James Gunn has so many balls in the air, I wonder if he has time to sleep. The Suicide Squad director is in the midst of getting the DCU off the ground, first with the animated Creature Commando series (that has been renewed for a second season) and later this year with Superman (and Krypton) bounding over skyscrapers and into theaters. In the meantime, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow is currently in production, but what of Peacemaker?
The John Cena-starring series is being grandfathered into the DCU, sort of. The first season isn’t canon, but the second season will land in the DCU fold. Additionally, Frank Grillo will reprise his Creature Commandos character, Rick Flag, Sr., this time in live action with the Grillo hair and everything. Adding Frank Grillo to an existing show does generally go well, so of course people want to know when this will happen.
When Will Peacemaker Season 2 Stream On Max?
As Deadline confirms, the series “is still on track for August.” So get ready for John Cena’s ultra-violent vigilante to pop off with more TV-MA action while delivering the brand of humor that tells you exactly who’s on top of the scripts. That would be James Gunn, obviously, and he further told Deadline that he and follow DCU co-chief Peter Safran intended to make the Waller spin off series happen, but more Peacemaker came forth from Gunn’s mind first: “We were going to go with Waller before Peacemaker (Season 2), but I wrote Peacemaker quickly and were ready to go.”
Peacemaker‘s first season (starring Cena, Danielle Brooks, Jennifer Holland, Steve Agee, and Robert Patrick) is currently streaming on Max.
Apple TV+ hasn’t forgotten that one of its best shows, Ted Lasso, kept people coming back for the feel-good laughs for a reason. That’s surely why chatter continues about getting a fourth season off the ground, but also, it’s a reminder that despite the greatness of Severance and newfound appeal of The Gorge, comedy must also continue to find its way to streaming.
To the credit of the tech giant’s streaming service, Mythic Quest returned in late January, and Seth Rogen will soon stir up trouble with The Studio, but what of his other Apple TV+ comedy series, Platonic? Do not fear.
Will There Be A Platonic Season 2?
Sure will. Rogen’s co-star, Rose Byrne, recently told Collider that the bawdy best friends would ride again, and the second season wrapped in late January:
“I just finished season two of Platonic with Seth [Rogen] again, so that was lovely to work with him again. It just made me think of the scripts, because that’s such a different process with comedy, and it’s always evolving and it’s a very fluid way that we work on those shows. So, it’s great to be able to mix it up.”
Byrne was speaking of how Platonic, which was co-created by Francesca Delbanco and Nicholas Stoller, finds its charm by allowing for improvisation in addition to the script. That hybrid formula works. As for a release date? No specifics have been revealed, but the second season will arrive this year.
Kendrick Lamar is in the midst of a post-Super Bowl Halftime Show chart performance bump. GNX isn’t No. 1 anymore (thanks to nemesis Drake), but Lamar is still ruling the Hot 100 chart: On the new chart dated March 1, Lamar has a new No. 1 song: His SZA collab “Luther.”
His success goes beyond that, as he has four songs in the top five this week: “Luther,” former leader “Not Like Us” at No. 2, “TV Off” at No. 3, and other former leader “Squabble Up” at No. 4. “Luther” is now Lamar’s sixth No. 1 song and SZA’s third. Impressively, Lamar’s four latest chart-toppers have come in just the past year: “Like That” started its run in April 2024, “Not Like Us” in May 2024, “Squabble Up” in December 2024, and now “Luther.”
SZA previously reflected on the Super Bowl, writing on social media, “THANK YOU @kendricklamar for consistently putting the world on your back . At all times . Thank you for lifting me up . Thank you for encouraging me and being so willing to bend to whatever I may need . Thank you to your incredible team and mine ! You’re a prophet . But you knew that . I wasn’t nervous today . I was ready to rep for u. For US . Thank you God ,Dot, and the NFL for this opportunity #SUPERBOWL2025 wrapped.”
Welcome to the Crumbl Cookie Report! We don’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth (are people still saying this phrase in 2025?), we truly appreciate that Crumbl has left the eight-cookie weekly roster behind and replaced it with a seven-cookie lineup. But why not just make it six? Six is perfect because they all fit in a six-pack box. It’s clean, it’s simple, it’s convenient.
We imagine Crumbl doesn’t care, and the vast majority of people aren’t crazy like us and picking up every single cookie every single week, but surely there are some Crumbl-obsessed folks out there that would agree with us, right? So, if you’re Crumbl’s top brass and you’re reading this article, consider it!
Rant aside, there are a lot of really great desserts at Crumbl this week. This is the strongest single week at Crumbl so far this year. We have a lot of year ahead of us, so we’re sure the brand will best it, but if you’ve been staying away from Crumbl, this is definitely the week to return.
Here are all the best cookies, ranked from least to most essential.
7. French Silk Pie
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
Back during the week of Thanksgiving, Crumbl opted to drop seven different pies. During that week I named the French Silk Pie the least essential pie of the lineup, and now here it is again, and again, I’m going to suggest you skip this one.
Admittedly, this pie looks great, and sounds delicious, but ultimately this mini pie comes off as a rip-off. A large majority of this pie is just chocolate mousse served over a way-too-thin layer of cookies and cream crust, with a few dollops of whipped cream and some chocolate shavings.
It comes across like it’s missing a key ingredient.
