Category: News

It’s December and the craft beer releases are dailed into that vibe. Winter warmers, spiced brews, bold IPAs, dark ales, pine-y lagers, black stouts, and barrel-aged everything are in the mix this month and we’re here for it all.

There are so many great beers on the shelf right now that it was hard to narrow it down to just eight. Still, we tried to highlight some beloved and under-hyped options as the holidays roll in and the year ends.

Hopefully, the eight beers we’re giving love to this month will pique your interest and inspire you to explore exciting brews made near you or sold at your closest bottle shop or brewery. The picks below are regional craft beer releases from breweries that we vouch for along with seasonal bottles we’ve been looking forward to tasting again.

PACIFIC NORTHWEST DROP: Elysian Skålrok

ABV: 4.9%

Average Price: Available at the Brewery

The Beer:

Skålrok is a Nordic-style pale ale that feels like a wintry dream in a can. The base of the beer is Two Row, Honey Malt, Flaked Rice, and Golden Naked Oats that are mixed with local water and Kveik yeast from Scandinavia. The beer is then hopped with local Cashmere, Sabro, and Chinook hops, giving the final brew a touch of the Pacific Northwest with that Nordic base.

Tasting Notes:

Light notes of orange oils hit on the nose with a touch of sweet yet slightly funky malts. The palate follows that flavor profile while adding a little more sweetness to the malts with an almost creamy edge (thanks to those oats) alongside a slight nuttiness. The hops present as freshly twisted tangerine rinds that sprayed their oils all over the beer.

Bottom Line:

This is bright yet wintry with a great malt-to-hop balance. It’s also very easy to drink thanks to those low ABVs.

SOUTHWEST DROP: Anchor Christmas Ale

ABV: 7%

Average Price: $13, six-pack

The Beer:

Every year for the past 47 years, San Francisco’s Anchor Steam has released a special winter warmer, Christmas Ale. This year’s release is a subtle winter warmer that’s just touched with holiday spices in the beer. Each year the recipe is slightly different and represented by a different Christmas tree on the label. This year’s tree represents the high desert of California with a Joshua Tree.

Tasting Notes:

The beer leans into fresh espresso laced with dark chocolate bitterness. Those notes lead towards a creamy nature closer to a choco-eggnog latte with plenty of that brown ale spice and depth. There’s a bit of a graham cracker maltiness underneath it all with a subtle sweetness to counterpoint that coffee/chocolate bitter bite.

Bottom Line:

This is a highlight of the craft beer season, and this year was no different. The beer is the perfect accompaniment to any winter day (warm or cold).

ROCKY MOUNTAIN DROP: New Belgium Oakspire Bourbon Barrel Ale

ABV: 9%

Average Price: $15, six-pack

The Beer:

This strong ale is made with Pale, Munich, Caramel 80, Rye, and Roasted Barley malts and lightly hopped with Nugget and Sabro hops. Then the beer is aged with oak spires from barrels that aged Four Roses Bourbon.

Tasting Notes:

Those oak spires help pull deep and dried fruit notes from the beer and highlight a touch of aged vanilla and eggnog spice. The taste amps up those notes while adding in a caramel malted base with a hint of plum, date, and maybe even dark berries. The end has a nice spice touch that’s tempered by those sweetened malts and mostly dried fruits.

Bottom Line:

Naturally, this is a great pairing beer if you’re looking for something to go with your glass of Four Roses. It’s also very “wintry” on the nose and palate and really suits sipping after a big holiday meal.

SOUTHERN DROP: Saint Arnold Christmas Ale

ABV: 7.7%

Average Price: $9, six-pack

The Beer:

Texas’ Saint Arnold puts out quality seasonal brews that peak with their Christmas Ale. The malts bring about a great depth in the brew but the nuance here is in the Pacific Northwest hops used to spice up the beer.

Tasting Notes:

This really hits those “winter ale” notes on the head. There’s an alcohol-driven sweet caramel maltiness that provides a solid foundation for mildly floral and bitter hop notes. Those hops have a little bit of a bite as a subtle spice kicks around in the background.

Bottom Line:

This is a really sippable pour. It’s refreshing yet filling. It’s nuanced yet full of flavor. If you’re in Texas, this is the winter beer to drink right now.

MIDWEST DROP: Great Lakes Christmas Ale

ABV: 7.5%

Average Price: $14, six-pack

The Beer:

Great Lakes Christmas Ale is another seasonal classic that’s hitting the shelves right now. This multi-award-winning ale manages just the right note of seasonal conviviality, with enough nuance to keep you interested all season long. Though be warned, this is a really easy beer to drink, and those high ABVs will catch up to you.

Tasting Notes:

The maltiness of this beer leans more towards a honeyed sweetness and the spices kick up more of a grated ginger freshness. There’s plenty of Christmas spices in play with all that malty honey nature — making for a balanced, lush feel to this sipper.

