It’s been 15 years since Cloverfield descended upon movie theaters. The found footage alien invasion pic had an incredible ad campaign, shrouded in mystery, that helped make it the biggest-ever January opening weekend (at least until Ride Along six years later). In a way it’s always been shrouded in mystery. For one thing, what was, like, that giant E.T.’s deal? Why did it want to destroy New York City so much? Well, now we know why.
In a new interview with SyFy (in a bit caught by The AV Club), director Matt Reeves — who went on to helm two Planet of the Apes sequels and last year’s grim epic The Batman — was asked if he and his team had gone so far as to devise a “backstory” for the rampaging space monster. It doesn’t necessarily have to have one. It’s a space monster! Film history is lousy with stories of aliens invading Earth simply to vanquish it and no one bats an eye. Thing is, Reeves and team did give their beastie a backstory.
Saying they had to “figure how to direct the monster, so to speak,” Reeves said it was important to “understand what’s going on with them emotionally.” So here’s what he came up with:
“And for me, the big secret was that the monster was a baby and was experiencing separation anxiety. The reason the monster was freaking out is because they were having fits based on looking for their mother. And so, [the monster] was just as afraid as the main characters, because it seems like there would be nothing more terrifying than the human element fighting this giant monster element and, actually, both of them are just terrified. That’s a mess. That’s not good. So that part of it was absolutely something that we talked about in the development of the creature and in terms of how I shot it.”
Reeves was then asked, if it was a baby, was it even an alien or if it was “of this planet”:
“It’s alien. In fact, at the end of the movie, you can see the moment when it comes to [Earth]. It’s another one of those little Easter egg moments, but when we revisit that footage where they’re on the Ferris wheel at the end, you can see the meteor flying down and hitting the ocean. That’s actually the beginning of the baby being on Earth.”
So there you go. A big alien baby destroyed America’s greatest city, including Central Park, at least onscreen. It even killed Lizzy Caplan, before she got super famous. What a horrible baby. What’s more, it set an annoying precedent: Only four years later, the Avengers were fighting even more invading, non-baby aliens, who also laid waste to much of the Big Apple. But at least there they left a solid shawarma joint.
Foo Fighters indicated a return for 2023, and they’re already hitting a lot of festivals this year. They’re on the lineup for Boston Calling as well as Bonaroo. Now, they’re about to headline the Harley-Davidson Homecoming Festival alongside Green Day.
The festival takes place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from July 13-16 in honor of Harley’s 120th anniversary. Other artists include Cody Jinks, Social Distortion, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Phantogram, White Reaper, and KennyHoopla — a great range of rock and roll. Find ticket information here.
The return of Foo Fighters follows the tragic death of drummer Taylor Hawkins last year. His tribute concerts were emotional, cathartic affairs, which some musicians were particularly nervous for, especially Rufus Taylor. “I was sh*tting myself a little bit going into the rehearsals,” he said, “because I knew that it was gonna be a room full of the best drummers in the world, like Omar Hakim, Dave [Grohl], and Stewart f*cking Copeland, all these monster players. Obviously, I know Dave, but Stewart and Omar, all those guys — me and Taylor used to talk about them all the time. So now I suddenly have to go in and play a nine-minute solo in front of them! I still hadn’t mapped it out in my head. I didn’t know what was gonna happen. But it all kind of went really smooth in the end.”
People are expecting a big year from Dua Lipa. When will we finally get her next album? “Well, when I was speaking to Elton [John], I really felt like I was halfway done,” she recently told Variety. “But it’s taken a complete turn as I’ve carried on working, and I really feel now that it’s starting to sound cohesive. So, I’m going to keep writing in the early months of the new year and see where that takes me.”
She won’t be writing on May 1.
Lipa (and Vogue) announced today, January 18, that she will work with Anna Wintour as one of four co-chairs for the 2023 Met Gala. The other three are acclaimed actress and writer Michaela Coel, Oscar winner Penélope Cruz, and the (recently retired) all-time tennis great Roger Federer.
“The 2023 Met Gala the opening of ‘Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty’ and provides The Costume Institute with its primary source of annual funding for exhibitions, publications, acquisitions, operations, and capital improvements,” Lipa wrote on Instagram, noting that “A Line Of Beauty” will open to the public at New York City’s famed Metropolitan Museum Of Art on May 5.
Last month, Page Sixreported that Lipa was dating Jack Harlow. That could very well be old news (or never true to begin with), but for now, we can still fantasize about their Met Gala red carpet debut.