The Bottom Line:
If you like the idea of eating mostly chocolate mousse, you might like the French Silk Pie. For those looking for a decadent and satisfying dessert, you’ll have to look elsewhere.
6. Strawberry Cupcake
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
Let me just say straight up, I like the Strawberry Cupcake cookie. It has a light and delicate flavor with gentle notes of vanilla and strawberry. Having said that, the flavor is kind of boring. That says less about how forgettable this cookie is and more about how strong this week’s lineup is.
The Strawberry Cupcake features a vanilla cookie-based topped with a thick swirl of light and fluffy strawberry cream cheese frosting, with some decorative sprinkles. It’s a cute-looking cookie, but a skip for us.
The Bottom Line:
A nice and delicate mix of vanilla and strawberry flavors. Good, but this week has better options.
5. Red Velvet White Chip
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
While I would’ve looked to see a third ingredient here to really make it come across like something special, I can’t deny that the Red Velvet White Chip is a delicious cookie. The cookie’s base has that mild cocoa flavor and bright sweetness typical of red velvet, while the white chocolate chips provide some creamy decadence.
The Bottom Line:
A wonderfully decadent cookie. If you love red velvet, be sure to pick this one up, it’ll exceed expectations.
4. Milk Chocolate Chip
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
If you want a perfect blend of brown sugar, butter, and sweet milk chocolate, you can’t go wrong with this cookie. It is only bested by Crumbl’s Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chip cookie, which is on an alternating weekly release schedule from this one.
The cookie features a soft chew and enough chocolate chips that every bite will guarantee an explosion of chocolatey goodness. We love this cookie, but because it’s regularly available, it never rises above being mid-tier for us.
The Bottom Line:
You can’t go wrong with this milk chocolate chip cookie.
3. Banana Caramel
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
The Banana Caramel cookie feels tailor-made for banana bread purists. The cookie features a super soft and chewy banana bread base topped with a thick layer of sweet caramel buttercream, and a drizzle of toasty caramel, which serves not only as a nice visual, but helps to further accentuate the caramel notes.
This cookie is a delicious mix of toasty caramel, caramelized banana, brown sugar, and vanilla. My only complaint is the texture. It’s a bit soft and bready, which I think is supposed to appeal to fans of banana bread, but that begs the question, why makes this a cookie then? I would’ve preferred more of a crumbly texture, but that’s a real small complaint and doesn’t affect where we are ranking this one.
The Bottom Line:
Gentle brown sugar, caramelized fruity notes, and a toasty finish — the Banana Caramel is a must for people who like their desserts to take them on a journey of shifting flavors.
2. Biscoff Lava Cookie
Dane Rivera
Thoughts & Tasting Notes:
Anytime Crumbl collaborates with the Belgian snack brand Lotus Biscoff, we’re on board. The two brands consistently make magic together. The Lava Cookie features a sweet and crumbly base loaded up with Lotus Biscoff cookie butter, and drizzled with melted cookie butter spread.
The flavor is a mix of toasted butter with a hint of ginger, nutmeg, and caramel. If you’ve had a Lotus Biscoff, just imagine an elevated and more decadent version of that cookie with a much softer chew.
The Bottom Line:
Lotus Biscoff and Crumbl have done it again! The Biscoff Lava Cookie is a must-have. Pick up two!
1. Butter Cake
Dane Rivera
It’s not much to look at, but Crumbl’s Butter Cake is sweet decadent perfection. For whatever reason, mine doesn’t look anything like the picture — mine is two-tiered, but Crumbl’s official image is just one cake — but I can’t even hold that against Crumbl, because this was so damn good that I’m considering a second trip this week just to get more.
The Butter cake features a warm and super moist butter cake base tipped with a thick layer of toasty and creamy buttery glaze, and a large dollop of floral vanilla bean whipped cream.
The Butter Cake provides a delicious mix of creamy, buttery, sweet, vanilla, and gently toasty flavors. It has that indulgent decadence you expect from a short bread cookie, with a moist texture that melts in your mouth.
When it comes to the most sought-after bottles of bourbon, a combination of factors drives up the price. The mechanisms of supply and demand come to mind, right? When there’s a limited supply of well-aged, well-regarded whiskey and an outsized demand for those products, it is no surprise to see a growing gray market where unscrupulous retailers and resellers make those bottles available at increased prices.
Rising prices might affect you differently whether you support the so-called secondary market or not. Maybe it’s your local liquor store raising prices a shade over the suggested retail price or even the producers raising the MSRP to adjust to market shifts. At any rate, I think we could all use some affordable alternatives to our favorite bourbons.
That’s precisely what this list is for!
You can (and should) continue to seek out these coveted bottles and buy them where it makes sense for you, but having an open mind will open you up to a world of incredible options you might be overlooking.
With that out of the way, let’s take a look at all of the best affordable alternatives to your favorite bottles of bourbon!
William Larue Weller bourbon is frequently cited as one of, if not the best, bourbon to come out of Buffalo Trace Distillery. It’s the premier expression in Buffalo Trace’s Weller lineup, and aside from their Pappy Van Winkle lineup, it features some of their most premium wheated bourbon barrels at an age that tends to fall in the 12-year range.