Bottom Line:

If you have one beer stocked in your fridge this month, this should probably be it. It’s the epitome of now and will always hit the right spot in vibes and flavor profile.

NORTHEAST DROP: Allagash Nocturna

ABV: 9.5%

Average Price: $20, four-pack

The Beer:

This stout from Maine is aged in bourbon barrels with vanilla pods right in the beer. That aging process holds onto the deep and dark redness of the beer while building in a very wintry and bourbon-y flavor profile that suits this time of year.

Tasting Notes:

The malts — Allagash 2-Row Malted Barley Blend, Black Malt, Oats, Chocolate Malt, and Roasted Barley — shine through from top to bottom with both deeply roasted notes and sweetened caramel ones. The opening leans sweeter with a rich and butter toffee that’s dusted with ground almonds. That leads towards a dark chocolate powder that bitters towards an espresso bean that’s damn near oily. The bourbon comes through with a touch of oak as a woody spice mingles with sweet toffee and bitter chocolate on the end.

Bottom Line:

If you’re looking for the perfect winter stout, this might be it. It’s delightfully dark and deep while still being welcoming and pretty warming with those high ABVs.

WILD CARD DROP: Alaskan Freeride

ABV: 5.3%

Average Price: $9, six-pack

The Beer:

We’re pretty big Alaskan Brewing stans around these parts and Freeride — their wintery pale ale — is a good example of why. The beer is a marriage of that famous Alaskan glacial water with Pacific Northwest hops and malts. The ABVs are middle of the road, making this an easy after-work sipper to take the edge off all November long.

Tasting Notes:

Tropical fruits meet floral-yet-mild dankness, with a caramel malty underbelly. Those fruity and floral hops really drive the taste with a nice dose of dry texture and a balance of slightly sweet malt character. The sip is refreshing, enticing, and light enough to keep you coming back for more.

Bottom Line:

We’ve been talking about a lot of big and heavy beers on this list. This is the opposite of that. It’s light, refreshing, yet still feels wintry. Your fridge needs a sixer of these in there for the rest of the season.

INT’L PICK OF THE MONTH: Dupont Avec Les Bons Voeux

ABV: 9.5%

Average Price: $12, 750ml bottle

The Beer:

Brasserie Dupont is one of the most heralded Belgian breweries, full stop. Their Saison Dupont is beloved by beer aficionados the world over. This expression is a special holiday release that used to only go to family and friends of the brewery. It leaked out to the public and became so popular that it got a wide release and is now considered one of the best holiday beers there is.

Tasting Notes:

The beer is richly aromatic from the moment it nears your nose with hints of clove, green banana, black pepper, and lemon curd. The malts are bold, sweet, and creamy as the grassy tart nature of the lemon mingles with a distant spiciness and fruitiness. The sip ends dry while still feeling full-bodied and very silky.

Bottom Line:

This is the ultimate beer for winter celebrations. Pop that cork at your next holiday party, Christmas gathering, or NYE party and enjoy one of the best beers ever made.

After releasing his Fine Line album and being forced to reschedule his massive tour, Harry Styles was finally able to play his music to swaths of adoring fans over the past two months. His Love On Tour dates kicked off in September and, after playing 42 nearly back-to-back shows, Styles’ tour has officially come to an end. Now reflecting on his time on the road, Styles thanks his fans for their ever-present support.

Styles’ final Love On Tour date took place last week at Los Angeles’ The Forum. Now that he’s had a handful of days to reflect on the whirlwind of a tour, the singer told his fans “goodbye for now” and reminds them to “treat people with kindness”:

“Thank you for 42 special nights. It’s been a privilege to play for you the last few months. To the band, the crew, and everyone working on this tour, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. The energy you brought to this one has left me feeling completely overwhelmed with joy.

To the fans, and everyone who came to see these shows, I thank you. You made them everything they were, and I’ve never felt so genuinely supported. I can’t say it enough, you’re unbelievable.

This tour felt like the celebration of coming back together. I won’t ever forget it. Thank you all so much for the love, I’ll see you very soon. Treat people with kindness. Goodbye for now. I love you all. H.”

Fine Line is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

Memphis rabble-rouser Duke Deuce returns with another exuberant video expressing his disdain for the troubles of life, “I Ain’t Worried Bout It.” Dressed up in a bright pink leather bomber jacket decked out with NBA team logo patches, Duke posts up in the suburbs on a sunny day with his crew to dance, mug the camera, and shout his signature, swear word ad-lib as the boisterous beat adds fuel to the fire.

The jacket especially is a nice touch, as it ties in with Duke’s “crunk ain’t dead” philosophy, evoking references to other early millennium movements like NBA patches and Cam’ron’s bright pink street takeover. Duke is as high-energy as ever, showing off some fancy footwork alongside his posse and headbanging himself into a sweaty mess. He seems like a lot of fun to hang out with.

