Month: December 2021

While we like to go on (and on) about whiskey, there is a whole universe of other bottles of booze out there. It’s also the gift-giving season, which means you might be looking for a great gift bottle to give someone special this year, and maybe whiskey isn’t their jam. We don’t judge around here.

While we do get to sample a lot of whiskeys every year, we also get to sample tons of other spirits too. Let’s focus on the spirits that don’t quite get as much attention as whiskey for this gift guide because, let’s face it, there are a lot of great options available.

The ten bottles below highlight five styles of alcohol: tequila/mezcal, rum, brandy/cognac, gin, and vodka. We tried to keep everything findable and not too pricey (though there’s a bottle that’s a little spendier on the list). Overall, these are some options that will make any burgeoning cocktail mixer or aficionado happy when they tear off the paper to reveal one of these great bottles of booze.

Código 1530 Artesanal Mezcal

ABV: 43.1%

Average Price: $75

The Mezcal:

Código generally kills it in the tequila game. So we were pretty stoked to hear they were making mezcal this year. The brand hired a Mezcal Master to make the spirit by hand in Oaxaca with wild agave — espadín and tobalá specifically — from the San Juan del Rio region. No machines or automation was used in the making of this mezcal either. Traditional stone and wooden sticks were used for mashing. The fermentation took place in old leather vats. Finally, the distillation happened in earthen clay pot stills.

Tasting Notes:

Earthiness layers into this sip from top to bottom as the nose presents with mineral-rich dirt that leads towards hints of smoked honey, dry cantaloupe skins, and a hint of smoked vanilla beans. The taste harnesses that vanilla and sweetens it with more honey as orange oils, smoked cherries, and a nice dose of chalky clay mingle on the senses. The finish is long-ish with a hazelnut moving from fatty nut to dry shells with a wisp of fruity smoke in the background.

Bottom Line:

While I really dig this on the rocks, it shines in a cocktail, especially in a white Negroni variation or a smoky old fashioned. This is just a great mezcal overall.

Cardenal Mendoza Gran Reserva

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $52

The Brandy:

This Spanish brandy has some serious pedigree. The juice is made from Airen grapes grown in Jerez. The juice then goes into former Pedro Ximenez sherry casks where it rests for 15 long years. The result is a deeply flavorful snifter that’s second to none.

Tasting Notes:

Roasted nuts, orange-infused dark chocolate, espresso beans, and brown bread greet you. The sip embraces the oak, nuts, and coffee as the body of the brandy feels like sharp beams of golden light flooding through darkly colored stained glass. The fruit is fairly dried and plummy and the sweetness edges ever-so-slightly towards molasses. The end is dry, bold, and leaves you warmed to your soul.

Bottom Line:

While France’s cognac tends to dominate a lot of the conversation around brandy in the U.S., Spanish brandy is starting to make an impact — in large part thanks to this very bottle. This is pure Christmas vibes in a bottle that works as a sipper as easily as a base for a killer nog. It’s also a cool, old-school bottle which helps make it a great gift overall.

Artingstall’s Brilliant London Dry Gin

ABV: 42%

Average Price: $45

The Gin:

Famed director and boulevardier Paul Fieg went all-in on the cocktail game and released his very own gin, named after his mom no less. The gin is a London Dry gin (more botanical and less sweet than an Old Tom or sloe gin) that’s specifically designed to make a great cocktail, especially if you’re stirring up a martini. Fieg teamed up with Minhas Craft Brewery & Distillery in Alberta and Wisconsin and actually built this gin from scratch himself (this isn’t a simple white label). Feig found a nice balance of eleven botanicals with a focus on orris root, cassia, elderberries, and citrus while the juniper took more of a back seat.

Tasting Notes:

You get a mild sense of dry, almost desert-kissed juniper on the nose that leads right into a dried berry with hints of lemon and orange pith next to a touch of dark and woody spices (think clove and anise). The palate is gentle and touches back on that dried berry vibe while the woody spices give way to dried roots with a very mild Black Jack gum vibe. The softness of the taste leans into a light minerality as the spices, dried, fruit, and citrus pith fades away fairly quickly.

Bottom Line:

While this is the perfect martini (or Negroni) base, I really dig it on the rocks with a dash of Angostura Bitters. Drinking aside, the presentation of this gin is also stellar with a hefty decanter that can be reused as a bar centerpiece for years to come.

Zubrowka Bison Grass Vodka

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $25

The Vodka:

Poland’s Zubrowka is one of the most subtly flavored herbal vodkas on the market — so much so that you might not even know it’s flavored while you drink it. The vodka is based on bison grass that grows on the Białowieża Forest, which stretches from Eastern Poland into Belarus and is Europe’s last primeval forest. Bison and wolves still roam between its ancient, mossy trees.

Tasting Notes:

You’re greeted with a mix of honey, freshly shorn wheat fields, and a note of lemon citrus with a hint of almond. The taste very much keeps hold of those notes as the grass sweetens and a creamy texture leads towards a distinct pistachio essence. The end of the sip feels a bit like a lemon cake with a creamy, pistachio-filled frosting.

