Month: September 2021

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is in the unusual position of being incredibly famous — in certain circles infamous — and a staunch, tireless crusader for progressive causes. Among her positions is that the working class deserves a working wage. And one way to achieve that, she’s argued, is to make the unimaginably wealthy pay their share of taxes. So while she showed up at the ultra-elite 2021 Met Gala, filled with the usual array of head-turning outfits, she did so while wearing a spectacular dress bearing a message some in attendance wouldn’t like.

The annual event, which was cancelled last year for obvious reasons, is arguably New York City’s premiere social event. It attracts the rich and/or famous: pop stars, actors, trust fund kids, society swans, and anonymous members of the glitterati. Some of those no doubt support AOC, at least in theory. But she wanted to make sure that her message got across.

And so a proud member of the Democratic Socialists of America showed up at a soiree where individual tickets start at $35,000 clad in a long white gown designed by Brother Vellies, bearing the words “Tax the rich” in purest red across her back. (She could have gone with “Eat the rich.”)

It seemed to be a dig at another dress, worn by pro-Trump singer Joy Villa at the 2019 Grammys, which had the same idea but with the words “Build the wall.”

A lot of people found it badass.

Some imagined the reactions she got from some in attendance.

Others wondered if AOC would run into the wife of one of the richest people in the world.

AOC wasn’t the only one present with a message embroidered on their frock.

(Via The New York Post)

Donald Trump was elected in part to push the Supreme Court to the right. And that he did. During his single term, he was able to name three judges to the highest court in the land. One was accused of sexual misconduct. Another was confirmed less than a week before the election that would boot Trump from power. The latter is Amy Coney Barrett, who was widely seen as someone who would do the rightwing’s bidding. And Barrett doesn’t like that characterization, despite recent evidence supporting it.

As per CNN, Barrett delivered a speech Sunday at the University of Louisville’s McConnell Center, named after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who was instrumental in getting her her lifetime appointment.

“My goal today is to convince you that this court is not comprised of a bunch of partisan hacks,” Barrett told the crowd. “Judicial philosophies are not the same as political parties.”

Barrett swore that “it’s not my job to decide cases based on the outcome I want.” She also came for journalists. “The media, along with hot takes on Twitter, report the results and decisions,” she added. “That makes the decision seem results-oriented. It leaves the reader to judge whether the court was right or wrong, based on whether she liked the results of the decision.”

It’s true that Barrett hasn’t always voted predictably. The Supremes even unanimously shot down a case from the Trump team involving loony election fraud claims, much to Trump’s shock and fury. But lately she’s voted more in line with the right. She voted to block the Biden administration’s pandemic-related eviction moratorium. And two weeks ago she voted to uphold Texas’ draconian abortion law, which makes the procedure illegal after only six weeks — when most women don’t even know they’re pregnant.

In other words, people weren’t buying Barrett’s claim that she and other Trump appointees — to say nothing of Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito — weren’t “political hacks.”

Many marveled at how brazen her statement was.

Some wondered if she’s just a troll.

Others wondered if this wasn’t simply a victory lap for herself and those who made her one of the most powerful figures in American life.

Even Dan Rather — who of late has thrown up his hands and started dragging conservatives with sarcastic tweets — wasn’t having it.

(Via CNN)

There was no Met Gala last year. The pandemic was still relatively new in the United States, and when the annual fashion/social extravaganza was scheduled, in early May, as it had been since 2001, New York City was still very much shut down. So we’re getting two galas in less than a year, and the first since 2019. The first went down on Monday, and its super-famous attendees — who can always be relied on to go big — brought it. But maybe Dan Levy brought it more than everyone else.

The theme this year was “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion,” and, as always, people interpreted how they wished. For the Schitt’s Creek star, that meant a real eye-turner: an over-sized long-sleeved shirt with gigantic shoulders and sleeves. A global map took up most of the acreage, with America depicted in the shape of two people of the same gender in a passionate embrace.

Levy discussed the outfit with Vanity Fair, saying his collaboration with Loewe’s Jonathan Anderson, who took inspiration from American artist and AIDS activist David Wojnarowicz:

Adapting two of Wojnarowicz’s famed works, F*ck You F–got F*cker, 1984, and Untitled (One Day This Kid…), 1990–91, for Levy’s Met gala look, the actor said he and Anderson wanted to reflect the artist’s themes of celebrating “queer love and queer visibility” while also sending a reminder that “there’s a lot more that needs to be done.”