The Perfect Alternative: Holladay Soft Red Wheat Rickhouse Proof
Holladay Distillery in Weston, MO, is a beautiful destination where a new generation of bourbon makers are casting the dye for an incredible future. With Master Distiller Kyle Merklein steering the ship, Holladay is putting out two excellent 6-year bourbons from a rye-based and a wheat-based mash bill. For this Rickhouse Proof expression, they’ve chosen to showcase the latter at full octane, without dilution.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Smoked caramel, dark chocolate, and stewed red apples give this one a really autumnal vibe, with clove and some great barrel char and oak tones tying it all together.
Palate: Smoked caramel makes it to the palate along with a lot of vanilla and nougat, while dark chocolate plays a supporting role from the wings. The dense oak and barrel char notes are really the skeleton that holds this all together, though, and enables the sweeter notes to stand tall with a few shakes of clove thrown in for good measure.
Finish: The finish gives a sweet impression of cooked apples and caramel, which helps to curtail the heat and heighten one’s enjoyment. One other thing that helps is it sticks around for a long time, affording you the opportunity to savor it until the last drop.
Bottom Line:
Ben Holladay’s Bourbon is enjoying a ton of critical acclaim as one of the best young craft distilleries on the market today, and that reputation is well-earned. We’ve been raising the call for a while now, naming this bottle one of the best wheated-bourbons to rival Pappy Van Winkle and the same can be said here when judging it against William Larue Weller. If you want a wheated bourbon with just as much flavor as kick, this is definitely one of the best affordable choices on the market.
The Premium Bourbon: Booker’s Bourbon The Reserves
Booker’s The Reserves is a new, annual limited-release series from Jim Beam by Freddie Noe to commemorate his grandfather and Beam’s 6th Generation Master Distiller, Booker Noe. This elevated take on classic Booker’s bourbon features a more limited blend of 8 to 14-year-old barrels drawn from the same center cut of the warehouse that Booker himself always favored.
Old Grand-Dad 114 is frequently cited as one of the best budget bourbons on the market, and for 2024, that still hasn’t changed. The high-rye recipe from Jim Beam also goes into its lower proof versions, Old Grand-Dad standard, and Old Grand-Dad Bonded.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: On the nose, OGD 114 opens with a bouquet of lemon zest, maple candy, and peanuts. Those notes are propped up by a supporting cast of oak, light honey, and butterscotch.
Palate: Once you take a sip of Old Grand-Dad 114, you’ll immediately pick up on its medium-bodied texture, which is slightly heavy and dense. The flavor of fresh hazelnuts, honey, and caramel comes across first on the tongue before it turns somewhat mellow at midpalate with butterscotch Krimpets, faint tobacco leaf, and a bit of orange pith.
Finish: For its medium-length finish, OGD 114 delivers a bit of vanilla and black pepper to go with more fresh hazelnuts and oak. This is a perfectly satisfying conclusion that ties all of those well-balanced flavors together.
Bottom Line:
Old Grand-Dad 114 is an OG value bourbon, and enthusiasts should be pleased that Jim Beam has taken an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach over the years. For right around $30, it’s hard to find a more flavorful and well-rounded option. The fact that the same distillery makes it as Booker’s The Reserves makes this an ideal alternative.
King of Kentucky is the Brown-Forman brand’s most regal annual release. For 2024, it features a fleet of single-barrel bourbons, all aged for at least 16 years. With 5,100 bottles produced from just 63 barrels distilled between July 19, 2007, and November 15, 2007, this expression’s popularity and relative rarity make it difficult to find.
The Perfect Alternative: Early Times Bottled in Bond Bourbon
Early Times is a historic brand first launched in 1860 by John Henry “Jack” Beam, Jim Beam’s paternal uncle. In 2021, it was announced that the production of this bourbon would be moved from Brown-Forman, the brand’s previous owner, to the Barton 1792 Distillery under new owner Sazerac.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: On the nose, there’s a strong Luden’s Wild Cherry cough drop note that is distracting at first but becomes increasingly enchanting over time. In addition to that artificial, berry-like sweetness, there are notes of ripe oranges, polished leather, and fresh hazelnuts.
Palate: On the palate, it’s the artificial cherry note and the polished leather from the nose that make the biggest impression as each sip begins very sweet before trailing off into more typical, earthy bourbon notes like oak and nutmeg. Just as the flavors seemingly shift from the front palate to the mid-palate, so does the texture, which begins very slick and viscous before turning lean as the whiskey makes its way to the finish.
Finish: The finish on Early Times Bottled in Bond features a flourish of black pepper and barrel char, which wasn’t present at midpalate. The lengthy finish also showcases an additional pop of fresh hazelnuts, adding a layer of balance to the entire affair.
Bottom Line:
Early Times Bottled in Bond has a fruit-forward medley of flavors and substantive texture, allowing it to hold its own as a neat sipper. Considering that, its budget-friendly sticker price awards it a ton of brownie points, allowing you to happily skip bottles that are way higher up on the cost matrix.
The Premium Bourbon: Blanton’s Single Barrel Bourbon
One of the most polarizing and hyped bourbons in all of the land, Blanton’s is the original single-barrel bourbon. Launched in 1984, each bottle of Blanton’s is the product of a single barrel, an idea hatched by Buffalo Trace’s then Master Distiller Elmer T. Lee.
