment of the notorious crime might become last year’s best dramatic series. Fueled on stellar performances from the likes of Sarah Paulson, Courtney B. Vance, Sterling K. Brown Nathan Lane, John Travolta, and Connie Britton, The People v. O.J. Simpson just blew us away! Suggested Beer Pairing: anything from Golden Road Brewing

The Night Of (HBO) – Not since The Wire has a television series taken on the depressing reality and utter failure of our criminal justice system. HBO’s gripping eight-episode limited series, The Night Of was both well-crafted urban mystery and a passionate call for reform. Anchored by Riz Ahmed’s enthrallingly honest performance of a naive young man accused of murder and John Turturro’s return to form as his ambulance-chasing defense attorney, The Night Of delves into NYC’s labyrinth-like justice system with brutal accuracy. Filmed on the streets of New York, this “thinking man’s” police procedural was haunting and resonant. Suggested Beer Pairing; Brooklyn Lager

Black Mirror (Netflix) – Charlie Brooker’s dark speculative fiction anthology series which aired its first two seasons on Channel 4 in the UK, moved to Netflix in 2016 and did not miss a beat. Frequently (and appropriately) compared to past greats like Twilight Zone, Black Mirror tells stories set in the very near future and examines the impact of strange new technologies on people’s lives. Every episode has a different cast, a different setting, a different reality and tone – but they’re all haunting Suggested Beer Pairing: Beavertown Gamma Ray

Veep (HBO) – Returning in the midst of last year’s insane presidential race, HBO’s cynical political satire spoke “truth to power” hysterically. Surrounded by a brilliant ensemble cast of players, Julia Louis-Dreyfus reprises her award-winning role as President Selina Meyer, in this hilarious send-up that deservingly nails Washington D.C. politicos.  Suggested Beer Pairing: DC Brau The Corruption

 

Honorable Mentions 

Last Week Tonight With John Oliver – HBO

The Americans – FX

Atlanta – Fox

Better Caul Saul – AMC

Peaky Blinders – Netflix

The Night Manager – AMC

Rectify – Sundance

Quarry – Cinemax

Westworld– HBO

Stranger Things – Netflix

Mr. Robot –USA

The Crown – Netflix

Silicon Valley – HBO