The Met Gala is nothing without attention-grabbing outfits, and people were quick to single out Levy. Some thought he, as they say, understood the assignment.

Others praised the message.

Others caught the reference to Wojnarowicz’s work.

Some found it over-the-top, which is why they loved it.

And some just loved it.

(Via Vanity Fair)

“Light beer” is one of those terms that seems to come with automatically negative associations. Light beer used to be called “diet” beer back when it was invented in the late 1960s to target calorie-conscious Americans. Those terms carry a feeling of producing a thinner or less flavorful beer. And quite often, that’s true.

But here in 2021, where craft reigns supreme, there are a lot of light beers (and “low-ABV” brews that don’t carry the stigmatized moniker) that are refreshing, crisp, crushable, and filled with flavor. They’re perfect for any season so you can stock up and enjoy them all year long. To find the best options, we asked ten bartenders to tell us their go-to light beers for the end of summer, fall, winter, and literally any time of the year. Check them all out below, click on the prices to get some delivered, and then crack one open with a little less guilt (if you’re counting calories right now).

Coors Light

Ryan Pines, beverage director at Ukiah in Asheville, North Carolina

ABV: 4.2%

Average Price: $13 for a twelve-pack

Why This Beer?

There’s something about an ice-cold Coors Light that I still really enjoy to this day. There’s nothing like being on the boat, opening a cooler, and seeing those blue mountains on the can because you know it’s going to be cold.

Montucky Cold Snacks

Daniel Yang, lead bartender of Electra Cocktail Club at The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas

ABV: 4.1%

Average Price: $13 for a twelve-pack

Why This Beer?

I have to go back to Montucky Cold Snacks. I prefer beers with less influence of hops and malt, and to me, the mild temperament of Montucky makes it a perfect beer for a night when I just want something refreshing and effervescent in my hand.

Omission Lager

Rustyn Lee, beverage director at Atomic Saloon Show in Las Vegas

ABV: 4.6%

Average Price: $10.99 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

I’ve been enjoying Omission lager this summer. It’s a gluten-free beer so it’s really light but it has some great stone fruit notes. It’s a great light beer for any time of year.

Miller Lite

Hayden Miller, head bartender of Bodega Taqueria y Tequila in Miami

ABV: 4.2%

Average Price: $13 for a twelve-pack

Why This Beer?

No lie, Miller Lite has been conditioned as my go-to light beer if only by association. A light craft is always preferred but this is tried and true brew.

Michelob Ultra

David Ortiz, corporate beverage manager at Rocco’s Tacos in Tampa

ABV: 4.2%

Average Price: $15 for a twelve-pack

Why This Beer?

I like an ice-cold Michelob Ultra because it’s easy to drink while also being low on calories, so you don’t have to feel bad about having a few. It’s refreshing, low-calorie, and perfect year round.

Stiegl Grapefruit Radler

Ryan Anderson, complex director of beverage at Ace Hotel in New Orleans

ABV: 2.5%

Average Price: $12.99 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

Maybe not technically a light beer, Stiegl Grapefruit Radler is a delicious and juicy low ABV beer that I can drink all day in the summertime (and warm fall days). I love drinking a few of these throughout an evening to always have something in my hand but consume half as much alcohol.

Michelob Ultra Pure Gold

Frankie Riffa, mixologist at SoBou in New Orleans

ABV: 3.8%

Average Price: $10 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold is a great light beer. It’s delightfully tasty and a great option to sip on a poolside, cool fall evening, or with friends as they come in three delicious flavors. It hits all the right spots for a shindig.

Amstel Light

Brandon Parnell, general manager and director of beverage for Flora-Bama in Perdido Key, Florida

ABV: 3.5%

Average Price: $17 for a twelve-pack

Why This Beer?

Amstel Light is my go-to light beer. This lightly bitter, pale lager has just enough complexity to intrigue the pallet, but it’s a great choice for sessionable consumption any time of year.

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As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive a commission pursuant to certain items on this list.

One of the most visually appealing plays in baseball involves the shortstop moving to this left, fielding a ground ball, and executing a spinning throw to first base in an attempt to secure a dazzling out. On Monday evening, St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Edmundo Sosa attempted such a play but, in this particular case, things went terribly wrong and his toss to first base was very wide of the bag. In fact, Sosa’s throw struck the first base umpire Junior Valentine directly in the face, and he was visibly mortified by the result.