The Perfect Alternative: Benchmark Single Barrel Bourbon
Benchmark Single Barrel is the new single-barrel expression in the Benchmark bourbon lineup, which was relaunched in 2023. This expression is always proofed down to 47.5% ABV.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on Benchmark Single Barrel carries some of the same earthy qualities as the Bonded expression but with additional honey sweetness and a tad more refinement.
Palate: On the palate, Benchmark Single Barrel features a slick and inviting texture that lays the foundation for some impressively refined flavors to shine through. Here, the honey sweetness and some rich oak tones have a chance to develop as the nutmeg and brown sugar notes common to Benchmark also show up in full force but in a tamer form.
Finish: At the end of each sip of Benchmark Single Barrel, the honey sweetness again asserts itself before clearing the way for clove, oak, and caramel to come barreling through. The finish isn’t especially long but provides enough leeway to showcase the honed-in flavors in the bourbon.
Bottom Line:
At a slightly higher ABV than Blanton’s, this bottle offers single barrel variety and an equally multifaceted flavor profile, making it one of the best in the revamped Benchmark lineup. The wallet-friendly price and much wider availability are what make it the perfect alternative.
The Premium Bourbon: Old Fitzgerald Decanter Series Bottled in Bond Bourbon
This 10-year wheated bourbon, the thirteenth national release of the Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond Decanter Series, was released early in the spring of 2024 to great fanfare. This expression marks the second time Heaven Hill has released a 10-year version of Old Fitzgerald Bottled in Bond.
The Perfect Alternative: Rebel 10-Year Single Barrel Bourbon
Rebel’s 10-year single-barrel bourbon is an expression marked by a winding history that saw it go from production at the famed Stitzel-Weller distillery as a locally distributed bargain brand to becoming a surprise hit thanks to a Billy Idol song, being sold to current owners Luxco, and reimagined as a premium offering.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with the aroma of snickerdoodle cookies, inviting caramel and vanilla tones, and some fudge to round out the sweeter notes. On the earthier side, there’s the scent of clove and turmeric, in addition to the faintest shake of freshly cracked black pepper.
Palate: Once in the mouth, caramel, the burnt citrus flavor of a torched orange wheel, and vanilla introduce the senses to this lush bourbon. The mouthfeel is full-bodied with almonds and white pepper found in spades, though it skews more heavily toward the sweet tones. This lovely, well-balanced whiskey rewards chewing as it unlocks further cinnamon bark and wheat funk notes.
Finish: For its final act, Rebel 10-Year Bourbon features rich oak, honey-roasted peanuts, and vanilla that hangs around with considerable staying power.
Bottom Line:
Rebel 10-Year Bourbon has long been rumored to feature whiskey in the blend that significantly exceeds its age statement and that speculation certainly passes the taste test. The liquid is a lush showcase of how depth can overcome the brevity of flavors to deliver a balanced and highly enjoyable bourbon that can out-drink more expensive options.
Julian Van Winkle III himself has cited Pappy Van Winkle 15 as his favorite among his family’s range of vaunted bourbons. Aged for 15 years, this wheated bourbon is cherry-picked from among the best barrels in Buffalo Trace’s inventory and given the final okay by the Van Winkle family.
Maker’s Mark 101, the longtime travel exclusive from the iconic Maker’s Mark brand, clocks in at a robust 101 proof as opposed to Maker’s flagship expression, which is bottled at 45% ABV. In short, this is your classic Maker’s Mark, but it’s treated with less limestone water to deliver a more full-bodied and richer flavor.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on Maker’s Mark 101 is full of the red apples, and bright cherry notes that the brand is known for, with gentle caramel tones folded in atop some carraway, white pepper, and young oak.
Palate: On the palate is where this whiskey shines. The delicate matrix of vanilla bean, stewed red apples, and gooey caramel notes sashay over the tongue with accents of raw almonds, cinnamon, nutmeg, and a touch of sandalwood. The mouthfeel also benefits from the bump in proof, as its supple texture gently coats your tongue with a thin blanket of sweet flavor.
Finish: The short-to-medium finish welcomes a whisper of black pepper, dried cranberries, vanilla ice cream, and chalky milk chocolate.
Bottom Line:
Maker’s Mark 101’s bump in proof compared to Maker’s Mark classic gives it a much creamier mouthfeel that effectively coats your palate with a ton of distinct wheated-bourbon flavors. As a $40, nationally distributed alternative to Pappy Van Winkle 15, this is straight up a must-try.
The Premium Bourbon: Old Forester Birthday Bourbon
Louisville’s oldest distillery often tweaks the age and proof point of its annual Birthday Bourbon release. For this year, the 24th expression in the series matured for 12 years, the same as 2023’s release, but it’s bottled at its highest proof ever, 107 proof. Master Distiller Emeritus Chris Morris and Master Taster Melissa Rift personally selected the 209 barrels that comprised this blend with aid from Assistant Master Distiller Caleb Trigo. The barrels themselves were matured in Warehouses G and L.