Jack Harlow and Dua Lipa are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
In William Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 59,” he makes the point that there is “nothing new but that which hath been before.” Here, he admits that even the Bard himself struggled to come up with new ideas that hadn’t been written about previously.
This problem stems from the fact that people tend to think the struggles we have today are entirely new when they’ve been part of the human drama for centuries. A great example is how society grapples with gender nonconformity. In 2023, there is a vigorous debate, which tends to fall along political party lines, over the use of personal pronouns.
Lavern Spicer, a Republican from Florida who has lost two congressional elections, has made a point of fighting back against the use of pronouns. She’s gone viral for incorrectly claiming that pronouns weren’t used in either the Bible or the Constitution.
Spicer was back at it again on January 1 when she tweeted, “Shakespeare didn’t walk around putting pronouns in his plays. That’s why they’re classics. Imagine if this dude wrote ‘My name is Macbeth and my pronouns are they/them.’ SMH.”
Shakespeare didn’t walk around putting pronouns in his plays.
That’s why they’re classics.
Imagine if this dude wrote “My name is Macbeth and my pronouns are they/them”.
The former congressional candidate received countless responses from people explaining that Shakespeare used pronouns in his writing and gender-neutral ones at that. Further, many of Shakespeare’s plays featured themes of gender nonconformity.
Spicer’s tweet showed that she probably hadn’t read much Shakespeare.
Sweetie, crossdressing and gender confusion are MAJOR PLOT POINTS in *several* of Shakespeare’s plays. Just say you’ve never read any of his work next time, it’ll be more honest.
Shakespeare’s plays regularly commented on sex, gender identity/fluidity and expression. One of the best parts of Shakespeare is how often productions choose to explore these concepts. This is a very silly tweet.
Twitter user Jason Tondro explained that Shakespeare used the singular “they” “before it became the target of a cultural war.”
Shakespeare took great delight in confusing the audience about gender, and I’m gonna give you just two examples because I’m waiting for take-out. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/NaWaWPSQaD
The famous best example is Twelfth Night, in which a male actor dresses up as Viola, a young woman who dresses up as a young man who falls in love with another man and who is loved by another woman (who is played by a man). 2/3
But my personal favorite is Othello, when Desdemona’s maid explains women behave badly because they learned all that shit from men, and then you remember both women are being played by men, so the whole scene is really men holding up a mirror and saying “take a long ass look”.3/3
Shakespeare used the singular “they” centuries before it became the target of a cultural war, and it’s funny the OP should cite Macbeth because that’s where Shakespeare wrote “Unsex me here” ffs (take out is late). /4
Cross-dressing was also a regular part of all of Shakespeare’s plays because, during his time, women weren’t allowed to be actresses so female roles were played by young men or boys.
Ma'am...Twelfth Night's ENTIRE PLOT involves a woman (who would have been played by a male actor) dressing as a man. A performance of that play is where this very famous picture comes from, with Anne Hathaway playing the role of the play's protagonist, Viola. pic.twitter.com/fVhpbc3wsB
Twelfth Night, in which a male actor dresses up as Viola, a young woman who dresses up as a young man who falls in love with another man and who is loved by another woman (who is played by a man).
— David Williamson #FBPE #FBPPR #AutismParent (@Ourtosh) January 17, 2023
It was also funny that of all of Shakespeare’s plays she chose to make an example out of “Macbeth.”
Oh Lavern, you never fail to amuse me. Do you know what "DRAG" stands for? Shakespeare's stage direction: DRessed As Girl. All productions had male actors, including those playing the female parts. Yes, Lady Macbeth was a dude. I doubt if you've ever read a word by the Bard.
Looking back at Shakespeare’s work proves that pronoun use has evolved and will continue to do so.
Ironically, Shakespeare is a perfect example of how pronoun usage changes with the times. We don’t use thou, thine, or thy anymore but he did. The culture changed and thrived. It can do so again.
To be charitable to Spicer, it seems she tried to make the point that things were better in the past because we had defined gender roles. But she used an awful example to make her point. Further, her point is wildly incorrect because gender nonconformity has been part of humanity since the beginning of time.
Shakespeare’s work isn’t timeless because of his pronoun use, but because his work touched on universal human themes that have remained relevant for hundreds of years. Shakespeare wrote about love, family, power, death, ambition, fate and yes, gender.
Some people create art as a way of immortalizing a piece of themselves, to leave behind some creative evidence of their existence and communicate through their art long after they are gone. But what of those who create art that isn’t meant to last?