Fortunately, the errant throw seemingly did not as much as damage as it could have, with the umpire able to stay on the field. However, Valentine had an immediate abrasion on the side of his face and, in short, he likely endured some pain, at least in the short term.

As far as the baseball side, Sosa’s mishap did not have any negative effects on the Cardinals. Veteran right-hander Adam Wainwright took the hiccup in stride, generating three outs with haste, including a double play to erase the leadoff baserunner in the second inning. Still, the final result of this particular play likely won’t be the part that folks remember, and this is an example of a play that even a rabid baseball consumer rarely sees.

Public venues are back, baby, but with a catch: Some of them require proof of vaccination. Bars, restaurants, movie theaters, music venues, museums, etc. — some are required to check whether you’re a public health risk (as in New York City) while others are making that decision themselves. Others are doing nothing, and those places have caught the ire of popular stars. Patton Oswalt canceled shows in Florida and Utah because they weren’t taking the pandemic seriously.

And then there’s Jim Breuer. If you’re of a certain age, you might remember the three seasons he spent on SNL. He was the guy who was also a goat. He also did a pretty broad Joe Pesci impersonation. It’s been a while since he was big, but he’s still eking it out as a stand-up. Well, not at two venues, he isn’t.

As per NBC News, Breuer released a video revealing that he was canceling shows at a theater in New Jersey and another in Michigan. Was it because they don’t check whether their guests could infect others with a highly transmissible disease? No, it was the opposite.

In the lengthy video, Breuer said he was adamantly against the “segregation” of venues “forcing people to show up with vaccinations, to prove your vaccinated.” He called whether you’re a health risk to others a “choice,” saying that he has to “stick to my morals, you have to stick to what is right.”

Breuer repeatedly used the term “segregation” to refer to keeping people safe from others who may be disease vectors. He added that people were being “forced, bribed, dictated,” though the last verb may have been used incorrectly.

“I know I’m going to sacrifice a lot of money, but I’m not going to be enslaved to the system or money,” Breuer said. “I’d rather go bankrupt and make a stance and not segregate.”

Many, though, were surprised to hear about Breuer at all.

But some did not find Breuer’s stance herotic.

Being that Breuer’s most famous character was Goat Boy, some made Ivermectin farm animal jokes.

And some dragged in Joe Rogan, on whose show Breuer appeared in March.

(Via NBC News)

Peyton Manning will make his Monday Night Football debut of sorts, as he and Eli’s new megacast simulcast show on ESPN2 will have its first of 10 episodes for Ravens-Raiders.

The show’s premise is that the two brothers will hang out, watching the game and talking with friends from around the sports world. There was initially going to be a host, but ESPN decided instead to just let the two Mannings run free with the conversation without someone from the network there trying to direct traffic, and it’s going to be rather fascinating to see how it goes on this first episode — and how entertaining it can remain throughout it’s 10 game run.

Part of the formula for the show’s success is going to be the guests that come on, and for this Monday they will bring in two current NFL players, a Hall of Famer, and, who else, but Charles Barkley as the first guest on the show.

After Barkley, Ray Lewis will be on for the second quarter followed by current stars Travis Kelce and Russell Wilson. Barkley’s presence almost always makes for some entertaining TV, Lewis and the Mannings will surely be able to swap some stories from their days playing each other, and the current players will be particularly interesting given their insight into the current teams. It’s a pretty good starting guest list and we’ll see how this grows going forward.

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate,” William Shakespeare once wrote in Sonnet 18. While he was expressing his desire for a woman, the poetry makes me think of a cannabis drink I recently tried and had big feelings for. Hear me out.

Generally speaking, I have conflicted feelings about cannabis drinks. That’s not a knock on the product category on its face — in the last year, in particular, cannabis drinks have become a force of their own in the legal cannabis market, growing into a popular way for people to imbibe, especially those who are not keen on smoking. In that time, cannabis-infused beverages have also significantly increased in quality, thanks to advancements in emulsion technology. No longer are they stratified cocktails with a layer of oil sitting on the top. These days, the science has been narrowed down, the molecules shrunken. When drinking one of the many cannabis drinks on the market today, one could be forgiven for not even noticing there was cannabis in it at all, flavor-wise.

Where my skepticism comes in is the actual popularity of these drinks. I have written elsewhere, particularly on this website, that I’m a flower gal — smoking actual weed is far and away my favorite way to consume cannabis. That said, I’m a regular partaker of almost every ingestion method under the sun, which includes cannabis-infused drinks from time to time. But even though I enjoy them, I will admit that I struggle to find out where the drinks fit in my routine.

