Month: October 2021

Halloween is this weekend. And regardless of your age, there’s a pretty good chance you’re going to munch on at least a handful of candy (specifically, chocolate) this weekend. If you grab a few Snickers, Kit Kats, and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups at a costume party, you’re going to need to pair it with something not quite so saccharine. Something boozy perhaps?

Why not pair that chocolate with bourbon? We believe that the sweet corn, oaky, vanilla, and caramel flavors associated with this corn-based whiskey pair perfectly with bitter dark or sweet milk chocolate. And we’re not alone in that idea — 12 of our favorite bartenders not only cosigned the notion, they also offered up recommendations just in time for Halloween. Check out all of their answers below, and make sure to click on those prices if you want to try these pairings too.

Cyrus Noble

Christopher Rodriguez, lead bartender at Lucy Bar in Yountville, California

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $33

Why This Bourbon?

The best bourbon to pair with chocolate this Halloween is Cyrus Noble because it is super smooth. It’s 90 proof and highlighted by a nutty sweetness, vanilla, and caramel that all pair well with chocolate.

Buffalo Trace

Mike Fayad, general manager at Hearth and Hill in Park City, Utah

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $32

Why This Bourbon?

Buffalo Trace is a great bourbon to drink with Halloween chocolate. It has dense flavors of caramel, chocolate, and fall spice which pair perfectly with my favorite, Snickers.

Cooper’s Craft

Lauren Navarro, head bartender at Apothecary 330 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

ABV: 41.1%

Average Price: $24

Why This Bourbon?

Cooper’s Craft is an excellent pairing for Halloween chocolate. It’s subtle and sweet with lots of vanilla notes. I use it for bourbon espresso martinis as well.

Woodinville Port Cask

Brendan Pineda, manager and buyer at Plumpjack Wine & Spirits in San Francisco

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $52

Why This Bourbon?

Woodinville Bourbon finished in Port Casks takes their standard bourbon and finishes the whiskey in barrels that previously held port wine for six months. This process provides notes of rich chocolate, candied cherries, and berries making it the ideal complement to some tasty candy.

High Wire Revival

Nicholas Karel, director of bars, lounges and beverage at Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans

ABV: 42%

Average Price: $55

Why This Bourbon?

High Wire Revival Jimmy Red Corn Bourbon is my pick. The revival of the heirloom Jimmy Red Corn — which comprises the majority of this mash bill — makes for a rich and well-rounded bourbon that’s perfect for a chocolate pairing.

Four Roses

Mohamed Khald, food and beverage manager at The Vinoy Renaissance in St. Petersburg, Florida

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $24

Why This Bourbon?

Four Roses Yellow Label bourbon is a strong and sweet whiskey bursting with spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, and clove. iI’s a deliciously versatile fall bourbon and would blend perfectly with Halloween treats.

Elmer T. Lee Single Barrel

Lauren Parton, general manager of Devereaux in Chicago

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $129

Why This Bourbon?

Elmer T. Lee Single Barrel is my pick. It would pair well with either milk or dark chocolate. It’s rich in baking spice notes and lingers on the palate.

Evan Williams Black Label

Alex Barbatsis, head bartender at The Whistler in Chicago

ABV: 43%

Average Price: $13

Why This Bourbon?

Evan Williams Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a great pairing for chocolate because the 86 proof can cut through the sugar, and it has vanilla and ginger notes that pair well with candy. It’s budget-friendly, so that leaves extra room for you to afford to give out full-size candy bars to trick or treaters.

Jefferson’s Ocean Aged At Sea

Roger Eyles, general manager and sommelier at Mister Mao in New Orleans

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $82

Why This Bourbon?

Jefferson’s Ocean Aged at Sea without a doubt. Chocolate always tastes better with sea salt in my opinion. It works well with the various flavors in milk and dark chocolate. What’s not to love?

Angel’s Envy

Christy Bradley, spirit guide at Virgin Hotels in New Orleans

ABV: 43.3%

Average Price: $55

Why This Bourbon?

Angel’s Envy is one of my favorites to pair with chocolate. It’s aged in port casks which gives it a delicious and sweet finish. It pairs perfectly with the sweetness of chocolate.

Elijah Craig Small Batch

Mallory O’Meara, bartender and author of GIRLY DRINKS: A World History of Women and Alcohol

ABV: 47%

Average Price: $32

Why This Bourbon?

If I’m drinking bourbon, I won’t be eating chocolate. But if you’re going ham on Halloween, I’m assuming you’ll be eating a lot of milk chocolate and nuts in the form of a hundred fun-sized Snickers. So maybe I’d go with something oaky like Elijah Craig Small Batch. It has the woody, nutty, caramel flavor to stand up to rich, sweet chocolate.