Bottom Line:

I fell in love with this vodka over 20 years ago and it remains a personal favorite. That’s staying power. This unique spirit is a great gift in that it’s not the easiest to find and is a truly unique expression from a very broad and sometimes boring style of alcohol.

D’USSÉ VSOP Cognac

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $60

The Brandy:

This is Jay-Z’s signature brand. The juice in the bottle goes way back to Baron Otard from the famed Château de Cognac. The new line was re-crafted to suit American palates and includes a blend of Cognacs that are aged at the château for four to eight years before blending, proofing, and bottling.

Tasting Notes:

The florals and fruit take a back seat to wood, spice, and vanilla on the nose. The palate of rich caramel leads to butter toffee with plenty of that oak shining through next to mild dark spices. The end lets the florals and fruit come out to play a little as the wood, spice, and caramel fade through your senses.

Bottom Line:

This makes a great gift in that it’s stylish and also very drinkable. Look, that bottle is going to look great wherever it’s displayed. What makes this gift shine is that the actual brandy in that pretty bottle is damn fine and worth sipping slow throughout the rest of the year.

Mount Gay Andean Oak Cask Finish Rum

ABV: 48%

Average Price: $192

The Rum:

Master Blender Trudiann Branke is creating some amazing Barbadian blends with Mount Gay’s Master Blender Collection. The fourth release takes Mount Gay rum that spent 14 years mellowing if former bourbon barrels just a stone’s throw from a beach and finishes that rum in South American oak from the Andies. After eleven months in those barrels, the juice is proofed and bottled as-is.

Tasting Notes:

The nose of this ranges from a Christmas cake full of dark and candied fruits, dark spices, fatty nuts, and buttery vanilla to a counterbalance of bitter espresso beans, very dark chocolate, and a distant flutter of dried rose. The taste really leans into the spicier end with freshly ground nutmeg and clove marrying the creamy vanilla to make lush eggnog as candied ginger spices this up with a light sweetness. Mint-kissed marzipan arrives on the mid-palate and leads towards a finish that’s brimming with dark chocolate-covered marzipan, rum-soaked holiday cake, and dark red fruits tied to sticky tobacco leaves.

Bottom Line:

This expression just dropped last October and only 1,026 bottles were sent to the U.S. That makes this a truly special release/gift for any rum fan this year.

Jose Cuervo Reserva De La Familia Reposado

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $85

The Tequila:

This brand-new release from Jose Cuervo comes from Master Distiller Alex Coronado. Coronado makes this tequila using more traditional methods than the autoclaves and automated operations for the brand’s entry-point expressions. This tequila starts off with single-estate Blue Agave that’s hand-harvested. Those agave pinas are then roasted in old-school ovens (and diffusers for sugar extraction). They also use old-school fermenters and copper pot stills before the juice goes into French oak and ex-bourbon barrels for maturation with a toasted American oak barrel in the mix too.

Tasting Notes:

Hints of black pepper draw you in with a faint essence of cottage cheese that’s cut with fresh pineapple, bay leaf, and brittle toffee. The palate leans into roasted agave by amping up that black pepper vibe while soft vanilla extract mingles with clove, anise, and allspice. A subtle cinnamon stick takes over on the mid-palate with slightly sweet almond. The finish doesn’t last too long but carries that spice towards a cedar box full of spicy vanilla tobacco with a final crank off the black pepper mill.

Bottom Line:

This well-crafted tequila from Cuervo feels like the antithesis of everything the brand has become known for. This is about refinement and slow-sipping or building a great cocktail. The presentation of the bottle and packaging also help it stand out from the crowd and make it a great gift bottle.

Equiano Light

ABV: 43%

Average Price: $46

The Rum:

The heart of this rum is a combination of aged dark rums from Foursquare in Barbados. Those rums are rendered from rich molasses before they’re aged pretty much right on the beach. That rum is blended with Gray’s rum from Mauritius. That rum is made from fresh sugar cane juice, bringing the “light” to the mix.

Tasting Notes:

You get a big dose of fresh sugar cane juice on the nose that’s been cut with bright and dark spices and oily vanilla next to green apples and ripe pineapple. The palate has a delicate balance of tropical fruits next to coconut creaminess, a dash of woody spice, and a mild molasses sweetness with a small stringy sugar cane greenness. The finish is short and sweet and leaves you with that fruit, stringy sugar cane sweetness, and a touch more of the woody spice with a final creamy coconut mouthfeel.

Bottom Line:

This was one of my favorite new rums of the year. It’s so light yet refined. It also makes a perfect daiquiri, which is the gift that keeps on giving year-round.

Beluga Transatlantic

ABV: 40%

Average Price: $45

The Vodka:

This vodka from deep in the Siberian forest was built to celebrate Russia’s sailing team. The juice in the bottle is made from local wheat and cut with Siberian well water before it’s filtered through fresh cotton. The vodka then rests in tanks for 45 days, allowing it to mellow out even more.

Tasting Notes:

The nose on this is saline leading to sea spray with a silky roundness. The palate goes from super soft mineral water neutral to the oyster liquor from a just-opened oyster with a very distant honey/oat vibe. That oyster liquor note intensifies on the next sip and the next, leading towards a real seaside depth.