Hannah Bullen-Ryner, a full-time mother to twins, walks to the woodlands and fields about 10 minutes from her flat in Hertfordshire, England, each day as a ritual. She sits immersed in nature, in all kinds of weather, and creates whatever creature decides to “visit” her out of whatever natural items she can forage.
She uses no tools—no scissors, clippers or glue. All she has are her hands and her camera to capture her creations before they are scattered by the wind or washed away by rain.
Sometimes her land art “visitors” blow away within seconds of her creating them, but Bullen-Ryner isn’t bothered.
“Right now it is the ephemeral nature of my work that makes it special to me,” she shares on her website. “I lay my emotions down on the ground and they blow away. That is a very cathartic experience.”
The only materials she uses are things she finds in nature—twigs, leaves, petals, rocks, shells—some of which she saves and reuses and some of which get carried off by the wind to “visit” someone else.
Bullen-Ryner used to be a painter and a photographer, and her painter’s eye comes through clearly in her land art. However, it’s an entirely different beast to create a brush stroke just as you want it to be and to use individual pieces of whatever you find to “paint” with.
“I flow every single day unless the weather is too crazy,” Bullen-Ryner shares. “It has become a spiritual ritual and something that really improves my mental health. I decide after I have sat down, placed my gathered elements down and cleared a space…sometimes I don’t know until after I have already begun and other times I use reference photos to work from. It very much depends on my mood too. Sometimes I want to make something cute and uplifting, other times it’s more dark or energetic.”
Some of her creations involve minimal materials for a more impressionistic animal, such as this lion.
Others look almost like an actual painting, like this wee badger.
“I create to share my love of nature and to soothe my soul,” she writes.
And believe it or not, most of these creations could fit in the palm of your hand.
“My work is very, very small,” Bullen-Ryner shared with Street Art Utopia. “I need very tiny ingredients and I am never not looking. I’m a magpie and have tiny pebbles and things constantly, in every single pocket. I also recycle elements over and over and over again. I store them in half coconut shells that I leave on site and cover with an old fence post. If petals have dried I dunk them in some water until they are workable again.”
Oh, by the way, here there be dragons as well.
Bullen-Ryner sells prints of her favorite photos on her Etsy shop just once a month and only for a few days or until they sell out. (Her mother runs her Etsy shop and Bullen-Ryner writes that she “can’t risk breaking her.”)
You can follow Hannah Bullen-Ryner and see more of her ephemeral animal friends on Facebook and Instagram.
Let’s face it. Disneyland might have once been dubbed “the happiest place on Earth,” but over the years that title has lost its merit. Complaints about cheapened experiences are common—from huge crowds, to broken-down rides and even foul smells. This, combined with insanely high ticket prices, has made guests feel like the Disney magic has dimmed.
However, it seems that Disney might be helping the wish for a better park come true, as it just announced several positive updates happening to its resorts in 2023.
One of the biggest changes will be more days available to purchase low-tier tickets at $104. Folks should be seeing nearly two months worth of these low-cost ticket days.
In addition, guests will receive more flexibility with Park Hopper tickets—allowing them to cross over to different parks starting at 11 a.m.—as well as complimentary Disney PhotoPass digital photo downloads.
Lastly, passes to Disney’s Magic Key program, which provides reservation-based admission to one or both Disneyland Resort theme parks, will be available for purchase more times throughout the year.
JUST ANNOUNCED! 🎆 Beginning April 3, fan-favorite “Happily Ever After” returns to Magic Kingdom AND “EPCOT Forever” will fill the skies above World Showcase Lagoon at EPCOT for a limited time! 🌐 Learn more: https://t.co/TFGe9j0kkipic.twitter.com/OZPh0xfBpi
The Walt Disney World Resort will also be undergoing some changes, including Annual Passholders being able to visit after 2 p.m. without a reservation (except on Saturdays and Sundays at Magic Kingdom Park and during normal blockout dates) and complimentary self-parking for guests staying at Disney Resort hotels. That last one is already in effect, as of Jan. 10.
Both parks will have a few new offerings and attractions as well. As Walt Disney World says goodbye to Splash Mountain, it will say hello to a highly anticipated Tron Lightcycle/Run roller coaster in April.
Meanwhile, Disneyland’s Splash Mountain won’t be torn down, but instead reimagined as a “Princess and the Frog” themed ride called “Tiana’s Bayou Adventure,” which will accompany the soon-to-be debuted restaurant Tiana’s Palace, replacing the French Market Restaurant.