The Perfect Alternative: Old Forester 100-Proof Bourbon
Made with a grain recipe of 72% corn, 18% rye, and 10% malted barley, Old Forester’s 100-proof offering is a budget-friendly beauty. Following in the longstanding tradition of Old Forester’s commitment to 100-proof bourbon, this expression carries no minimum age statement, unlike their Bottled in Bond 1879, which is guaranteed to be at least four years old per the Bottled in Bond regulations.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: On the nose, Old Forester 100 Proof begins with a medicinal cherry note, which opens the curtains for a wave of complementing aromas like caramel, barrel char, hazelnut spread, and moderate oak. After a few swirls, the cherry note becomes more robust, as does the underlying caramel, which rises to greet the nose like an eager puppy out of the glass.
Palate: The medicinal cherry note from the nose of this whiskey very quickly finds its way to the palate, coating the tongue and laying a foundation for accenting notes like cinnamon, oak, black pepper spice, and toasted almonds. The texture in the mouth is moderately slick, with just enough grip to reward “chewing” the bourbon. Chewing also rewards repeat sips as the liquid coats your palate and allows you to unlock more flavor.
Finish: The finish reveals a more natural black cherry flavor, along with some clove and caramel notes. The liquid hangs on for a medium length, making this a great sipping whiskey to enjoy neat.
Bottom Line:
I’ve long considered this bottle to be Old Forester’s hidden gem, and that sentiment holds up even better compared to their most coveted bottle. The flavor profile is true to everything the brand does well, with black cherry, vanilla, and caramel showing up in full force. The metaphorical cherry on top is that it does all of this at a budget-friendly price point and a rock-steady proof point that puts it ahead of Birthday Bourbon in terms of value.
The Premium Bourbon: Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch
Four Roses’ highly anticipated Limited Edition Small Batch for 2024 has finally been announced, and we were able to get a first taste of it. For this year’s release, Master Distiller Brent Elliott opted to blend three of Four Roses’ ten bourbon recipes with a 12-year-old OBSV, 15-year-old OESK, 16-year-old OESF, and more OBSV, this time at 20 years old, to create the final product.
The Perfect Alternative: Four Roses Small Batch Select
Four Roses Small Batch Select uses six of the brand’s ten recipes (OBSV, OBSK, OBSF, OESV, OESK, and OESF) for a unique blend concocted by Master Distiller Brent Elliott and ages the liquid for six to seven years before batching, lightly proofing, and bottling it all up.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: On the nose, Four Roses Small Batch Select offers cola nut, bright red cherries, black pepper, nutmeg, and clove with some oak and caramel tones following behind those initial top notes. It’s robust and inviting, with a lovely baking spice presence that displays a ton of balance.
Palate: Four Roses Small Batch Select hits the palate with a full-bodied richness that coats your tongue and sends you mining your taste buds to discover the flavor of jammy cherries, nutmeg, black pepper, and honeyed black tea. The texture would count as its defining quality if it weren’t for the impressive balance of the flavors ever-so-slightly outperforming the viscous mouthfeel.
Finish: The lingering finish is where you’ll find vanilla extract, raspberries, brown sugar, and a light mint note — which reminds you that this is a robust Four Roses bourbon.
Bottom Line:
Four Roses Small Batch Select is an incredible alternative to Four Roses’ Limited Edition offering and the best part? You can buy it for under $100. Because it tends to get overlooked by value-buyers who reach for the 100-proof single barrel and recipe-chasers who go for the cask-strength single barrels, this bottle is a bit under the radar, but as a premium blended bourbon that Master Distiller Brent Elliott personally created, it’s definitely the closest analog to Four Roses Limited Edition Small Batch.
George T. Stagg Bourbon, first launched in 2002, has since taken the whiskey world by storm, introducing consumers to a brand of full-throated, high-intensity bourbon that has slowly become the most coveted expression of the category by enthusiasts. The 2024 George T. Stagg was matured for 15 years and 2 months.
Benchmark Full Proof was first released last year and is now the premier expression in the Benchmark lineup. Always bottled at 125 proof, it is the highest ABV offering from the Benchmark brand.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is full of cinnamon Red Hots, peanut shells, caramel, and oak. It’s a pretty straightforward medley of flavors, but despite that knock, they all work well together and come across boldly on the nose.
Palate: On the palate is where the brashness of those flavors really runs wild as it drinks a bit hot and is marred, rather than aided by, the simplicity of its flavor wheel. You get peanuts, cinnamon, caramel, oak, and…nothing else. That said, the flavors are fairly well-developed, and because of their distinctiveness and the clear delineation between each note, they’re easy to appreciate one by one.
Finish: The finish is flush with black pepper, more oak, and charred green pepper skin. It’s medium-lengthed, which is a plus if you appreciate its brashness but a distraction if that boldness is overwhelming.
Bottom Line:
When it was first launched, many Buffalo Trace fans considered Benchmark Full Proof a sort of “Stagg Jr., Jr.” The hope was that it would present similar flavors in a much easier-to-find and affordably priced expression. How’d that turn out? Well, it would be an oversimplification to call it such, but it contains a lot of the flavor notes that make Stagg so beloved. As long as you temper your expectations and are in the market for a bold, uncomplicated bourbon, there’s plenty here to enjoy, and it’s much easier to find than George T. Stagg’s more natural alternative, Stagg Bourbon.