Bottom Line:

This is a nuanced and unique vodka that few others can stand up to. It’s also a vodka that’s from really far away, making it a great gift that shows you’ve taken the time to find something truly special.

Beefeater 24 London Dry Gin

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $36, 1-liter bottle

The Gin:

You’ve probably seen a bottle of Beefeater London Dry Gin on the shelf before. This takes that to new heights that deserve your attention. The gin utilizes 12 botanicals and teas with grapefruit peel and Japanese and Chinese green teas the main focus and juniper, Seville orange peel, bitter almonds, orris root, coriander seeds, angelica root, licorice, angelica seed, and Sicilian lemon peel making up the rest. Beefeater infuses those ingredients into the distillate for 24 hours, which is on the shorter end of the infusion spectrum.

Tasting Notes:

Citrus pops on the nose and palate like fireworks on a cold New Year’s Eve. That grapefruit shines through on the nose with a brightness that’s enticing while the juniper takes a backseat. The dark roots have an earthiness to them that’s tied to a light minerality with spice and anise leading the way. The sip softens dramatically on the back end as the green and black tea feel takes over and leads your sense towards a soft landing full of citrus, green tea, and minerals.

Bottom Line:

This is another perfect mixing gin. It’s also very affordable and findable while also being a great-looking bottle. All of those are wins for gift-giving booze this year.

Verzuz battles have become a great way to salute and pay homage to the legacies of artists who probably don’t get as much recognition as they should — or at least, give them their flowers while they’re still around to appreciate it — but as the series continues, there are some who want to see even bigger stars hit the stage to play their hits.

One of those who do is LA Reid, who stated during an interview on The Real that his dream matchup would be between two megastars in Beyonce and Mariah Carey. While both are vocal powerhouses who have sold millions of records and become nearly ubiquitous household names — especially now that it’s December, which is slowly but surely becoming more of a celebration of Mariah than yuletide cheer — many fans, upon hearing the suggestion, voiced their disapproval on Twitter.

While much of the chatter was the typical stan war stuff (“Beyoncé is the Queen of what exactly?” one user questioned), there were others who pointed out that the two aren’t exactly peers, since Mariah debuted a solid decade before Beyonce’s solo career took off. The best Verzuz battles so far have been those between artists from similar generations, such as The Lox and The Diplomats, or the recent showdown between Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and Three 6 Mafia.

Meanwhile, still, others pointed out, simply, that neither artist seems particularly interested in doing Verzuz, which has always seemed to book artists who are perhaps slightly past their commercial prime or who flew under the radar as songwriters and producers. Beyonce and Mariah Carey are both still selling millions of records — even if it’s just “All I Want For Christmas,” Mariah’s pull is enough to warrant a month-long McDonald’s menu — and thus, Verzuz “couldn’t afford” them.

And others wondered why LA Reid was being given a platform at all, considering he was recently accused of sexual harassment by multiple women, leading to his ouster from Epic Records, and a huge settlement payment from Sony.

Check out more responses to LA Reid’s dream matchup below, and watch the full interview above.

It’s a simple question, really: Do you think Cousin Greg — the sweet, lanky, awkward Roy-adjacent boy from Succession — can dunk a basketball? It shouldn’t require too much thought. A simple yes or no will do. And yet, here I am, after months — not an exaggeration — of debating both sides of the issue in my head, writing it up and presenting it to you. It’s my last hope. I have, at various times in various moments, convinced myself completely that both options are correct. It’s honestly becoming a problem. I have other things to do. Paperwork is piling up on my desk while my brain cranks itself into a smoking lump of ooze. That doesn’t even make sense. Ooze forms in pools, not lumps. This situation has ruined me.

It’s not even the first time I’ve debated the hoops prowess of characters on the show. I wrote a whole manifesto just last year about how good I thought each character was at basketball. I stand by almost everything I said then, but especially the things I wrote about Greg, who I ranked ninth for the reasons explained in this blockquote.

Toughest entry on the list. My sweet boy is very, very tall, and younger than just about anyone else on the show. He has all the physical advantages one could want. On the other hand, he is hilariously uncoordinated and passive and appears to be developing a secret cocaine habit. I’ve been trying so hard to envision a scenario where he can be a contributing member of a basketball team but every time I start to get there I see him tripping and falling on a fast break because he somehow got his shoes tied together in the middle of the previous play.

Still, he ranks this high because there is a bubbling rage inside that gangly body and we simply cannot rule out the possibility that he plays with the intensity of Kevin Garnett in the brief spells between him falling like a whirling cyclone of arms and legs.

Do you see what I mean here? Do you see why this is tearing me apart? Both possibilities are reasonable. If the show would settle this once and for all — please, even just one line of dialogue confirming he can dunk or explaining that he can’t, for me, for my deeply troubled soul — I would happily accept whatever they put forth. I would put this issue to bed for good. This is a lie. I would not. Especially if they say he can dunk. Because then I would need to see it. It would tear me apart. But we’ll cross that shaky rope bridge when we get to it.