French Market Restaurant at @Disneyland will be reimagined into Tiana’s Palace, the newest restaurant on Orleans Street, later this year! Tiana’s Palace will offer authentic New Orleans flavors inspired by Tiana’s friends and adventures. Learn more: https://t.co/vJ8fAt4IEwpic.twitter.com/o0q4nosaXn
These updates are almost certainly due to a leadership shakeup at Disney headquarters. Or perhaps we should say … a leadership reversal? Bob Iger, who retired as CEO of Disney in 2021, was replaced by Bob Chapek. However, after Chapek lost a significant amount of fan loyalty (due in part to price gouging), Iger returned to his post as CEO less than a year after retiring.
Iger’s comeback and the upcoming changes to the Disney resorts indicate a renewed sense of what was once a major part of Disney’s culture—which is to honor the fans. Disney Parks, Experiences and Products Chairman Josh D’Amaro, who wrote about the updates on Disney’s website, shared:
“I’m excited about all of these changes and offers and want you to know that we are committed to listening, adapting, and staying relentlessly focused on making the guest experience at our Disney parks even better.”
He continued, “I believe there’s no other place like Disney and of course, nothing helps our guests connect with Disney like you do. And while it’s easy to celebrate the products we make, the moments we create, and the experiences we provide … I think it’s important that we recognize all of YOU who make it happen.”
About her alleged manic episode, Spears wrote: “I’m sure I brought a billion SMILES to me LOOKING LIKE SHREK at a restaurant,” she wrote. “Even my best friend couldn’t WAIT TO SEND IT TO ME, THEY DON’T THINK TWICE because we are all natural born killers … I know the news is all hyped about me being a little drunk at a restaurant … it’s like they’ll be WATCHING MY EVERY MOVE [eyes emoji] !!! I’m so flattered they talk about me like a maniac THEN have the balls to talk about all the negative things that happened in my past !!! Honestly it would be safer for me to compliment this world and f*ck up because if I become a prophet and don’t create history, we might have something y’all… I’m just KIDDING, but it’s a good thought.”
Now, a different Instagram post has fans worried about Spears. The singer is excited to be tattooed, repeating, “Tattoo time,” with a smile before holding out her wrist and being tattooed. Despite her enthusiasm, the caption reads, “Tattoo in Maui 3 days ago !!! Can’t show it because it sucks !!! Like really really sucks !!! Sh*t !!! Psss … I have to fix it !!!” True to her word, Spears has not posted a photo of the tattoo, but hopefully it’s an easy fix.
It doesn’t take much for Beyoncé to dominate headlines, but her powerful influence truly outdid itself today, January 18. First, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith dragged Beyoncé’s name into his take on Rihanna’s Super Bowl LVII halftime show scheduled for February 12. The First Take host told Sherri Shepherd that Rihanna “ain’t Beyoncé” and then apologized hours later.
Beyoncé does have something in common with Rihanna right now, though: They’re each preparing for a massive show.
According to TMZ, Beyoncé is preparing to perform an invite-only concert at the Atlantis The Royal resort in Dubai this weekend for a reported $24 million. Fan accounts are circulating clips of her sound check:
Though a tour hasn’t been officially announced, The Sun reported last month that Beyoncé is planning to ban alcohol and drug use for the duration of the tour.
“Bey knows the new performances will require intense choreography and precision, so everyone has to be clean and sober,” an unnamed source told the UK tabloid. “There won’t be any crazy partying on the road either.”
The source added, “She is also carrying out #MeToo checks with the dancers, band and crew with hopes doing so will make the tour a safe and friendly work environment. As touring can be mentally grueling, her new team will also have access to mental health support while on the road.”
Gather round for we are here to share in a tale as old as time: things being misunderstood online. Fold into that a colloquial gap, some pent up confusion, the yearning human desire to be known, and we have ourselves a real saga of surprise and delight starring Stan Van Gundy and Kevin Durant.
So yesterday, a little after 5pm ET, former coach and noted ankle breaker, Stan Van Gundy took to Twitter to get something off his chest.
90’s NBA teams had just a trainer and a strength coach, they practiced more often and harder and played more back to backs. Teams now have huge medical & “performance” staffs and value rest over practice. Yet injuries and games missed are way up. Something’s not working!
Now, Van Gundy is no stranger to the platform and its character and nuance limitations. Despite only having joined Twitter in July of 2020, Van Gundy has taken to the platform like a furious fish to water. He went on record with this very website at that time to talk about what it was that initially pushed him to sign up (his wife, and a desire to get more involved in Florida’s grassroots politics) and has been tweeting frequently and with great intention about politics, the climate, disdain for Fox News, occasional insight on watercraft, and of course, basketball, ever since. Basically, this is not the man’s first tweet rodeo, and it’s an important distinction to make for what happened next.