W. L. Weller Special Reserve

Nicholas Bennett, beverage director at Porchlight in New York City

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $59

Why This Bourbon?

If I am pairing my bourbon with my Halloween candy hoard, I am picking a wheated bourbon. My favorite here is the W. L. Weller Special Reserve. It might be the “most common” of the Weller lineup, but that means I always have a bottle at my home bar. Straight forward wheated bourbon flavors like vanilla, caramel, and honey are there along with a very slight amount of oak and a distinct lack of spice.

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Chvrches are now a couple months removed from the release of their fourth and latest album, Screen Violence. Just because they dropped the album doesn’t mean they’re done with it, though, as today brings a new deluxe edition, titled Screen Violence: Director’s Cut. What makes it deluxe is the inclusion of three new tracks: “Killer,” “Screaming,” and “Bitter End.”

Lauren Mayberry says of the songs, “This album was thematically so different to previous Chvrches albums that it would have been rude of us to let Halloween come and go without injecting some more Screen Violence into it. ‘Killer,’ ‘Bitter End,’ and ‘Screaming’ were all started in 2020 and finished just after the album was released. As any good horror fan knows, just because the film ends, it doesn’t mean the story does.”

She also previously said of Screen Violence, “I think for me it was helpful to go into the process with the idea that I could write something escapist almost. That felt freeing initially, to have concepts and stories to weave your own feelings and experiences through but in the end, all the lyrics were definitely still personal.” Martin Doherty added, “To me, the screen aspect was a bit more literal. When we were making the record, it was like half of our lives were lived through screens. What began as a concept was now a lifeline.”

Listen to “Killer,” “Screaming,” and “Bitter End” above.

Screen Violence is out now via Glassnote. Get it here.

While National Treasure 3 might be stuck in year 13 of development hell, progress is well underway for its television series counterpart. Shortly after announcing a National Treasure series was in the works over at Disney+, the studio has revealed its lead actor: emerging star Lisette Alexis. According to Deadline, Alexis will be playing the role of Jess Morales, a Latina with a “natural talent for solving puzzles” and “whose brilliant and resourceful mind loves a good mystery.” The series follows Morales as she embarks on an adventure to discover the truth about her family as well as recover a lost Pan-American treasure.

Whereas the National Treasure films focus primarily on white American history, in an interesting and refreshing twist, the upcoming television series promises to tell a more inclusive story that transcends the founding fathers. Morales herself is written as DREAMer, a child who came to America undocumented but is completely acclimated to American culture after having lived in the country their entire life. Along with her “diverse group of friends,” the team not only sets off to explore the world but also tackled “the timely issues of identity, community, historical authorship and patriotism.”

Jerry Bruckheimer, the producer behind the National Treasure series and hits like Pirates of the Caribbean, is returning to National Treasure as the show’s executive producer. Jon Turteltaub and Mira Nair are set to co-direct the 10-episode series, with Marianne and Cormac Wibberley on board as its writers. Production is set to begin in early 2022 with the series’ most likely hitting the streaming service later that year or in early 2023.

If we’re being honest, any time is a good time to stock up on bolder, darker beers. While there are certainly darker beer styles well-suited for cool (and downright cold) weather, today we’re turning our attention to a beer that transcends any season or weather pattern. The stout.

Since there are stouts for all seasons — featuring varying levels of darkness, spiciness, fruitiness, hoppiness and so much more — we’re not going to limit ourselves. We’ll be calling out dry stouts, imperial stouts, barrel-aged stouts, and everything in between.

To find the best of the best, the stouts that beer pros would be thrilled to drink from now until the day they die, we asked a handful of well-known brewers and brewery professionals to tell us their go-to stouts. These are “desert island” stouts — beers that you never grow tired of. Keep scrolling to see all of their selections and click on those prices if you want to try one too.

Odell Lugene Chocolate Milk Stout

Jamie Lee Gonzales, brewer at Living The Dream Brewing Co. in Littleton, Colorado

ABV: 8.5%

Average Price: $14 for a four-pack

Why This Beer?

My favorite stout is the Lugene Chocolate Milk Stout from Odell. This beer is the perfect bottle to grab after a long day. It’s super smooth and sneaky! The artwork on the label is also adorable.

Founders Breakfast Stout

Patrick Chavanelle, research and development brewer at Allagash Brewing Company in Portland, Maine

ABV: 8.3%

Average Price: $11 for a four-pack

Why This Beer?