Below, I will lay out the case for and against Cousin Greg being able to dunk. We will really get into it. But first, I need to be clear about three things:

• I am not asking if Nicholas Braun, the actor who plays Cousin Greg, can dunk in real life
• I’m asking if Cousin Greg, the character on the show, can dunk
• I’m doing great

Okay, here we go.

CASE FOR: Cousin Greg can dunk, absolutely, 100 percent

The case for this breaks down as follows:

• Cousin Greg is very tall — Nicholas Braun is 6’7 and the show has never portrayed him as anything shorter than that — and has long arms
• He would not have to jump very high
• Like, we’re taking a 20-24 inch vertical leap, tops
• I believe in him
• He is young enough that we can assume he retains a solid amount of whatever athletic ability he had at his peak
• I would like it a lot if he could dunk
• He appears to have hands that are large enough to palm a basketball
• This would make it easier because he wouldn’t have to use two hands or cup/cradle the ball in his wrist on the way up
• He is so tall
• I know I said that already but still
• I saw this video of Nicholas Braun sitting courtside at a Lakers game and getting super pumped up about a cool windmill dunk and, even though I made a whole point a minute ago about how this question relates only to the actual character, I feel like it’s important
• I saved the file for this draft as “Greg Basketball,” which has nothing to do with anything but would be a pretty hilarious fake name

All fair points. But this brings us to…

CASE AGAINST: Cousin Greg cannot dunk, no way, be serious

The case for this alternative:

• lol
• No
• Come on
• Cousin Greg is the most awkward and uncoordinated person alive
• Just picture him trying to dunk
• Heck, just picture him in basketball shorts
• He would almost certainly injure himself
• I have this crystal clear image in my head of him trying to dunk and banging the ball into the front of the rim and falling down and knocking himself unconscious in front of, like, Beyoncé
• He could be eight feet tall and he still could not dunk
• There’s a principle here, like it would alter the dynamics of the entire show in irreversible ways if he was able to dunk
• I feel like it would have come up already if he could
• I feel like Kendall would be super jealous and bring it up a lot, in large part because Kendall named his son Iverson, which remains perfect
• If Greg could dunk then I think Tom would have challenged him to a game of basketball already, if only because Tom has the most “scored 2000 points at his small Midwestern high school and needs everyone to know it” energy of any character on television
• No
• Be serious

Come on.

VERDICT

Here’s the closest I’ve come to a solution, only because it feels right: I think Cousin Greg has dunked a basketball a few times, but only when he’s alone, and he’s tried and failed to replicate it numerous times in front of other people or on video, with the end result being that no one believes him. I’m going to stick with that until the show gives me a firm answer one way or the other. It’s part of my general life philosophy: When presented with two equally appealing alternatives, choose the one that is funniest.

The beer world is massive. There are countless styles, variations on styles, and seemingly random flavors that somehow work well together … most of the time. Take a stroll into your closest craft brewery and you’re likely to find some creative, imaginative milkshake IPA, spiced winter warmer, or fruited smoothie IPA alongside the more classic lagers, pilsners, and West Coast IPAs.

This is what makes beer so fun and exciting. There’s something for every palate. If you enjoy classic Czech-style pilsners and nothing else, you can spend your days sampling the style from countless breweries. If you’re more about the sour beers coming out of Belgium, you can find what feels like a million takes on those beers from thousands of American craft brewers across the country. The list goes on and on. And all of that hommage, imitation, and innovation lead to a litany of amazing beers popping up every now and then.

To find the gems, we asked a handful of well-known brewers and craft beer experts to tell us the most unique, innovative, and thought-provoking beers they’d ever tried. Keep reading to see all of their picks.

Wicked Week Oaxacan

Eric Warner, brewmaster at Karbach Brewing Co. in Houston

ABV: 7.1%

Average Price: $17 for a 500ml bottle

Why This Beer?

One of the more unique beers I’ve had is the Oaxacan tequila barrel-aged smoked sour from Wicked Weed Brewing in Asheville, North Carolina. The base beer is brewed using smoked wheat malt and soured using traditional Belgian-style fermentation techniques. The finishing of this elixir is a complex process that ages the beer in tequila barrels, which had originally been used for aging red wine. To top it all off, grapefruit and lime zest is added as a finishing touch. This smoky, citrusy “beertail” is deliciously refreshing and an ingenious take on a tequila-inspired cocktail.

Jester King Snörkel

Alex Wenner, owner and brewer at Lasting Joy Brewery in Hudson Valley, New York

ABV: 4.3%

Average Price: $15 for a 750ml bottle

Why This Beer?

It is harder and harder to find “unique” these days. So many breweries are trying to constantly find a way to make something that no one else has. My favorite beer which was certainly unique is Jester King’s Snörkel. It’s a farmhouse ale with smoked sea salt and locally grown oyster mushrooms. It is hard to get umami flavor out of a beer, but this one really delivers. The real key is that the beer, even if they never added salt or mushrooms, would still be a truly world-class saison. And then they go and have the perfect touch of smoke, salt, and mushroom to round it out.