If you’d like to think of Van Gundy as Twitter’s own gruff yet caring crossing guard (as I often do), then Kevin Durant is the platform’s brooding prince. Durant has (and will again) find the most remote, obscure, far-flung references to him, with or without direct tags of his account, and gleefully reply. It’s an incredible skill to watch for the multi-fold joy of where he’ll pop up, what he’ll say, and picturing him, like the rest of us, with nothing better to do than getting a tweet off. He’s on Twitter like that scene in Interstellar where Matthew McConaughey figures out the universe’s extra dimension is love and uses it to somehow show up in a bookcase in the past, except Durant’s extra dimension is gleeful pettiness and he’s popping up in @KDplusbongrips4evr221 replies to call him soft.
Given all this, the two getting into an exchange on Twitter feels as natural as the tides.
What it was Van Gundy wanted to get off his chest is something that’s come up often in the last few years in terms of how the NBA is changing. What seemed to start down the road of another “In my day” opinion comparing this era of basketball to the past, goes on to lay out some fair points. Teams do have entire staffs dedicated to recovery and treatment that they did not employ in the past, but the injuries aren’t tapering off — if anything, it feels like things are getting worse. It was a compelling enough line of exploration that Durant (maybe people over 50 don’t frequent into his algorithm as often?) chimed in to concur:
Van Gundy, perhaps out for a leisurely boat ride, didn’t reply until a few hours later, but when he did it was to further clarify his original point:
No. I’m not criticizing players. I’m saying that we are getting something wrong in how we prepare and train players. We can’t do anything about injuries like yours, he fell on your leg. But all of these groin, hamstring injuries etc. shouldn’t be happening as much as they are.
Here is where the communicative waters were muddied. Van Gundy clearly took Durant’s use of the word ‘spitting’ to signify disrespect, e.g. if you literally spit on a person, or a person’s opinion. Maybe the ellipses had something to do with it too, because that’s something that has never in its punctuative history brought clarity to any situation. Anyway, Van Gundy began to clarify. This was about the health of players (we knew), and not to criticize them or place any blame of the situation at their feet (we knew). He even went so far as to contextualize the injuries he meant, not like Durant’s, because it’s true Jimmy Butler did just fall on his leg, but groin, hamstring, etc. A who’s-who of the big ones in the game Operation.
How do you like to picture him typing this one? With a shake of his head and a smile on his face, or with a bit of exasperation? I like the former, but it takes all kinds.
A very kind Twitter user jumped in moments later to lend further clarity to a situation that did, still, require some:
Other than this being a great example of the ways Twitter can divide, but ultimately unite us, building bridges we didn’t realize were necessary, I think it’s urgently necessary for someone to give Van Gundy a column called ‘Stan Spits’, or better yet a podcast of the same name where every episode Van Gundy gets into it briefly about what’s really grinding his gears and calls up guests like Durant to help him work it out. The intro music can be the very appropriate track ‘Holdin’ It Down’ by Big L, ft. Stan Spit.
And for the sake of squeezing all the the life out of this gorgeous sequence of tweets, I’ve compiled a helpful list to further illustrate where one word got itself into such a conundrum.
Things we would love to see Stan Van Gundy spit on (respectfully):
Fashion trends for 2023
The current state of league parity
The best kind of sandwich
The current goings on in the world of motorized recreational watercraft
A cold one (beer)
A cold one (a take he didn’t agree with, but wants to get to the heart of)
That Pistons photoshoot
Book recommendations
His favorite song on The Big Chill soundtrack
Things we would love to see Stan Van Gundy spit on (disrespectfully):
Fashion trends for 2023 (Cargo pants? Really?)
Late stage capitalism
Mismanagement of our natural waterways
Ticketmaster and the secondary ticket market
Things we have no idea which side Stan Van Gundy’s spit would land on but are deeply curious about:
The popularization of QR codes as menus at restaurants
American single malt whiskey is quickly becoming a big deal in the whiskey world. And last year was a notably stellar year for the style. On July 29th, American single malt (ASM) was officially and legally recognized as a designation of whiskey and huge brands started releasing their own versions of the whiskey nationwide. Moreover, as the style grows more widespread, it also grows more refined — which certainly benefits whisky lovers who don’t love paying taxes and tariffs on their Scotch.