The Premium Bourbon: Angel’s Envy Cask Strength Bourbon Finished In Port Wine Barrels
Angel’s Envy Cask Strenght Bourbon, now in its 13th iteration, takes some of the most distinctive barrels in the brand’s portfolio and sees them finished in barrels that previously held both Ruby and Tawny Port Wine for the first time. At full cask-strength, this release and the brand’s cask-strength rye are typically the highest-proofed expressions you can expect from Angel’s Envy each year.
The Perfect Alternative: Ezra Brooks 99-Proof Bourbon Finished In Port Wine Casks
Ezra Brooks is one of the more established names in bourbon, with a history that traces back to its founding in 1957. In 2024, however, this port-finished bourbon represents the newest lineup extension for the respected brand.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Aroma notes of candy cane, rich cherries, warm vanilla, and wood chips greet the nose at first before accents of tobacco leaf and clove enter the fray.
Palate: The ripe cherry note rushes in at first with nectarines and bananas, chocolate chips, and vanilla, painting the palate with a lush layer of sweetness. This whiskey has a lot of grip on the palate, punching well above its weight proof-wise and delivering a sipping experience more in line with whiskey in the 110 range.
Finish: The finish is lingering, marked by vanilla, oak, and milk chocolate. At the very end, this whiskey reintroduces the cherry note found early in each sip. This is surprisingly tasty stuff.
Bottom Line:
Ezra Brooks’ entire brand portfolio is full of incredible value bourbons, capable of delivering outstanding quality for a wallet-friendly price. This brand-new expression is the lineup’s prime example of balancing affordability and flavor, making it a fantastic alternative to Angel’s Envy’s premier offering.
The Premium Bourbon: Willett Family Estate Bourbon
Willett
ABV: Varies by the single barrel Average Price: $950
The Whiskey:
Willett Family Estate Bourbon is well-known as some of the most exclusive, exorbitantly priced, and, yes, excellent bourbon on the market. Drawing barrels from various sources (including their self-distilled whiskey, which is now approaching its teenage years) and maturing them at the distillery’s property in Bardstown, Kentucky, is part of the magic, making every single barrel akin to a snowflake: unique and never to be seen again.
Noah’s Mill was first released in the mid-1990s as a 15-year age-stated product. By the early 2000s, the age statement was removed, and somewhere between then and now, it was transitioned from a sourced product to whiskey that the Willett Distillery distilled itself.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose on this one gives me some of those beautiful tell-tale signs of Willett distillate, i.e., cinnamon, purple and red fruits, and a nice oak and caramel backing. Plums and raspberries blend well with the clove, nutmeg, corn husk, and candied pecan notes on this one.
Palate: On the palate, it’s the cinnamon bark and raspberries that begin the journey before nutmeg, clove, and candied pecan notes join the fun. It’s a full-bodied pour with a nice mouth-coating texture, which allows further notes of caramel corn and juicy red gummy bear flavors to form. This is a fun sipping whiskey.
Finish: The medium-length finish gently recedes with more red gummy bear flavor and cinnamon, clove, black pepper, and pecans.
Bottom Line:
As much as I love the Willett Family Estate bourbon lineup, I always make sure to have some Noah’s Mill on hand as a baseline comparison. Sipping this bottle will really calibrate your palate on what to expect from Willett distillate, and it works famously as a stand-in for its spendier sibling.
The Premium Bourbon: Colonel E.H. Taylor Barrel Proof Bourbon
Fortuna Barrel Proof Bourbon is the pinnacle of the revived Fortuna brand from Rare Character. Always aged for at least seven years, the bourbon is sourced from an undisclosed distillery in Kentucky and blended in three-to-five barrel lots.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with boozy cocktail cherries, cinnamon bark, rich oak tones, and even a hint of mocha. After a wave of the hand, as the liquid tumbles around your glass, aerating it will reveal further aromas of butterscotch, black pepper, cacao nibs, and strawberry jam.
Palate: The nosing notes offer a solid roadmap for what follows on the palate as blackberry jam replaces the strawberries found on the nose while cinnamon, almond extract, dense oak, and sticky toffee run rampant on the tongue. The texture is robust and offers a fullness that allows each flavor to present itself distinctly, revealing its impressive richness.
Finish: The finish is long-lasting and introduces clove, freshly grated ginger, and black pepper for one final baking spice sizzle before the syrupy black cherry notes leave a sweet final impression.
Bottom Line:
Fortuna Barrel Proof entered the market with a splash, immediately challenging the supremacy of several cask-strength stalwarts on this list. Now, with some distance from its debut, it’s become clear that it isn’t just beginner’s luck that warrants its place in the conversation. Fortuna Barrel Proof Bourbon recently landed in the top two on our best bourbons to buy under $100 for 2025 but we should make it clear that it’s one of the best bourbons at any price point.
The Premium Bourbon: Russell’s Reserve 15-Year Bourbon
Russell’s Reserve 15 is Wild Turkey’s latest age-stated release, and boy, has it been met with enthusiasm. This bourbon is non-chill filtered, and given its track record, one can safely assume there’s whiskey aged for even longer than 15 years in this blend.
The Perfect Alternative: Calumet Single Rack Black 15-Year Bourbon
These 19-barrel batched blends from Calumet Farms are some of the oldest bourbons the brand has released to date. Created to honor the horse Whirlaway, who gave Calumet Farms their first Triple Crown victory, this whiskey features a prominent 15-year age statement and is non-chill filtered.