Rogue Beard Beer

Andrew Hood, wood cellar manager and brewer at Sun King Brewery in Indianapolis

ABV: 5.6%

Average Price: $8 for a 22-ounce bottle

Why This Beer?

One of the most unique beers I’ve ever had was the Beard Beer by Rogue. The beer is made with the yeast strain from brewmaster John Maier’s beard. It’s actually a super clean tasting beer and goes to show you can ferment anything with wild yeast.

Scratch Chanterelle Biere De Garde

Derek Gold, director of brewing operations at WeldWerks in Greeley, Colorado

ABV: 6.5%

Average Price: $24 for a 750ml bottle

Why This Beer?

My pick is Scratch Brewing Chanterelle Biere De Garde. This French farmhouse-style beer is brewed with chanterelle mushrooms foraged from the woods surrounding the brewery. It’s malty, earthy, and funky with notes of fresh apricot, toffee, and cracked peppercorns. It’s a must-try if you get the opportunity.

Big Alice Jalapeno Rye

Jeremy Cowan, owner and founder of Shmaltz Brewing Company in Clifton Park, New York

ABV: 7.1%

Average Price: Limited Availability

Why This Beer?

The Jalapeno Rye from Big Alice in New York City is a rocking combo of unpredictable flavors that still shines after several years of production. It’s a crowd favorite of elegant “extreme” beer. It’s a super tasty adventure.

Prairie BOMB!

Shaun O’Sullivan, co-founder and brewmaster at 21st Amendment Brewery in San Francisco

ABV: 13%

Average Price: $10 for a 12-ounce bottle

Why This Beer?

This imperial stout has so much going on and there is definitely a lot to unpack. Rich dark malt aromas with sweet toffee notes are what you would expect from an imperial stout. BOMB! takes it a step further as it’s brewed with coffee, chocolate, vanilla beans, and ancho chili peppers. The flavor of this beer is where it really opens up with spicy, pepper notes, chocolate, and soft vanilla tones. For such a big beer at 13 percent ABV, it finishes dry with bittersweet raisin notes.

Urban South Toasted Marshmallow Pumpkin Pie

Erika Wojno, US director of marketing at BrewDog in Columbus, Ohio

ABV: 6.1%

Average Price: Limited Availability

Why This Beer?

I’d have to go with Urban South’s Toasted Marshmallow Pumpkin Pie Fruited Sour. Totally unexpected flavor combination, but the pumpkin and spices bring a nice savory character, all balanced by the nice sweetness from the toasted marshmallow.

Cantillon Gueuze

Patrick Ware, co-founder and head of brewing operations and Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co. in Phoenix, Arizona

ABV: 5.5%

Average Price: $22 for a 12-ounce bottle

Why This Beer?

This beer is so unique in that it is nearly impossible to replicate exactly. The unique character they achieve has been derived through a painstakingly long aging process in seasoned puncheon barrels over one to three years. This is only achievable after undergoing an archaic hot-side production process which is pivotal to creating a complex wort base for the bacteria living in the wood to flourish. The tart, musty, earthy, yet bright aromatic complexity in this beer is what brewers dream of if they have ever caught the lambic bug.

Riggs American Lager

Jack Hendler, co-owner of Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers in Framingham, Massachusetts

ABV: 5%

Average Price: $12.50 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

It’s a pretty cool story. They grow their own corn and barley on their own farm to make this American lager. I think it’s a very unique story and process that they actually use their own ingredients. They even worked with a local university to create an heirloom variety of corn that works really well for this style of beer. It’s crisp and hits all the right notes for an American lager.

Goose Island Bourbon County Stout

Luis G. Brignoni, founder of Wynwood Brewing Co. in Miami

ABV: 14.4%

Average Price: $14 for a 16.9-ounce bottle

Why This Beer?

I’ve always been a fan of Goose Island’s Bourbon County Stouts. I think what those brewers have done and continue to do is amazing. They really spearheaded the barrel aging process with beer since way back when, and they’ve done an awesome job keeping the standards up throughout the years. This year it’s tasting really good. I love the use of the bourbon barrels. I’m a big bourbon fan, and the beautiful thick full body of the beer with the vanilla and oak flavors make for an unbeatable experience. This is a beer that’s played as an inspiration to some of our barrel-aging beers we’ve done through the years and one that I look forward to every year. Also, this is one of those styles that ages really well and can continue to develop as you age it. It’s fun doing verticals and opening different vintages at once and comparing the different notes among the same beer. It’s always a nice treat.

Schneider Weisse Aventinus Eisbock

Todd Bellmyer head brewer at Wynkoop Brewing Company in Denver

ABV: 12%

Average Price: $7 for a 330ml bottle

Why This Beer?

Schneider Weisse Aventinus Eisbock is one of my all-time favorite beers ever. Besides the hilarious invention of the style (a German brewer accidentally left a barrel of bock outside and freeze-distilled it), it boasts a high ABV and an enhanced flavor of sweet raisin, brown bread, and caramel.