With that said, the ASM whiskey scene is relatively young (with young whiskeys). Which begs the question, can ASM whiskeys really stand up to the tried and true classic single malts of Scotland? Friends, it’s time for another blind taste test to find out!
Look, the average age of an ASM whiskey is closer to four to five years compared to 12 years being the entry point for most single malt scotch. So the short answer to the above question is a resounding “no” — the style is simply operating at a different pace right now. Still, age isn’t everything when crafting a quality bottle of whiskey. That means there are a lot of opportunities in the ASM scene for stellar juice that can stand up to the old-school stuff from Scotland.
Our lineup today includes the following bottles:
Baller Single Malt Whiskey by St. George Spirits
Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie Scottish Barley
Dead Guy Whiskey Stout Cask Finished American Single Malt Whiskey
Glenmorangie The Quinta Ruban Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Westward American Single Malt Cask Strength
The Glenrothes Whisky Maker’s Cut Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Broken Barrel Luciferous American Single Malt Whiskey
The Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Jack Daniel’s Twice Barreled Special Release American Single Malt
Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Legacy Series Chapter 3
When it comes to ranking these bottles, it’s pretty simple, folks. What tastes best? That’s it. I’m simply looking for the best-tasting whiskey so let’s dive right in.
Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Scotch Whisky Posts of The Last Six Months
Nose: This whiskey opens with a nose that feels like breaking up a stem of lemongrass in your fingers before leaning into hints of maple, plum skins, and malty spice.
Palate: The palate is a silky sip that starts off with spiced prunes and stewed peaches next to woody maple syrup, a touch of marzipan, and a hint of burnt peach pits.
Finish: The end sweetens with a line of fresh mango flesh next to old charcoal drenched in plum wine with a whisper that lemongrass peaking back in late.
Initial Thoughts:
The nose on this is really promising with a good overall vibe to the palate. It was a little light in the end but it still held on through the finish with a nice profile. Translation, this was fine.
Taste 2
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Wildflowers and granola bars draw you in on the nose as a hint of brine and salted caramel linger on the back end with orange oils and softwood.
Palate: That brine becomes a full rush of seaspray as tart apples lead towards a Caro syrup mid-palate sweetness.
Finish: That sweetness fades into a spicy malt as sea salt and sweet oak dominated the finish.
Initial Thoughts:
This has a nice beginning, middle, and end. Overall, this was a satisfying pour of whiskey, albeit not a mind-blowingly amazing one.
Taste 3
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a sense of something plasticky on the nose that leads to mild graininess with a hint of cherry and vanilla.
Palate: Red fruit roll-ups! That’s the plasticky vibe that translates on the taste next to mild winter spice, hints of “wood,” and a sense of Malt-O-Meal.
Finish: The finish is short and kind of just fades away with a whisper of sour cherry and milk chocolate.
Initial Thoughts:
Nah.
Taste 4
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose draws you in with a sense of burnt orange layered into dark chocolate and then melted over a singed marshmallow with a hint of malted vanilla cookie tying it all together.
Palate: That dark chocolate drives the palate with a hint of waxiness and woody winter spice next to whole black peppercorns, fresh tangerine, and a whisper of mint chocolate chip ice cream.
Finish: The dark chocolate, woody spice, bright orange, and sharp spearmint all collide on the finish with a sense of soft malted sweetness and faint old oak staves.
Initial Thoughts:
This is delicious. Seriously, this blows that last three pours out of the water. It’s complex, fun, and takes you on a journey with surprises and comforting notes. I want to actually drink this stuff instead of spit it out (I spit out whiskey after the finish, in order to not be drunk 24/7).
Taste 5
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Almond Roca and honey-dipped Graham Crackers greet you on the nose with a sense of almost sour espresso shots just kissed with red pepper and dark yet creamy chocolate.
Palate: That chocolate drives the palate toward Sesame Snaps before a dark chocolate and red berry tobacco leaf takes over with a hint of dry woody spice and old cedar braids.
Finish: The end has a deep sense of the honey hardened with sesame seeds next to a spiced malted oatmeal cookie with sharp cinnamon and clove.
Initial Thoughts:
This feels almost classic but very American (there’s a deep leathery sense and a much darker color). All of that aside, this is freaking tasty whiskey.
Taste 6
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose bursts forth with butterscotch. Once that fades, hints of worn leather, orange peels, and nutmeg mix underneath that butterscotch nose.
Palate: The palate is nutmeg-forward with a spicy orange zest kissed with dark chocolate and vanilla.
Finish: The end feels a bit like eggnog laced with orange zest and vanilla with a spicy warmth.