Coffee is one of my favorite ingredients used in beer. Similar to hops, the characteristics of coffee can vary drastically from bean to bean, based on where it’s grown, how it’s processed, and how it’s roasted. All of these variables need to be considered when integrating coffee into a beer recipe. Somehow the folks at Founders were able to find the perfect coffee-to-beer combination in Founders Breakfast Stout.

This beer reminds me of camping and roasting marshmallows over a fire. It pairs perfectly with a campfire brunch or a nightcap after a long day of hiking. It’s just so damn good.

Goose Island Bourbon County Stout

Todd Bellmyer, head brewer at Wynkoop Brewing in Denver

ABV: 12.9%

Average Price: $14 for a 16.9-ounce bottle

Why This Beer?

Bourbon County Stout by Goose Island Brewing Co. is one of the most unique beer releases each year. The release date — only in select stores across the country — has been Black Friday for many years now. That means that while so many people are shopping for TVs, I’m standing in line outside a liquor store hoping to score one of the many variants they release each year.

It’s a high ABV stout with great complex flavors without being cloying.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

Todd DiMatteo, owner and brewer Good Word Brewing in Duluth, Georgia

ABV: 10%

Average Price: $10 for a four-pack

Why This Beer?

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout checks this box big time. This ten percent stout is in a league of its own. I remember waiting impatiently at times of the seasonal release of this beer and when my pub would have it on draft. This beer has bitter chocolate, is rounded and decadent, and balanced in ways a stout should be.

Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout

Molly Lamb, host of Brewvana’s Brews Less Traveled Beer Club and Podcast

ABV: 12%

Average Price: $22 for a 750ml bottle

Why This Beer?

One stout that I look forward to drinking in the fall is the Founders KBS Stout. It has big flavors of coffee and cocoa with a little vanilla. It has a smooth and silky mouthfeel and a big 12 perent ABV. Mouthfeel is important in all beers, especially in a stout.

I gravitate toward this style (and this particular beer) because of the physical attributes it has; low carbonation and a delightful, pleasing viscosity that makes the Founders KBS Stout feel truly decadent.

Fremont Dark Star

Brandon Capps, owner and head brewer of New Image Brewing in Arvada, Colorado

ABV: 8%

Average Price: $14 for a four-pack

Why This Beer?

Fremont’s Dark Star is an imperial oatmeal stout packed with dark, roasty, chocolate flavors, and a firm bitterness yet a smooth experience all at once. It’s very easy to find, affordable, and just drinkable enough to have two glasses. That’s something I can’t say about many stouts, even some lower ABV offerings.

Great Divide Yeti

Dave Bergen, co-founder, director of brewing and marketing at Joyride Brewing Company in Edgewater, Colorado

ABV: 9.5%

Average Price: $14 for a four-pack

Why This Beer?

I’m a big Yeti fan, and there’s a reason why this Great Divide flagship has been around as long as it has. Yeti is everything an American imperial stout is supposed to be: Big, brash, roasty, and bitter.

I enjoy all the different iterations of the Yeti clan, but I always come back to the OG.

North Coast Old Rasputin

Chris Takeuchi, research and development brewer at Ballast Point’s Little Italy brewpub in San Diego

ABV: 9%

Average Price: $11 for a four-pack

Why This Beer?

Old Rasputin from North Coast Brewing Company is a powerhouse of a Russian imperial stout. It’s incredibly flavorful and complex with the big, brash roastiness the style calls for. It’s a huge beer, and it’s hard not to have two.

Firestone Walker Parabola

Skip Schwartz, innovation and wood cellar lead at WeldWerks Brewing Co. in Greeley, Colorado

ABV: 14%

Average Price: $18 for a 22-ounce bottle

Why This Beer?

To me, it is still one of the best barrel-aged stouts that are widely available. This beer is also a huge reason for my obsession with barrel-aged beers. I love the roasted coffee flavors with a huge oak profile. Nothing speaks to me more than a great barrel-aged stout and Parabola, year-after-year, is one of the best.

Deschutes Obsidian Stout

Samuel Richardson, co-founder and brewmaster at Other Half Brewing Co in Brooklyn, New York

ABV: 6.4%

Average Price: $12 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

Obsidian is just a great stout from the earlier days of craft beer. It’s classic and drinkable with great roasted flavors that are balanced. This beer is also very nostalgic for me and I’m sure a lot of other early craft beer adopters, especially those of us who grew up in Oregon.