My gosh, far-right duo Marjorie Taylor Greene and Steve Bannon’s friendship is impossible to look away from. When she hops onto his War Room podcast (part of Real America’s Voice), watch out. She’s a repeat guest, obviously, and he’s not afraid to side-eye her during particularly egregious MTG lies, but they still respect each other as being on the same team. Although she recently told Bannon that she didn’t want anything to do with politics, there’s no way Greene is quitting, even if she ends up turning over her whole salary in anti-masking fines.

For his part, Bannon’s been dealing with those pesky federal contempt charges after he refused to comply with a subpoena for the House Jan. 6 committee. A judge has set his jury trial date (July 2022), but for now, it’s business as usual for Bannon. And here’s what happened when he mentioned (via Raw Story) that The Atlantic writer David Brooks wrote a critical piece, “What Happened To American Conservatism,” which Bannon interpreted as “They are singling you out as the problem.”

Marjorie Taylor Greene was not impressed:

“He doesn’t get to define Trumpism. I represent the American people. These are the same people they look down on. These are the same people that they forget about. These are the same people they can’t even relate to because they are so stuck up because they are so highly educated and because they think they are so much better than everyone…. I could care less who David Brooks is! I came here to fix it and I’m bringing the American people with me.”

Greene went on to trash more moderate Republicans who work alongside Democrats to reach consensus. To her, they’re to blame for “alcoholism, drug abuse, depression, failed marriages and caused traditional families to fall apart and small towns to crumble.” Yikes. The takeaway here: Greene’s clearly got a lot of time to podcast after being stripped of her House committee assignments.

(Via Raw Story)

Last year, Texas crooner Leon Bridges teamed up with same-state psychedelic soul rockers Khruangbin for the four-track EP Texas Sun. The project was a massive hit and gave Khruangbin some of their top streaming numbers to date. Now, they’re expanding the project with a handful of moodier songs in another EP aptly titled Texas Moon.

Khruangbin and Bridges returned Wednesday to officially announce the project with its lead single “B-Side.” Per Khruangbin’s previous releases, the song is given a groovy treatment with an electric rhythm guitar, funk-foward bass, and intricate drums. “B-Side” arrives alongside a video that draws inspiration from spaghetti western films. Filmed at the J. Lorraine Ghost Town in Austin, Texas, the visual shows Bridges having a heated stare down with his collaborators while UFOs color the sky in the background.

Speaking about the upcoming Texas Moon release, Khruangbin explained why the two EPs go hand-in-hand: “Without joy, there can be no real perspective on sorrow. Without sunlight, all this rain keeps things from growing. How can you have the sun without the moon?”

Watch Khruangbin and Bridges’ “B-Side” video above and find their Texas Moon cover art and tracklist below.

1. “Doris”
2. “B-Side”
3. “Chocolate Hills”
4. “Father Father”
5. “Mariella”

Texas Moon is out 2/18/2022 via Dead Oceans/Columbia/Night Time Stories Ltd. Pre-order it here.

It’s December, which means we hear familiar holiday songs everywhere we go, from the mall to the grocery store to restaurants. Soon we might see and hear carolers singing out the sounds of the season with Christmas classics such as “Winter Wonderland,” “Silent Night,” “Carol of the Bells,” and, of course, the always festive “Feliz Navidad.”

It’s already hard not to bop along to that bilingual favorite, but a video of a 5-year-old joyfully performing it has taken the tune to another level. Alexis Fuller shared the video of her son Milo playing “Feliz Navidad” on Facebook last Christmas season and it is pure delight.

“This little guy was too excited for this one…” Fuller wrote. “Happy holidays everyone.”

How could anyone not be happy watching this little guy play his guitar and sing?

The kid’s got it all, doesn’t he? The sweet smile, the upbeat energy, the in-tune vocals and some impressive guitar prowess for such a young age. And the way he stood up and kicked that stool back as he broke into the chorus? Milo’s got a bright future ahead of him.

The story of “Feliz Navidad” itself is a delight as well. José Feliciano wrote the song more than 50 years ago, when he was recording music in Los Angeles far from his home in Puerto Rico during the holidays. “It was expressing the joy that I felt on Christmas and the fact that I felt very lonely. I missed my family, I missed Christmas carols with them. I missed the whole Christmas scene,” he told NPR.

The fact that the song has endured for so long has surprised and delighted him. He told the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers last year that “there is no greater reward than writing a song that has become everybody’s Christmas anthem, and all the joy that it brings fills me with joy.”

I hope Feliciano has seen Milo singing his song to see how much joy it really does bring.

Hotel Maraica in San Pancho, Mexico (officially known as San Francisco) looks like a tropical laptop screensaver but IRL. While its pristine, palm tree-lined beach, off-the-grid vibes, and picturesque jungle views are that of a classic relaxation oasis, the seaside hotel has much more to offer than just that. Hotel Maraica is a 100 percent sustainable property where nature, harmony, and sophistication collide. The eco-friendly hotel makes for a dreamy tropical getaway for eco-tourists, health-conscious foodies, and anyone looking to totally unplug for a few days as WiFi here is scarce.

