This week on People’s Party with Talib Kweli, Kweli and Jasmin Leigh go deep with rapper/production icon Lord Finesse, whose work with the D.I.T.C. (Diggin’ in the Crates) crew gave birth to multiple hits and a production style that helped define the times. Beyond his unique production sound, Finesse has also always been known for his crisp lyricism — a fact that Kweli keyed in on.
“My style comes from my heroes,” Finesse notes. “Kane, Rakim, KRS ONE, [and] Kool G. Rap. During that time you only wished you could be as great as them or you would be noticed and your name would ring like their names would ring.”
Later, as the conversation moves into the art of battle rapping, Finesse notes, “Some of the best punchlines are when you don’t see them coming. If I can predict your punchline and see where it’s coming from… it ain’t that great.”
Since his 1990 debut album Funky Technician with DJ Mike Smooth and Return of the Funky Man in 1992, Finesse let the world know he meant serious lyrical business. Over the years, he’s worked with some of the best — from Big L to Brand Nubian to Vinnie Paz, among others. In 2020, he dropped “Actual Facts” featuring veteran spitters Sadat X, Lord Professor, and Grand Puba, making it clear that this stone-cold icon is still carrying the torch for real hip-hop!
Watch Lord Finesse talk about his epic journey as one of hip-hop’s most respected rappers and producers on People’s Party with Talib Kweli on YouTube or listen via Luminary.
Empress Of’s latest EP, Save Me, came out this past June and it’s another collection of sparkling indie pop songs from Lorely Rodriguez. Today, she shared the latest video from the project in the Jerome AB-directed clip for “Turn The Table,” a collaboration track with producer Jim-E Stack.
In the drone recorded clip, Rodriguez performs the song in a vacant building in idyllic Grand Cayman. There’s something about the way she dances with reckless abandon in the standstill of the building surrounded by natural beauty, that’s as hypnotizing as the banger of a tune.
08/06 — San Francisco, CA @ Outside Lands
09/24 — Montreal, QC @ MTELUS #
09/26 — Boston, MA @ Roadrunner #
09/28 — New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall #
09/29 — Washington DC @ The Anthem #
10/01 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia #
10/02 — Norfolk, VA @ The NorVa #
10/04 — Knoxville, TN @ Tennessee Theatre #
10/05 — Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern #
10/07 — Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits Festival
10/09 — Houston, TX @ 713 Music Hall #
10/10 — Dallas, TX @ South Side Ballroom #
10/12 — Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom #
10/14 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union Event Center #
10/15 — Las Vegas, NV @ The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas #
10/17 — Phoenix, AZ @ Arizona Federal Theatre #
10/18 — Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre #
10/20 — Santa Barbara, CA @ Arlington Theatre #
10/21 — Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley #
10/23 — Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater #
10/26 — Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo #
10/29 — Vancouver, BC @ Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre #
11/02 — Madison, WI @ The Sylvee #
11/04 — Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theater #
11/05 — Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom #
Finding the best brandy — Cognac, Armagnac, weinbrand, or otherwise — might feel a little daunting. There’s a ton of it on the shelf from all over Europe and the U.S. It’s a wide category with a lot of variation based on a wine distillate aged in oak. A great way to help you sort through it all is to provide some context and recommendations, and I’m doing just that today with a blind taste test of well-known American and French brandy brands.
Before we dive in, let’s talk a little about what brandy is. As mentioned above, we’re dealing with an oak-aged spirit that’s made from wine (a ton of grape varietals are in play here so I won’t list them all, otherwise we’ll be here all day). That aged distillate tends to hover around 80 proof, or 40 percent ABV. When it comes to regionality, think of wine regions. Most major world wine regions make brandy in one way or another — France, Spain, Germany, Chile, the U.S., etc. Then there are the regional designations. Cognacs and Armagnacs have to come from Cognac and Armagnac, in France. That means all Cognacs and Armagnacs are brandies but not all brandies are Cognacs or Armagnacs in the same way not all whiskeys are bourbons (but all bourbons are whiskeys).
And all of those intricacies come before we even get into Maisons, casks, and terroir. But we’ll save those lessons for another day.