Edibles, particularly gummies, are easy for me — I pop one, chew a few times, and I’m on my way, usually to my bed or couch to watch a movie. Smoking precedes just about everything for me, including social activities, while dabbing is something I reserve for particularly taxing days when I just want to shut off completely. The drinks are harder to place in my mind because they are marketed as a social product, often as an alcohol replacement. While that is certainly true for some people, the fact is that, for many, ingesting weed is not the most social activity. Edibles and drinkables heighten all my senses, yes, but they also help me turn inward and focus more on my own thoughts and feelings in my body, rather than engaging with anyone else. I prefer the quick pop-in-my-mouth, sit back, and relax fix that a gummy offers rather than the slow sipping of a drink. In my mind, there are other, better ways to enjoy a beverage, especially drinks with more socially-minded intoxicants in them.

I know I’m not alone in that conundrum, but out in the wider world, the numbers tell a different story. Cannabis consumer data company Headset claims that current 2021 sales for cannabis-infused beverages total $123.9 million, compared with the sales in the same category in 2020, which clocked in at $79.3 million. That’s a year-over-year sales increase of 56.2%. Clearly, the appeal of these drinks is catching on.

Which is all context to write this: Last week, I finally found a cannabis beverage that made me truly, genuinely get it. Cann, which is the largest purveyor of cannabis drinks in California, recently debuted a new drink in partnership with pop star Tove Lo, who is also an investor in Cann. The drink is exclusive to dispensaries Sweet Flower and Airfield Supply Co. Called “Passion Peach Mate,” which leaves little to the imagination, it’s exactly that: a carbonated, naturally caffeinated, cannabis-infused peach-flavored drink.

It’s absolutely perfect. It’s also the first to market for caffeinated cannabis beverages.

Infused with five milligrams of THC, the 12-ounce canned drink offers a lower dose option that is perfect for nighttime socializing, owing to the caffeine, or daytime drinking, also owing to the caffeine. That, in my mind, makes Cann & Tove Lo’s Passion Peach Mate” the tour de force that it is.

My first thought when holding the marquee-bright yellow and pink can in my hands was, “Wait, how did they legally combine THC and caffeine?” As an older millennial, I am a veteran of the unregulated Four Loko days. I asked a friend, who tipped me off to the fact that it was because the caffeine came from mate, a caffeine-rich drink made with dried holly leaves from South America. In California, it’s okay to combine THC with naturally-derived caffeine, it turns out.

The result is, basically, a fully enmeshed version of the hallowed stoner tradition, “wake and bake,” which involves someone smoking weed first thing in the morning, often while drinking coffee. The body high and head change from smoking weed balances the jolts and jitters from caffeine. For many, it is a really comfortable and fun state to be in. Four Loko capitalized on those good vibes and turned them up to 11, which proved to be too high-octane in the end, especially for regulators, who eventually put strict alcohol and caffeine limits on drinks that contained both.

The Passion Peach Mate high and buzz never approaches anything resembling the intensity of a Four Loko bender. It’s much more mellow on both fronts and gives the drinker a euphoric altered state. It’s this gorgeous mind-and-body feeling that reminds me of Shakespeare’s sonnet — drinking the Passion Peach Mate is like tasting a summer day in a can. It also goes down much smoother and is more delicious than other options, on top of it.

Taste-wise, it’s lightly carbonated, and the bitterness that usually accompanies mate, which I generally enjoy, is instead replaced by a not-too-sweet peach flavor. It’s delicious and, unlike many alcoholic beverages or other cannabis-infused drinks, easy to drink to the very end. The flavor isn’t too overpowering, tastes nothing of weed, and is not something the drinker will get sick of.

Case in point: I had three in one sitting!

Crucially, it is also infused using nanoemulsion technology which makes smaller THC molecules so they are absorbed into the bloodstream faster and with more of its bioavailability intact. This means it hits faster but it also fades faster, in some ways mimicking the onset times for alcohol. It costs $20 for a pack of four, which is priced similarly craft beers or canned cocktails.

The bad news is that, at present, it’s a limited release through just Sweet Flower and Airfield Supply Co. I can’t even order it from my home in San Diego, which upsets me. If you’re reading this, anyone at Cann, consider this my plea for your company to make the Passion Peach Mate a regular in your cannabis-infused drinks line-up. You have a winner on your hands.