I’d argue that this colorfully eccentric combination beats the over-touristed beach resorts in Cabo San Lucas any day (although I love those too). The area of San Pancho is an under-the-radar destination that more young travelers should know about. The low-key beach town is along the Pacific coast of Nayarit, just over an hour outside of Puerto Vallarta and 15 minutes from the surfer’s party destination of Sayulita.

As one of Nayarit’s best-kept secrets, San Pancho is the ideal spot for anyone wanting to break away from the busyness that has unequivocally returned to our everyday lives over the past year. It’s the kind of place I picture myself going to write a book one day. San Pancho is packed with heavenly stretches of sand complete with nearby beach bars, artistic cultural traditions, and environmentally conscious community efforts that make it well worth a visit.

Hotel Maraica is walking distance to the heart of town yet still off the beaten path enough to feel like you’re worlds away. If you’re not convinced yet, my review of the property below might persuade you to book your flight sometime soon.

WHY IT’S AWESOME:

What I loved most about Hotel Maraica is the eco-tourism aspect of the property. When they say 100 percent sustainable, they mean it. Rather than uprooting nature, the property is built within nature to inspire guests to, “walk the path towards reconnection with the earth.” You’ll notice the property’s earthy architecture created out of palm ceilings, Parota furniture, and other natural resources, creating an open-air ambiance from the guest rooms to the dining area.

From Hotel Maraica’s water refill stations and healthy food menu to its renewable energy sources, eco-travelers can feel good about booking a stay here. In fact, the hotel generates its own energy with solar panels, recycles waste, and it even reuses wastewater as an irrigation system for its ornamental gardens.

With the ocean on one side and a mountainous jungle on the other, the hotel truly reminded me to respect and connect with nature. Spending only a couple of days here was enough to feel like I was letting out one big “ahhh…” exhale.

IN-HOUSE FOOD + DRINK:

The hotel’s sustainable lifestyle extends to its food options, too. The restaurant, Muvieri, offers a variety of fresh and organic meals that are made with local ingredients, many of which are grown on the property’s own garden. The upstairs dining area has a stunning ocean view, an undeniably romantic spot to watch the sunset. Of course, chips and fresh guacamole are a must for every meal, but the restaurant’s menu offers more than just classic dishes.

For breakfast, order the blended açaí bowl for a refreshing start to your day. Muvieri’s healthy lunch and dinner items pack tons of veggies into every dish. My go-to option was the shrimp bowl with rice, which came with a heaping of zucchini noodles and perfectly spiced prawns. As far as cocktails, you can’t go wrong, but my favorite was the blueberry margarita. The sweetness of the fruit combined with the strong kick of tequila is the ultimate post-beach day pick-me-up.

AMENITIES:

• Saltwater pool
• Renewable energy
• Tropical fruit orchard
• Pet-friendly
• Ocean views
• WiFi in restaurant and pool area
• Water refill stations
• Gym
• Yoga retreats
• Balancing activities (at an additional cost), such as yoga, surf lessons, paddle boarding, canopy tours, boat tours, horseback riding, or an in-room massage

ROOM TYPES:

The rooms at Hotel Maraica are designed to create an atmosphere of wellness and reconnection with nature. I almost felt like I was sleeping in a luxury treehouse, and it was awesome. The rooms are effortlessly minimalist and come with a hammock on the balcony that overlooks both the jungle and ocean (it was serene, to say the least). Basically, Hotel Maraica executes the outdoor-indoor aesthetic tenfold.

There are three different lodging options to choose from: Bed and View (king-size bed with an ocean view), Bed and View Plus (king-size bed plus a divan or extra space with ocean view), and 2 Bed and View (two double beds, plus a divan or extra space with ocean view).

THE BEST THING TO DO WITHIN A 15-MINUTE WALK:

Of course, spending time lounging on the beach with a margarita or two is a must throughout your stay. A short walk down the beach leads you to a few classic resort-style hotels with bars and restaurants right on the sand. This is a good place to hang out on weekends when you want to get a little tipsy and socialize in the sun.

If you find yourself in San Pancho on a Tuesday, the best thing to do is hit the weekly Tuesday market in the Plaza del Sol. Here, you’ll find a slew of authentic local artisan crafts, organically-grown produce, live music, and a lively crowd of both locals and visitors enjoying each others’ company. You can walk to the market on the main streets or by way of the beach. Make sure to come with cash (and make room in your luggage) for all the souveniers you’ll want to take home.

THE BEST THING TO DO WITHIN A 15-MINUTE CAB RIDE:

Hotel Maraica is like a wellness retreat meant to help you unplug. However, sometimes a day of downright fun is just as essential. San Pancho is only a short cab ride away from Sayulita, a colorful beach city where surfers, partiers, and tourists of all kinds gather. This is where all the action happens, and you’re sure to find your dose of adventure. There are a variety of boating tours (whale watching is a must!), packed beachside bars, diverse shopping, and restaurants all within walking distance of each other. If you really wanted to, you could even walk all the way down the beach from San Pancho to Sayulita. But a quick cab ride is your best bet.