For this tasting, I’m grabbing some great bottles off of my shelf and putting them up against each other in a blind taste test. While I tend to focus my work on whiskey, I’m also a spirits judge for international competitions where I judge everything from whiskey to vodka to rum to, yes, brandies. So for this blind tasting, I’m focusing on the flavor alone and ranking these bottles according to the most enticing taste. I chose bottles that hit the mid-range from around $30 to $60 per bottle with a cheap ringer thrown in to see how it lands — meaning you should be able to find these fairly easily.
Our lineup today is:
Ciroc VS French Brandy
Bisquit & Dubouche Cognac VSOP
Remy Martin Cognac VSOP
Omage XO American Hand-Crafted Brandy
St-Remy Signature French Brandy
Korbel Brandy
Hennessy VS Cognac
D’Usse Cognac VSOP
Let’s dive in!
Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months
The nose opens with a creamy sense of Nutella that leans a little nuttier than chocolatey with a hint of soft orchard wood, grape skins, and a whisper of vanilla husk. The palate is full of lush dark chocolate with a layer of dried red berries swimming in vanilla cream with a flake of salt and a hint of wet oak. The end leans into red fruit leather with a final dusting of dark chocolate just kissed with vanilla.
This is a pretty damn nice place to start. This felt classic while taking me somewhere.
Taste 2
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Hints of tannic oak mingle with vanilla candies and a dash of winter spice in a plum jam on the nose. A twinge of dried roses leads the palate as layers of orchard fruit skins mix with apricot jam, woody cinnamon sticks, and a hint of sour cherry. A minor note of salt arrives to counter that sour cherry late as gooseberries and warming spices round out the finish.
The end of this gets a little warm and pushes the fruitiness out a bit. Still, this was pretty easy drinking overall.
Taste 3
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
The nose is balanced between soft florals and a rich nuttiness with echoes of old oak and mashed berries on a hot day. The palate feels classic with bright, sweet, and tart fruit mixing with dry woody spice, a touch of leather, and sweet vanilla. The end is short and sweet with a fruit/nut/vanilla vibe.
This was pretty nice. I can see it being beaten though.
Taste 4
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This opens with a hint of floral honey next to apple and pear and maybe some vanilla sauce with a hint of poppy seed. The palate is lush and layers in woody spice with an even warmth next to soft red berries, a tad more pear flesh, and a little green tea. The end sweetens and fades out pretty quickly leaving you with a touch of oak and toffee.
This is pretty nice as well. It’s a little thin on the end but solid otherwise.
Taste 5
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
The nose opens with a hint of old wood that’s wet and somehow slightly grainy (there’s no grain in this, obviously) countered by a minor note of grape must and vanilla. That wet oak carries onto the palate and mixes with light winter spices, a hint of raisin, and green orchard leaves. The end is light and touches on a whisper of orange and lemon citrus oils.
From my notes: “This feels young and a little thin.”
Taste 6
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This smells cheap with almost dirty grape must mingling with butterscotch and bitter fruit seeds. The taste is elevated far above the nose with a matrix of cinnamon and clove next to sweet cherries and orange zest. By the end, this feels like a proto old fashioned in the glass — which means this must be Korbel.
This tastes like it was made to be mixed. It’s not bad but it’s really not great neat.
Taste 7
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Rich chocolate and marzipan lead the way on the nose with a good line of ripe red fruits leaning toward black cherry and blackberry. The palate is lush but light with those bright fruits leading your senses toward a hint of cinnamon and clove wrapped in old leather with a twinge of oak in the background. The end brings back the choco-marzipan vibe with a whisper of red berries sourness.
This was pretty damn good.
Taste 8
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This starts off very similarly to the last pour with dark and rich chocolate and marzipan but carries on toward old soft leather and mild Christmas cake spices with a hint of vanilla and candied fruit. The taste mingles soft vanilla pods with buttery toffee and woody spices as the fruitiness shines a ray of sunshine through the whole sip. The end has a good sense of dark chocolate and almond with a hint of black tea bitterness rounding everything out.
This is a clear winner. This is just delicious, deep, and enticing.
This California brandy is crafted as a mixer. The juice is Sonoma wine that’s distilled and then aged for two years in American oak. The barrels are then blended and proofed for maximum mixability.
Bottom Line:
Called that. This really does end up tasting like a base for an old fashioned, which is what the brand has leaned into over the decades. So … use it for that.