Left Hand Nitro Stout

Colby Cox, co-founder of Roadhouse Brewing Co in Jackson Hole, Wyoming

ABV: 6%

Average Price: $12 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

Left Hand Nitro Stout is a go-to for me year-round, but there’s something even more enjoyable about its roasted aromas, rich flavors, and creamy mouthfeel once there’s a chill in the air. While Left Hand’s pushed their series of stouts into a wide breadth of flavor combinations, it’s their original Milk Stout I first fell for, keep coming back to, and always pour hard.

Stone Xocoveza Stout

David “Zambo” Szamborski, brewmaster at Paperback Brewing in Glendale, California

ABV: 8.1%

Average Price: $16 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

I am a big fan of Xocoveza Stout from Stone. This stout — originally created by Mitch Steele, their former brewmaster — is a take on Mexican hot chocolate. It includes cacao nibs, coffee, papilla peppers, and a few spices as well as lactose to keep it sweet like chocolate. Yummy.

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

Carson, California-bred TDE rapper Reason has returned with a new EP, No More, No Less: Demo 1, which features appearances from Adé, Benny the Butcher, Doe Boy, Reason’s TDE label-mate Isaiah Rashad, and Wale. Reason calls the EP “a small collection of thoughts and moments that I’ve been asked for repeatedly” and explained that he released it because it was “something I wanted to give to y’all in the meantime” while he’s finishing a proper follow-up to his 2020 album, New Beginnings.

The three-song effort opens with “Left Hand” featuring Benny, Isaiah, and Wale, a block thumper that finds the three rappers trading verses over a variety of different beats. That’s followed by the hypnotic “Not For Me,” which reunites Adé and Wale and includes Benny, then the set concludes with the woozy, downtempo “12am In ATL,” which features Benny, Isaiah, and Doe Boy. Clocking in at nine minutes and 53 seconds in total, No More, No Less showcases Reason’s impressive wordplay by setting it alongside some of the most prolific and clever rappers in the game today.

The EP also helps set up Reason as part of the vanguard of the post-Kendrick TDE roster the label will have to get behind after a “weird time” for TDE in 2020. Along with Isaiah, Ray Vaughn, and Doechii, Reason is carrying the torch for the West Coast rap label as it evolves in the wake of Kendrick Lamar’s departure.

Listen to the EP below.

John Mayer is in the middle of a critical resurgence due to the popularity of his extremely relatable new album, Sob Rock. After an initial breakout as an undeniable, melodic songwriter, it felt like he was searching for direction over the last few releases. On Sob Rock, he’s found his footing again, and aside from the excellent single “New Light,” he’s also recently reworked one of the album’s other singles, “Last Train Running.” The original version was an ’80s-indebted, synth-heavy track that featured Maren Morris on harmonies, but Mayer’s gotta do what Mayer’s gotta do.

A new ballad version is peak Mayer, and honestly, it sounds absolutely great. Today, Mayer shared a live video performance of the reworked version, which is a dream for any music nerd. First of all, the song was recorded live at Henson Studios in Hollywood, and features Mayer using his fancy guitar: a PRS Silver Sky in Roxy Pink. Along with Mayer, the video features a band composed of real legends: Lenny Castro, Greg Phillinganes, Sean Hurley, David Ryan Harris, Aaron Sterling, and Don Was as the recording engineer.

Check out the video above and if you haven’t heard Sob Rock yet, simply add it to your must-hear list for 2021 releases.

Sob Rock is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

Prior to the beginning of the 2021-22 NBA regular season, Boston Celtics wing Jaylen Brown tested positive for COVID-19. He missed the team’s final three tune-up contests during the preseason, but has suited up for four of Boston’s five regular-season games and even dropped 46 points on opening night against the New York Knicks. However, Brown said he’s experiencing residual effects of the virus, per Chris Grenham of Forbes Sports.

Brown is not the first Celtic to report long-term effects of a bout with COVID. Last season, in January, teammate Jayson Tatum contracted COVID and said he had to start taking an inhaler before games, which he’d never previously done.

“I take an inhaler before the game since I’ve tested positive,” Tatum said, according to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. “This has kind of helped with that and opened up my lungs.”

Similarly, Philadelphia 76ers guard Seth Curry contracted COVID in January and was transparent about the lengthy process required for him to regain rhythm and his athletic capacity.

Brown has not said anything to indicate he wants to take time off to get back to 100 percent. So far this season, Boston’s 25-year-old All-Star is averaging 24.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in 37.5 minutes per game, with his scoring and minutes marks second on the team only to Tatum.