Blue Run has taken the whiskey world by storm in 2021. The sourced spirit from the mind of former Four Roses Master Distiller Jim Rutledge is all anyone in the bourbon world seems to be talking about right now. The whiskey is so hot that the small releases tend to sell out almost instantly when they hit the market, leaving average whiskey drinkers only the secondary market to try this juice… if they’re very lucky.

That’s a shame because Blue Run is sourcing and putting out some of the best bourbons (and one rye) you can find right now. We were lucky enough to get a few samples of the recent releases to try them for ourselves and … yeah, this stuff deserves every bit of hype it’s getting. Maybe a little more.

In short, this is whiskey is pretty much bourbon at its best. It also excites us for what’s to come for this new bourbon brand as more releases drop and new ideas for the brand come to the fore. So, let’s dive into what’s actually in this bottle of bourbon and see what all the fuss is about.

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of 2021

• The Best Bottles Of Bourbon Whiskey For Under $20, Ranked
• Our Favorite Bourbon Whiskey From Every Price Point Between $10-$200
• All 19 Brands From The Buffalo Trace Distillery, Ranked
• Here’s Who Won Our Big Barrel Proof Bourbon Whiskey Blind Taste Test
• The Best Bourbon Whiskeys To Drink Neat, From $50 On Up

Blue Run 13.5-Year Barrel #3 “Honey Barrel”

ABV: 63.41%

Average Price: $230

The Whiskey:

The juice in the bottle is hand-selected by Jim Rutledge and barreled as a single barrel at cask strength with less than 150 bottles per release. That makes each release extremely unique… and fleeting. Beyond that, very little is known beyond the age statement.

Where these barrels are coming from will probably remain a mystery for as long as the brand exists.

Tasting Notes:

You get a deep sense of buttery toffee on the nose that leads you down a rocky path through a cherry orchard as soft notes of vanilla, worn leather, and warm, spicy tobacco leaves gently settle in your senses. The taste leans into the dark and bold cherry with a deeper dark berry underbelly that’s accentuated by heavily roasted cacao beans, singed vanilla husks, and a sticky toffee pudding made with rich dates. The end softens the leather as the dark chocolate lingers the longest on your senses with a final touch of almost peppery spice.

The Bottle:

The bottles are nice and hefty with a unique shape. They aren’t too far off from the new Equiano Rum bottles in shape and weight. The label is very understated and embossed on the glass, allowing you to see the juice in all its dark amber and caramel glory.

The Bottom Line:

This is a real eye-opener when it comes to what great bourbon can be and what’s waiting out there in orphan barrels across the industry’s warehouses. Although this is going to be impossible to find anywhere near suggested retail (or at all), it’s worth the hunt to both expand your bourbon palate and really enriched your collection.

Ranking:

99/100 — This is a masterpiece with a wow factor to boot. The only reason it loses one point is that I can’t help but think “what’s next???” while sipping this one. It feels a little more like a stop along a gilded road rather than a final destination.

One of the highest forms of respect in simulation games is a player’s overall rating. While it’s not the end all be all, a fine player can have a lower overall rating and still be good, it is something of a status symbol. We see it all across sports games like Madden and NBA 2K, the week ratings drop is always a big deal.

Well, we’re in luck because the ratings for the top 22 players in FIFA 22 dropped on Monday and now we know where some of the world’s greatest athletes stand toe to toe with each other. We’re going to see some obvious names on it, such as Lionel Messi, but it’s the placement of everyone where the real debates come in.

Top 10

• Lionel Messi – 93
• Robert Lewandowski – 92
• Cristiano Ronaldo – 91
• Kevin De Bruyne – 91
• Kylian Mbappé – 91
• Neymar Jr. – 91
• Jan Oblak – 91
• N’Golo Kanté – 90
• Harry Kane – 90
• Manuel Neuer – 90

Messi might be 34, but unsurprisingly the worldwide legend sits at the top all alone with a 93. One thing of note is that Cristiano Ronaldo, typically holding one of the top two ratings, finds himself tied for No. 3 overall with a crowd of stars. Obviously, his 91 still puts him in an elite class, but it says a lot about Robert Lewandowski that he has managed to push his way into an exclusive tier as the top two.

FIFA’s ratings are always interesting compared to other sports because these are comparing athletes across the entire world in different leagues. While something like 2K or Madden only has to focus on the major teams, FIFA has to put time and consideration into multiple leagues, rosters, and even tiers, which is an incredible effortm so it’s always exciting to see these drop.