St-Rémy is a classic French gateway brandy. Their newest expression aims to get new folks into brandy with an accessible entry-level expression. The juice in this case is aged in new oak casks for a short spell before going into used casks for a final, short maturation.
That brandy is then blended, proofed, and bottled for the “new” brandy consumer.
Bottom Line:
This was pretty thin. I can see it being a good cocktail base but that’s about it.
This fairly new Cognac comes from the famed Maison Fondée Cognac, which has been producing great brandy for over 200 years. The juice in the bottle is made from grapes harvested in the Grande Champagne, Petite Champagne, Fin Bois, and Bons Bois regions of Cognac and built to suit a modern, American palate.
Bottom Line:
This bottle was very nice but a little tannic for my palate. It was soft and smooth otherwise and would have really shined with a single rock, which would have let some more flavors bloom in the glass.
This classic brandy is nearly 100 years old. The majority of the grapes come from the Grand Champagne region of Cognac with a vast majority of the grapes being Ugni Blanc. The spirit ages for four to 12 years before blending, proofing, and bottling.
Bottom Line:
This felt classic and a little basic. That’s not to say this wasn’t a tasty sip. It was. But I was left wanting to make a killer cocktail more than sip it neat.
4. Omage XO American Hand-Crafted Brandy — Taste 4
Omage XO is as close as American brandy can get to being Cognac. The process is essentially the same but made from grapes grown in Central California that are fermented, distilled, and aged locally in that region to the same standards as brandy in Cognac.
Bottom Line:
This was the first pour I really wanted more of, even neat. It’s delicate and deep while still feeling very accessible as a sipper. That said, I really want to make a Sazerac with this.
Ciroc is a “French Brandy” being that it’s not made in Cognac. The distillate is made from French grapes and follows classic French brandy traditions otherwise from fermentation to distillation to aging.
Bottom Line:
Maybe it’s because this was the first taste, but this was pretty drinkable neat. It was straightforward and had a nice balance of flavors.
Ol’ Henney Lo. This entry-point to the wide world of Hennessy is a blend of over 40 brandies (or eau-de-vie) that were aged a minimum of two years. The grapes are exclusively Ungi Blanc and grown in the core regions of Cognac.
Bottom Line:
This was a good brandy all around. It was easy and tasty. What more could you want? Okay, it lacked the depth of the next entry but not by much.
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.
Bottom Line:
This was the most nuanced and deeply hewn brandy on the panel — not by far, but enough. Overall, it was just delicious and great for the price. I can see sipping this neat after a meal or on the rock near a bbq in the backyard. This is the good stuff.
Part 3: Final Thoughts
Zach Johnston
These were some damn fine brandies. Each one had its own vibe and purpose — it was obvious that the Korbel was made for mixing and I’m not going to knock that clarity of purpose. In the end, the top two would be my picks for must-haves on your bar cart. I mean, you should have a bottle of Henny anyway. But that D’Usse VSOP is a damn fine addition, too.
Tom DeLonge left Blink-182 in 2015. But the rumor mill regarding the group’s longtime guitarist and singer returning to Blink-182 has been picking up steam. Current guitarist Matt Skiba (also of Alkaline Trio), Blink’s bassist/vocalist Mark Hoppus, and even DeLonge himself have either hinted or issued statements recently that have left fans wondering whether or not Tom DeLonge is rejoining Blink-182. So here’s what we know so far:
Is Tom DeLonge rejoining Blink-182?
Last November, Tom DeLonge told James Corden that, “I feel like I’m always talking about some kind of reunion. We always talk about playing together again and I think that that’s definitely something we’re all interested in.” This got people excited, but it wasn’t until Matt Skiba replied to a fan account on Instagram asking if he was still in the band that people started thinking that a DeLonge reunion might very well be in the works. “Your guess is as good as mine,” Skiba replied as to whether or not he is still in the band. “Regardless, I am very proud of and thankful for my time with Blink-182. We shall see…”
Then on August 1st, DeLonge himself seemed to drop a hint on his Instagram page that he might be rejoining Blink-182. Under his bio, he now lists both Blink-182 and Angels And Airwaves as his current projects. He then posted a photo with original bandmates Hoppus and drummer Travis Barker with the caption that read simply “Blink-182.”