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose has the sweetness of cocktail cherries, caramel, and prominent, sweet oak to kick things off. There’s a slightly dusty aspect to the aromas, which helps to bolster the sense that you’re smelling whiskey with significant age on it.
Palate: On the palate, those nosing notes hold true in an impressively balanced fashion. What’s noteworthy about that is the fact it prominently features the flavor of mature oak, but it never teeters into the territory of seeming “over-oaked” and thus spoiling the entire affair. The mouthfeel is a tad lean, but the flavors are definitely well-developed and tasty as all hell.
Finish: The succinct finish is where you start picking up some baking spice notes of white pepper, cinnamon, and turmeric while some vanilla and honey sweetness caps things off.
Bottom Line:
Let’s acknowledge up front that 15-year-old bourbon is hard to come by. While there are other expensive alternatives in that price range, there are few that capably follow in the footsteps of Russell’s 15. Calumet 15, however, does a solid job of hitting those sweet black cherry notes and balancing that with some robust oak undertones.
It isn’t exactly cheap, but it is much easier to find, and depending on your market, you can often find it closer to $100, which makes it a nice option if you’re unable to find Russell’s Reserve 15 at it’s SRP.
A who’s who of the biggest artists and bands of all-time have performed on MTV’s (still active!) live performance series MTV Unplugged, including Nirvana, Eric Clapton, and Mariah Carey. But many old episodes of the show haven’t been available on streaming now — until now.
More than 50 episodes of MTV Unplugged are on Paramount+, including a bunch “that haven’t been available in 20+ years,” according to a press release, along with dozens of episodes of VH1 Storytellers and CMT Crossroads.
You can see the full list of available episodes below.
MTV Unplugged
Aerosmith (1990)
Alanis Morissette (1999)
Alice in Chains (1996)
Alicia Keys (2005)
Allman Brothers (1990)
Annie Lenox (1992)
Arrested Development (1993)
Babyface & Friends ft. Stevie Wonder, Eric Clapton, K-Ci & JoJo (1997)
Bob Dylan (1994)
Bryan Adams (1997)
Chris Isaak (1995)
Cranberries (1995)
Crowded House/Tim Finn (1990)
Dashboard Confessional (2002)
Duran Duran (1993)
Elton John (1990)
Elvis Costello (1991)
Eric Clapton (1992)
Hall & Oates (1990)
Hootie & the Blowfish (1996)
Jewel (1997)
John Mellencamp (1992)
kd lang (1993)
Kiss (1995)
Korn (2007)
Lenny Kravitz (1994)
Live (1995)
Mariah Carey (1992)
Melissa Etheridge (1995)
Neil Young (1990)
Nirvana (1993)
Oasis (1996)
Paul McCartney (1991)
Paul Simon (1992)
Pearl Jam (1992)
Queensryche (1992)
R.E.M. (2001)
Rod Stewart (1993)
Seal (1996)
Shakira (2001)
Shawn Mendes (2017)
Sheryl Crow (1995)
Sinead O’Connor/The Church (1990)
Smithereens/Graham Parker (1990)
Soul Asylum (1993)
Staind (2001)
Sting (1991)
Stone Temple Pilots (1994)
The Wallflowers (1997)
Tony Bennett (1994)
Tori Amos (1996)
Uptown Show ft. Jodeci, Father MC, Mary J. Blige, Christopher Williams, & Heavy D (1993)
VH1 Storytellers
Alicia Keys (2012)
Bee Gees (1997)
Billy Joel (1997, 1998)
Black Crowes (1996)
Bruce Spingsteen (2005)
Christina Aguilera (2010)
Coldplay (2005)
Counting Crows (1997)
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (2000)
Dave Matthews (1999)
Dave Matthews Band (2005)
David Bowie (1999)
Def Leppard 1999)
Ed Sheeran Live (2015)
ELO (2001)
Elton John LIVE (1997)
Elvis Costello (1996)
Eurythmics (1999)
Foo Fighters (2009)
Goo Goo Dolls (2002)
Grace Potter & The Nocturnals (2012)
Green Day (2005)
Hanson (1998)
Jewel (1999)
Jill Scott (2012)
John Mellencamp (1998)
Johnny Cash & Willie Nelson (1997)
Mary J. Blige (2008)
Melissa Etheridge (1996)
No Doubt (2000)
P!nk (2012)
Paul Simon (1997)
Pete Townshend (2000)
Phil Collins (1997)
R.E.M. (1998)
Ringo Starr (1998)
Rod Stewart (1998)
Sheryl Crow (1998)
Snoop Dogg (2008)
Stevie Nicks (1998)
Sting (1996)
Stone Temple Pilots (2000)
The Chicks (2006)
The Pretenders (1999)
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers (1999)
Tom Waits (1999)
Tony Bennett (1998)
Tori Amos (1999)
Wyclef Jean (1999)
ZZ Top (2009)
CMT Crossroads
Black Pumas & Mickey Guyton (2022)
Boyz II Men & Brett Young (2019)
Brooks & Dunn and Friends ft. Luke Combs, Brett Young, Midland, Cody Johnson, Jon Pardi, & Brandon Lancaster (2019)
Cheap Trick & Jennifer Nettles (2016)
Gavin DeGraw & Chris Young (2019)
Halsey & Kelsea Ballerini (2020)
John Legend & Lee Ann Womack (2014)
John Mellencamp & Darius Rucker (2017)
Kid Rock & Hank Williams, Jr. (2002)
LeAnn Rimes & Friends ft. Carly Pearce, Ashley McBryde, Mickey Guyton, & Brandy Clark (2021)
Lindsey Buckingham & Little Big Town (2006)
Lynyrd Skynyrd & Brantley Gilbert (2015)
Lynyrd Skynyrd & Montgomery Gentry (2004)
Melissa Etheridge & Dolly Parton (2003)
Nathaniel Rateliff & Margo Price (2021)
Nelly & Friends ft. Kane Brown, Florida Georgia Line, Blanco Brown & Breland (2021)
Nick Jonas & Thomas Rhett (2016)
OneRepublic & Dierks Bentley (2014)
Randy Travis & The Avett Brothers (2012)
Sheryl Crow & Friends ft. Chris Stapleton, Joe Walsh, Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Lucius, & more (2019)
Sheryl Crow & Willie Nelson (2002)
Stevie Nicks & Lady A (2013)
Sting & Vince Gill (2011)
The Doobie Brothers & Luke Bryan (2011)
Willie Nelson & Friends ft. Neil Young, Jack White, Sheryl Crow, Leon Russell, Ashley Monroe, Norah Jones & Jamey Johnson (2013)
March 2 is coming right up, and movie fans know that’s when the 97th Annual Academy Awards are airing. Conan O’Brien is hosting the 2025 Oscars, and in the days leading up to the show, the Academy is starting to reveal who else will be involved in the broadcast.