Despite a scorching op-ed written by director Denis Villeneuve after it was announced that Dune would be included in the highly controversial decision by Warner Bros. to release its entire 2021 film slate on HBO Max the same day as theaters, the film performed admirably at the box office. More importantly, Dune‘s success secured a green light for Dune: Part Two just a few days after the first film’s release, and from the sound of things, Villeneuve seems to be much happier with his relationship with Warner Bros. now.

For starters, Dune: Part Two has been guaranteed an exclusive 45-day theatrical window, which was key to Villeneuve, who told The Hollywood Reporter, “The theatrical experience is at the very heart of the cinematic language for me.” Notably, earlier in the year, Villeneuve was concerned that the HBO Max move had killed the Dune franchise before it even started, but now he’s talking about possibly even coming back for a third movie. Via THR:

“If things go well with Part Two, I could foresee the idea of maybe doing … Dune Messiah. That would make sense to me,” Villeneuve says when asked about his career plans. “After that, I think that I will make some other movies — let’s call them big movies, regarding their ambition and scope. And later on, when I’m too tired to do that, I will go back to some smaller projects. But for now, I have the energy to do this.”

Of course, before Villeneuve starts figuring out how to tackle the third installment in Frank Herbert’s epic sci-fi series, he has to get to work on Dune: Part Two, which starts filming in Fall 2022, according to the director. However, he assures Dune fans that the production won’t take nearly as long because a lot of the groundwork was laid down making the first film, but he and cinematographer Greig Fraser will still be pushing the sequel’s visual style.

“I don’t want to have the impression that we are just repeating ourselves,” Villeneuve said.

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

This article originally appeared on 03.04.20

There are few more fulfilling hobbies than having a love of books.

Reading isn’t just a great way to have a good time. Reading increases brain connectivity, makes people more empathetic, reduces depression symptoms, improves vocabulary, and may even cause you to live longer.

It’s a huge benefit for a child’s development as well. According to Parent.com, reading “stimulates the side of the brain that helps with mental imagery, understanding, and language processing, and that brain activity.”

Sure beats wasting time playing video games.

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Thirteen-year-old Callum Manning wanted to share his love of reading with the world, so on February 23, he created an Instagram account where he posted photos of the books he’s read. It started with a post about Stephen King’s “The Shining.”

“So I guess I’m going to start this account off with one of my favourite books, Callum wrote. “This book was the first book I read in 1 day. And I was like 10. So yeah it scared me.”

He would go on to fill his pages with books such as “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley, “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen, “1984” by George Orwell, and current classics such as “A Game of Thrones” by George R.R. Martin and “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” by J.K. Rowling

Kids Callum’s age can be exceptionally cruel. A group of them created a group chat where they bullied him for his love of books and then invited him to join. After subjecting him to emotional abuse, they kicked him out of the chat.

“I don’t tend to cry that often but I think that was the first time in a while I’ve actually cried,” Callum told PA Media.

His older sister, Ellis Landreth, was understandably upset about the cruelty, so she tweeted about the group chat, hoping about “20 or 30 of my friends [would] like a few of his posts or follow him or give him some words of encouragement.”

Her tweet would go viral, receiving over 180,000 likes.

She was bombarded by responses from people who wanted to support her brother.

Just a few hours after the tweet, Callum received thousands of followers on his page. In just three days, he’s up to nearly 400,000 followers. He’s also received countless messages of support through the page.

English novelist Matt Haig sent Callum a collection of books, adding: “Hey let’s all follow Cals Book Account on Instagram and show him some support.” A book store near Manning’s home in northeast England promised him a book on the house.

Callum’s story was shared on Instagram by authors Caroline Kepnes and Malorie Blackman.

The teenager has received over 15,000 messages in his DMs. “He’s absolutely overwhelmed,” Landreth told CNN. “He can’t even get through all his DMs.”

Callum’s mother is over the moon about the response. “She’s so happy people are spreading positive messages about these issues,” Landreth said. “No matter how small some things seem, they can stick with kids forever.”

This article originally appeared on 02.21.20

Optical illusions are universally beloved for how they trick our brains and blow our minds. There’s a reason we enjoy magic shows and Escher paintings and are mesmerized by fake oases in the desert. We love seeing things that bend our perceptions of reality, and the science behind the magic always proves fascinating as well.

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The Ames window is a pretty well-known optical illusion, but it’s always cool to see. When spun, the angled window appears to oscillate back and forth instead of spin all the way around. But this video adds a twist that makes the effect even more mindbending—our brains simply can’t process objective reality mixed with an optical illusion.

The YouTube channel Curiosity Show explains the science of the illusion and gives a DIY demonstration for making your own Ames window. But wait until the pen gets taped to the window and spun. This is some real-life magic right here. Mind. Blown.

www.youtube.com