Initial Thoughts:
This was another “fine” whiskey. Nothing wrong at all with the flavor profile — it simply is fine.
Taste 7
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a sense of fresh squash with a good dose of winter spices, light caramel, and wet malts rounding things out.
Palate: The taste has a moment more of that fresh squash before hitting a note that’s — I swear — cornmeal-encrusted fried catfish served on a banana leaf plate with cranberry sauce and a light sense of pumpkin ale and toasted coconut.
Finish: The end lingers through the fall-inspired spices and ales vibes with a sweet squash cut with brown sugar and honey fold into a light tobacco leaf vibe.
Initial Thoughts:
This is a pretty bold whiskey with spicy vibes. It’s good but didn’t jump out at me.
Taste 8
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is openly complex from the first inhalation with a matrix of sticky toffee pudding spices — cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg — next to dried red berries with a slight earthiness, a touch of salted toffee candies, and a whisper of vanilla wafers.
Palate: The palate opens with a chocolate maltiness next to a bowl of fresh and tropical fruits — pineapple, tart apples, sweet pears, plums, bruised bananas — with a mild nuttiness, sharp orange zest, and subtle winter spices.
Finish: There’s a light mustiness on the back end that leads to soft and moist pipe tobacco with a thin layer of orchard fruits and stewed figs.
Initial Thoughts:
This is another great whiskey. It’s clearly a winner with a deep complexity that’s refreshing and fun to taste. It’s really good.
Taste 9
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Light milk chocolate powder malts greet you on the nose with soft leather, a hint of cedar, fresh gingerbread, a hint of fresh wicker canes, oatmeal cookie dough, a whisper of spearmint, and some sweet ice tea powder.
Palate: The palate opens up with a sense of sour red fruit with a rich vanilla foundation that leads to woody spices with a mild essence of pine sap and saddle soap before a vanilla white cake sweetness and soft mouthfeel kick in.
Finish: The mid-palate expands toward higher ABV buzziness with a note of almond shell and coconut shell next to Mounds bars and fresh leather on the finish with a fleeting sense of cream soda just kissed with orange-chocolate syrup.
Initial Thoughts:
This is bold and really delivers a broad and deep flavor profile. I liked this a lot but it wasn’t as refined as some of the other sips on the panel today.
Taste 10
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Butterscotch and sour cherry lead to a woody sense of cinnamon bark and vanilla pods with a hint of blackberry jam over apple-cinnamon toast.
Palate: There’s a hint of stewed pear with raisins, cloves, and more of that woody cinnamon that leads to creamy apple pie filling with a hint of prune and winter spice.
Finish: The end is thin-ish with a sense of honey-coated malt cookies next to apple chips and rum-soaked raisins.
Initial Thoughts:
This was perfectly fine but a tad thin.
Part 2: The Ranking
Zach Johnston
10. Dead Guy Whiskey Stout Cask Finished American Single Malt Whiskey — Taste 3
This is the new version of Rogue’s famed Rolling Thunder Stouted Whiskey. The single malt is made by the Oregon brewer and then finished in Rogue’s beloved stout casks before proofing and bottling.
Bottom Line:
This wasn’t off, but it wasn’t going to beat any Scotch whiskies either. It’s just too young and rough tasting to reach those big Scotch-y heights.
9. The Glenrothes Whisky Maker’s Cut Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky — Taste 6
The bulbous bottle from The Glenrothes is all about the sherry. The expression spends an undisclosed amount of years in first-fill sherry casks. When those barrels are just right, the whisky is then batched and vatted before being proofed down only slightly.
Bottom Line:
This was a tad too light overall. That said, I can see this working wonders in a cocktail — which will bandage over that thinness nicely — since we’re still talking about a whisky with a solid flavor profile.
8. Baller Single Malt Whiskey by St. George Spirits — Taste 1
This single malt from St. George Spirits out in California is beloved. The juice is made from 100% malted and lightly roasted barley with an eye toward Japanese traditions. The whiskey spends three to four years in ex-bourbon and ex-French wine casks before vatting and re-barreling into umeshu casks (Japanese plum wine that the team at St. George makes themselves) for a final rest. Finally, the whiskey is blended and just touched with local proofing water before bottling.
Bottom Line:
This was nice, but a little too heavy on the citrus in the end. It wasn’t one-note per se but it was flirting with the notion. Still, this would be great in a highball with an orange or grapefruit twist.