Today, they announced that Doja Cat, Lisa of Blackpink, and Raye will be performing. They’ll actually all be performing together for “a showstopping celebration of cinema.” The three artists recently collaborated on Lisa’s new song “Born Again.”
This follows reports that Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are also performing.
Meanwhile, Lisa has been dipping her toes into acting with a role on the new season of The White Lotus. She recently said of the experience, “It is my first acting [experience] so I don’t know what to expect on set but everybody just being so supportive helped me a lot. […] I’m so nervous. I was sweating. I was like, ‘I can’t remember my lines.’ I’m blanked.”
Doja recently got a bit of acting in as well, when she starred in a new Super Bowl commercial for Taco Bell (even if they didn’t want her to).
Houston genre-twister Don Toliver may have released his first new single of 2025 recently, but that doesn’t mean he’s done with his Hardstone Psycho era just yet. While he released the bright sounding “LV Bag” with J-Hope and Pharrell this past Friday, he keeps things grungy in the video for his heavy metal-tinged thrash rap anthem “Tore Up” from the moto-club-themed 2024 album.
The video once against finds Hardstone MC running roughshod over rugged landscapes before finding respite in a roadside dive bar seemingly populated entirely by women. The video is directed by someone named “White Trash Tyler” and Shapxo, and the visuals absolutely live up to that characterization. Toliver raps atop an ATV while a crew of rednecks spin out alongside him in the middle of a river; elsewhere in the video, mud, blood, guts, and grit cover the camera and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome references rub up against elegant shots of exotic dancers sliding down poles. It’s a lot — which, frankly, describes the whole Don Toliver experience.
We’ll see if Toliver continues to support Hardstone or reverts to his newer, Pharrell-inspired sound soon enough. For now, you can watch Don Toliver’s “Tore Up” video above.
Hardstone Psycho is out now via Cactus Jack/Atlantic Records. Get it here.
We’re now a bit over a week away from the 2025 Oscars, which are set to air on March 2. As the date approaches, a clearer picture of what the Conan O’Brien-hosted 97th Annual Academy Awards will look like is starting to come into focus: The Hollywood Reporter reports that Wicked stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are set to perform during the broadcast.
Wicked didn’t pick up a Best Original Song nomination (Wicked songs have been around for a wicked long time), but it is otherwise heavily nominated, as it’s up for Best Picture, Best Actress for Erivo, Best Supporting Actress for Grande, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup And Hairstyling, Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing, Best Sound, and Best Visual Effects.
Meanwhile, Grande recently addressed some of the less wholesome fan art of her and Erivo’s characters that exists out there on the internet, saying, “I wish I could unsee some things. I mean, wow, I had a feeling, but I didn’t know it would be on this scale or this graphic.” She was also recently asked if getting an Oscar nod is betting than being Grammy-nominated, but she pleaded the fifth.
ESPN has spent the past two years making major changes to its NBA staff, as their NBA coverage team was hit hard by layoffs and has seen some unexpected departures on top of those firings. The top broadcast booth, in particular, has been a revolving door over the past two seasons after being one of the most consistent lead booths in sports for the decade prior.
To start the season, ESPN just kept Breen and Burke together as a tandem, but eventually moved Richard Jefferson up into that third seat. Until Monday, ESPN had not committed to Jefferson being part of the top crew for postseason, but the network has now officially announced he would indeed be joining with Breen and Burke for the rest of the season and would be on the call with them for the Western Conference Finals and NBA Finals in May and June.
Jefferson has been a good fit between Breen and Burke, as he’s adept at breaking down the game but really shines in helping bring Burke’s full personality out in a way Redick did not. That group has been more entertaining this year with Jefferson while still being able to provide great insight into the basketball being played.
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