BED GAME:

Even though Hotel Maraica’s decor makes it feel like you’re sleeping outside in the jungle, the beds certainly don’t feel like it. Maybe it was just the sunburn and heat exhaustion, but I fell right to sleep the second my head hit the pillow each night of my stay. The king-size beds give you plenty of room to spread out, and the mattress is that perfect combination of firm yet comfortable. My bed at Hotel Maraica was a luxurious haven for every mid-afternoon nap.

Rating: 8/10

SEXINESS RATING:

I mean, what’s not sexy about a secluded beachside hotel? The property basically screams romance but in a sweet understated way. The calming, nature-infused essence at Hotel Maraica creates the most quintessential setting for a steamy make-out sesh while you watch (or don’t watch) the sunset from your oceanview balcony hammock.

Rating: 9/10

THE VIEWS AND PHOTO SPOTS:

I would rate Hotel Maraica’s Instagrammability a 10/10 if it weren’t for the harsh sun-in-your-face lighting. Contrary to the hotel’s goal of helping its guests disconnect, every corner of the property looks like it was made for a bikini calendar photoshoot. I’m no Sports Illustrated model, but I sure as hell took advantage of the endless photo ops. Gorgeous beach sunsets, giant palm leaves, a boho-chic aesthetic, a saltwater pool with a view? It’s every basic Instagram b*tch’s dream come true (myself included).

Rating: 9/10

BEST SEASON TO VISIT:

I’d argue that the best time to visit is in early spring (February through April). It’s going to be hot, but the high temperatures will still be bearable compared to the thick of summer. Plus, if you make it to San Pancho in early spring, you’re likely to see whales on any boating excursions.

IF I HAD TO COMPLAIN ABOUT ONE THING:

Although Hotel Maraica is located near the sand, the beach isn’t technically a part of the resort’s property. Therefore, there are no lounge chairs to chill out on, and there’s no beachside service. You have to bring a towel down to lay out on the sand or walk to one of the other resorts if you want a seaside cocktail and bite to eat.

BOOK HERE:

Expect to pay anywhere between $200 to $515 per night (more on weekends) depending on the type of room you select and the time of year you visit.

Click here to check availability.

INSTAGRAM IMAGES TAKEN AT HOTEL MARAICA:

Taking inspiration from Robert Rodriguez’s grindhouse revival flick Planet Terror, French Montana and Doja Cat lead a violent revolution in a dystopian future in the video for “Handstand” from French’s new album They Got Amnesia. Saweetie also appears on the song, twerking on a rooftop as the cityscape burns behind her like Nero.

That doesn’t mean the video lacks eye candy, though. While being confronted by grungy, Mad Max-esque punks and menacing cyborgs, Doja is equipped with the most dangerous piece of lingerie: A machine gun bra, which she apparently finds great enjoyment in putting to use. As riots take over and eventually destroy the already mostly demolished city, the trio defeats their enemy while showing off French’s new NFT (look, nobody ever said product placement has to make sense).

Montana, who recently argued that it’s harder to be successful in rap than pro basketball, has been enjoying plenty of success surrounding the rollout for his album, with videos for “Panicking” and “Bag Season” helping to bring They Got Amnesia in at No. 59 on the Billboard 200.

Watch French Montana’s “Handstand” video featuring Doja Cat and Saweetie above.

They Got Amnesia is out now via Epic Records. Get it here.

Just when we thought the world couldn’t get any more surreal than what we experienced in 2020, 2021 happened. While this year has been just as strange and full of as many instantly meme-able moments as the previous one, few states had as many major missteps as Texas.

On Tuesday, The Daily Show correspondent Ronny Chieng dedicated more than five minutes to taking us down memory lane in the Lone Star State, which truly had an incredible year. From a senator who high-tailed it to Cancun when the temperature dipped (leaving his tiny Poodle, Snowflake, to fend for itself) to the state’s enactment of a near-total abortion ban to a gaggle of conspiracy theorists gathering in Dallas to await the resurrection of JFK Jr. (has he arrived yet?), Texas proved yet again that everything’s bigger there—including the scandals. Or, as Chieng described it: “The state that grabbed 2021 by the horns and made it its bitch.”

Chieng gave top billing for the wild ride of a year to Governor Greg Abbott: “He banned masked mandates,” Chieng explained. “He banned vaccine mandates. He banned vaccine cards. Because the best way to fight COVID is with freedom… and ICU beds, but we ran out of ICU beds because of all the COVID.”

After rattling off many more of the state’s embarrassing “accomplishments” from the past 12 months, Chieng—complete with sound effects—continued defending Texas’s lawmakers.

“Say what you want,” Chieng exclaimed. “But what other state would have had the balls to turn their entire population into a bunch of snitches? Not Rhode Island! F*ck you, Rhode Island!”

“The fact is, Texas was a powerhouse all year long,” Chieng continued. “Even when they didn’t have power in their house… That’s right, thanks to Texas’s independent power grid, the energy capital of America had no energy. This past year, Texas was even number one at irony: Pipes were bursting, cell phone towers were down, people couldn’t even put gas into their horsies.”

But Chieng probably summed up his argument best when he called out “you other b*tch-ass states” and repeated the oft-heard statement that “Everything’s bigger in Texas… especially the lines to vote in Black communities.”

You can watch the full clip above.