7. Broken Barrel Luciferous American Single Malt Whiskey — Taste 7
This whiskey is made from 100% Indiana single malt whiskey. Those barrels are then re-barreled into Amaro and French oak casks for final maturation. The final blend is a mix of 80% Amaro barrels and 20% French oak before and bottling at cask strength.
Bottom Line:
This was fine but a little hot on the palate today. That heat didn’t blow out the flavor profile, but I kind of wanted a rock to calm it down a bit. That then leads me to believe this would be very well suited to highballs and cocktails more than sipping.
6. Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Legacy Series Chapter 3 — Taste 10
This special edition version of Glengoyne is made from a batch of American oak barrels that held sherry. Those barrels are married and then proofed to create an iconic Glengoyne flavor profile for this expression.
Bottom Line:
This was a perfectly fine single malt. It’s easy on the palate but delivers a classic unpeated sweet malt vibe. It’s easy to see this being an easy sipper or a nice cocktail base.
5. Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie Scottish Barley — Taste 2
Bruichladdich’s philosophy on whisky making is pretty unique. Each batch highlights local, unpeated Scottish barley that’s fermented and distilled. That juice then goes into some combination of ex-bourbon, ex-sherry, and ex-wine casks for a varied amount of time. That means each batch is unique. Bruichladdich then provides a code on their bottles so that you can go to their website and find out what makes the bottle in your hand special.
Bottom Line:
This is a really nice, classic single malt. It feels like an easy on-the-rocks sipper that also would help make any Scotch cocktail pop.
4. Jack Daniel’s Twice Barreled Special Release American Single Malt — Taste 9
This brand-new whiskey from Jack Daniel’s is made with a 100% malted barley mash bill. Those grains are milled and mashed with Jack’s famed cave spring water right in Lynchburg, Tennessee. That mash is then fermented with Jack’s own yeast and then distilled before the long process of charcoal mellowing/filtration. The hot juice is run through ten feet of sugar maple charcoal and is then filled into new American white oak barrels for a several-year rest. Finally, those barrels were vatted and re-barreled in Olorosso sherry casks for a final maturation before bottling as-is at cask strength.
Bottom Line:
This was really tasty. It wasn’t as refined as the next three but had a great overall flavor profile. It’s definitely in the easy-sipper category.
3. Westward American Single Malt Cask Strength — Taste 5
Westward Whiskey — out in Portland, Oregon — is really starting to come into its own, especially as its whiskey gets older. This expression is a prime example of Westward’s prowess that’s made in-house from top to bottom and mellowed in new American oak until it’s just right for cask-strength bottling as-is.
Bottom Line:
This is excellent whiskey. It wasn’t quite as soft and supple as the next two entries, but it still ruled. I can see sipping this on a single rock and being very happy. At the same time, I can see this making one hell of a cocktail too.
2. The Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky — Taste 8
This Highland whisky is a no-age-statement version of The Dalmore. The juice is made from Golden barley that grows on the island in the rich and very coastal soils. The ground malted barley is mixed with pure water from the Cromarty Firth nearby during the mashing process. After a couple of times through pot stills, the hot whisky is loaded into ex-bourbon casks, 30-year-old Matusalem Oloroso Sherry butts, and former Cabernet Sauvignon from the Saint-Estèphe appellation of Bordeaux. After 10 to 15 years, those barrels are vatted, the whiskey is proofed, and it’s bottled.
Bottom Line:
This was a banger from top to bottom. It’s a damn near perfect sipper. The only reason it’s not number one is that the next pour had that little more to it. But only barely.
1. Glenmorangie The Quinta Ruban Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky — Taste 4
Glenmorangie’s 14-Year expression spends 10 years resting in used American oak casks. Those barrels are vatted and the whisky is re-barreled into Quinta Ruban port wine casks from Portugal for another four years of mellowing before batching, proofing, and bottling as-is.
Bottom Line:
This is delicious whisky. It’s delightfully complex while delivering a fantastic profile to the palate. It’s also a wonderful sipper all on its own. It’s just a winner all around and an incredible value.
Part 3: Final Thoughts
Zach Johnston
I’d argue that the top three are all basically tied. That’s especially true if you’re looking for a great sipper to add to your bar cart. Each one is just stellar.
The only bottles I’d avoid as the bottom two. The rest are perfectly fine but lean more toward mixers than satisfying sippers, which is perfectly fine and with merit. Still, that top three is a killer’s row of great single malt.
As for American single malts versus Scotch single malts. Well, as I mentioned in the intro, it all just depends on how well the whiskey is built. There are some great American single malts that do live up to great Scotch single malts. You just have to know where to look.
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