Finally, on the 30th anniversary of Blink-182, Hoppus issued a statement on Discord seemingly addressing rumors about Delonge rejoining the band: “There is no news to share. There is no announcement,” he began. “Today is thirty years of blink-182! If and when blink has any announcement about anything, you will hear it from the official blink-182 outlets. Not teased on a radio station like ‘tune in for a major announcement…Tom tagged Mark in a photo from two decades ago.’”
It looks like Mark Hoppus is playing it cool, but the energy in the room, err… the internet, seems to be indicating that Tom DeLonge could be rejoining Blink-182.
Blink-182 is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Earlier this week, the long-expected news of a Deshaun Watson suspension became public. A jointly-appointed arbiter, former judge Sue Robinson, determined that Watson violated the league’s personal conduct policy amid numerous allegations of sexual misconduct and will be suspended for six games during the 2022 NFL season. The ruling does not include any sort of fine for the recently-acquired Cleveland Browns signal caller.
The suspension was far less than what the league reportedly wanted — the NFL apparently believed the allegations against Watson were worthy of him receiving an indefinite suspension that would at least span the entirety of the upcoming season. But in the aftermath of the ruling, it was reported that the NFL could try to appeal the decision, and on Wednesday afternoon, we learned that the league will indeed go down that path.
The NFL is appealing Deshaun Watson’s six-game suspension.
The league put out a statement explaining how they are able to do this, citing a provision in the Collective Bargaining Agreement that either side has to appeal so long as they file said appeal within three days of the ruling being handed down. Now, per the statement, the appeal will “be heard by the Commissioner or his designee,” and Roger Goodell will have to “determine who will hear the appeal.”
The evening before the decision was handed down, the NFLPA issued a statement saying “regardless of [Robinson’s] decision, Deshaun and the NFLPA will stand by her ruling and we call on the NFL to do the same.”
When Beyonce first released her house-influenced single “Break My Soul,” it was a pop culture-shifting moment. The single sparked a growing conversation about Black artists’ pioneering efforts in dance music, as well as reviving interest in genre staples such as Robin S.’s “Show Me Love.” Now, Beyonce has doubled down on the empowering track and her commitment to a traditional rollout for her new album, Renaissance (or maybe even quadrupled), by releasing a surprise, four-track EP of “Break My Soul” remixes.
Each of the new reworkings of the song is produced by a different standout DJ from the dance music world, including Honey Dijon, Nita Aviance, Terry Hunter, and will.i.am. Their respective takes add elements such as trance or church organs to transform the hit record and expand its inescapable dance floor appeal.
The new EP should help refocus the public’s attention on the music and tastemaking history lesson at the core of Renaissance after another of the album’s tracks inadvertently hijacked the public’s interest. After “Milkshake” singer Kelis called out Beyonce for supposedly sampling her on “Energy,” much of the discourse revolved around whether or not Beyonce should credit Kelis. However, Beyonce later removed the disputed vocal, keeping the actual interpolation of “Milkshake” that prompted the speculation.
Check out Beyonce’s “Break My Soul” remixes below via Spotify.
The Joker sequel has locked down a release date. Despite the apparent chaos at Warner Bros. Discovery following the cancellation of Batgirl (and rumblings of HBO Max’s fate hanging in the balance), the new regime has emphasized a commitment to theatrical releases. After Joker broke a billion dollars in global box office on a relatively small budget, naturally, Warner Bros. has been itching for a sequel, which was confirmed back in June.
According to Deadline, Joker: Folie à deux is set to hit theaters on October 24, 2024 and will reportedly begin production this December. Joaquin Phoenix will reprise his role, and there has been talks of Lady Gaga joining the film as a new version of Harley Quinn. Oh, and also, the sequel might be a musical.
Details on her character are being kept under wraps, but Joker is known for his on-off abusive relationship with Harley Quinn, his psychiatrist at the Arkham Asylum mental institution who falls in love with him and becomes his sidekick and partner in crime. It is unclear whether Phillips and company are using other DC characters or striking out on their own, as they did in many instances with the first movie.
The Joker: Folie à deux release date does reaffirm Warner Bros. Discovery’s commitment to focusing on theatrical releases as it attempts to figure out what to do with its struggling DC Comics films. Granted, the studio has had successes with Joker, The Batman, and Aquaman, but nowhere at the consistent level of Marvel. Reportedly, CEO David Zaslav is making moves to overhaul DC Films, and things are clearly getting interesting on that front following the shelving of Batgirl.
How many times have you watched the footage of beet-red conspiracy theorist Alex Jones finding out that his lawyers accidentally sent a digital copy of the entire content of his cell phone to the Sandy Hook parents’ lawyer?
It’s like a scene out of Law and Order or one of its 12 spinoffs, except no TV lawyer would be that dumb. Take it from former-Law and Order writer David Slack.
In response to NBC News senior reporter Ben Collins tweeting that he’s seen a lot of episodes of Law and Order but he’s never seen a twist as good as “Alex Jones’ lawyers accidentally sent Sandy Hook parents’ lawyers the entire contents of his phone and his long-hidden financials, but they waited 12 days to let him lie,” Slack replied, “Because on Law & Order. we wouldn’t have let a lawyer do something that dumb.”
Do I understand how the American legal system works? No. But would I be surprised if Jones fired his lawyer — who responded to his blunder by taking on the same pose as The Thinker — and hired Rudy Giuliani? Also no. They’re both being sued, and Jones wouldn’t have to worry about Rudy sending his text messages to another attorney. He might butt dial a private conversation to a reporter, but that’s just Rudy being Rudy.
Because on Law & Order. we wouldn’t have let a lawyer do something that dumb.
A Dirty Dancing sequel is on the way, and now, another Patrick Swayze classic is receiving the reboot treatment. This news arrives as a surprise, however, because the project is being reimagined with the leading man role portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal. Maybe that casting news is not what one would expect on paper, but Jake has been known to whoop some ass (see 2015’s Southpaw). Here’s everything we know about the project so far.
– The project’s not newly in development. In fact, word began circling back in November 2021 that Gyllenhall could star in such a revamp as directed by Doug Limon. Now, it’s official, and together, they’ll put an updated spin on the 1980s film that saw Swayze star as an NYC philosophy student who heads down South to be a bouncer. The original film’s got some crushing and brutal fights, though there’s no telling whether that 1980s “sensibility” will work in 2022.
– Co-stars are coming. The MGM film’s gaining new life after the MGM/Amazon acquisition news, and the film will officially arrive under the Amazon Studios banner. Variety quotes Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke as calling the movie “a home run,” and Deadline reports that Gyllenhaal will be accompanied by UFC champ Conor McGregor within what will be his first major studio acting gig. Salke further promises to not go easy on the “action-packed” nature of this reimagining.
-What we don’t know. Do we have a release date? Nope, not yet! But we’ll keep you posted. Nor do we know what time period this movie will take place in, so we don’t know if this will be a period piece or contemporary, or what era of hairstyles we’ll see on Jake and Conor.
– The biggest pressing question. Bill Murray has not weighed in yet, although he will probably still pick up the phone every time he catches the movie on cable and sees Swayze’s sex scene with Kelly Lynch. Yep, there’s nothing like the original.
Picture it, if you will. You, your partner, and your dog are taking a hike through a mountain in England when you suddenly hear a noise. It’s something in the sky, and it’s getting closer and closer. It’s… it’s a helicopter! But it’s not just any helicopter breaking up the silence at the summit of High Crag. It’s a helicopter containing one of the world’s most famous actors, Tom Cruise, who hops out of the chopper, apologizes for disturbing your hike, compliments your dog, and then proceeds to jump off a cliff.
This is what happened to Sarah and Jason Haygarth, who discussed their encounter with Cruise with The Sun. “Sorry for disturbing your peaceful walk with all the noise — I like your dog,” they said the highly-paid Top Gun: Maverick star told them. Sarah replied, “Are you really going to jump off there?” Cruise nodded, smiled, and yelled back, “See you later, folks.” He was “as cool as a cucumber,” Sarah confirmed.
Cruise was filming Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two at the time, although I assume this (“this” meaning “jumping off a cliff and paragliding away”) is something he does for fun even when the cameras aren’t rolling. You can see the pics here, but if you, dear reader, have any equally eventful stories about meeting Tom Cruise, like the time you peed next to him at a Dave & Buster’s in Phoenix, please let me know.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