“I Ain’t Worried Bout It” is the Quality Control rapper’s second single of the month (after “The Hype”), suggesting that he’s picking up steam on the way to new release after dropping “WTF” in September. The timing would be fortuitous, building on the buzz that he’s accumulated since appearing on Isaiah Rashad’s comeback single “Lay Wit Ya” this summer and performing at Migos’ Las Vegas Weekender last month.

Watch Duke Deuce’s “I Ain’t Worried Bout It” video above.

For rock fans looking for an excuse to check out South Carolina, here’s your excuse: North Charleston’s High Water Festival just announced its 2022 lineup and there’s plenty to love. Taking to the city on April 23 and 24 next year is a stacked lineup that’s led by headliners Jack White and My Morning Jacket. This is White’s first confirmed performance of 2022.

There’s a lot going on elsewhere on the bill, too, as it also features Modest Mouse, Black Pumas, Shovels & Rope, Old Crow Medicine Show, Caamp, Mavis Staples, Local Natives, Sharon Van Etten, Bahamas, Delta Spirit, Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, Jade Bird, Amythyst Kiah, Felice Brothers, Adia Victoria, Shannon And The Clams, Cedric Burnside, Palm Palm, and Jeremie Albino.

This is just the latest bit of White news: A couple weeks ago, he announced that he has two albums coming in 2022. The first of them, Fear Of The Dawn, will be out ahead of High Water, on April 8. Meanwhile, Entering Heaven Alive will arrive later, on July 22, although it’s certainly not uncommon for artists to play unreleased songs live, so this could be a chance to hear material from both of White’s upcoming projects.

Tickets aren’t yet on sale, but those interested can sign up to get a pre-sale code via the festival website.

Like plenty of other artists right now, Foo Fighters are eager to get back on the road and start performing for fans again. Yes, that MSG show helped kick things off, and yes, the “Hanukkah Sessions” help entertain for those who still don’t feel comfortable at shows, but there’s still really nothing that holds a candle to the healing power of live music. Earlier today, the band announced a full slate of tour dates for 2022, which had fans more than excited for the comprehensive stops, but just hours after announcing one of those gigs already had to be canceled.

Sorry to the fans in Minneapolis, but the August 3 show at Huntington Bank Stadium has been canceled because the venue refused to comply with Covid-19 precautions. And considering the band themselves are at the most risk, to say nothing of a desire to keep their fans safe, the decision on the venue’s part really doesn’t sit right. The band posted about the change on their Twitter, and are looking to reschedule the show shortly. “Updates: Minneapolis, please see below – we hope to see you soon! Maryland/D.C., info on your show is coming shortly!” the band wrote on Twitter, along with a statement:

“Due to Huntington Bank Stadium’s refusal to agree to the band’s Cover safety measures, Foo Fighters are unable to perform at that venue. We apologize for any inconvenience and are working on finding a suitable replacement — one that will prioritize the health and safety of everyone working and attending the show.”

Hopefully another venue will step up so those who want to get that Foo experience, but good on the band for prioritizing fan and crew safety above all.

Ready for one of the best, most comprehensive hip-hop and soul music festival lineups ever? Formerly taking place at the Queen Mary Ship & Events Park in Long Beach, CA, Smokin Grooves Fest has moved to Downtown Los Angeles and the lineup is unreal.

Going down on Saturday, March 19th at LA’s State Historic Park, Smokin Grooves has Erykah Badu, Nas, and The Roots leading the way for it’s flat out spectacular lineup. Miguel, Jhene Aiko, The Internet, Flying Lotus, and Kamasi Washington are also on the festival’s top slates and also all happen to be from the Los Angeles area. But don’t be fooled, this is much more than a regional fest and is on par with the biggest and best hip-hop culture festivals around the nation.

The names on this bill from top to bottom are impressive. From the eclectic indie sounds of Toro y Moi, Little Dragon, and Hiatus Kaiyote, to a legend like composer and vibraphonist Roy Ayers, to the vital lyricism of Talib Kweli and millennial backpack hip-hop of Slum Village and Dead Prez. There’s a stellar R&B slate with Macy Gray, India.Arie, Musiq Soulchild, and Angie Stone, plus sneaky awesome names on the rise at the bottom of the bill like Toronto’s Charlotte Day Wilson and Chicago’s Ravyn Lenae.

Pre-sale ticketing sign-ups for this extravaganza go on sale this Friday 12/03 at 10 am PT. Any unsold tickets will be made available to the general public at 2 pm PT on the same day. Register/purchase tickets and check out the full lineup and info at https://www.smokingroovesfestival.com/.

When your final child leaves the house for good, it’s like a whole new world has opened up. The decades raising babies and children are full, rich, exciting and loud. Your house is filled with laughter and sibling bickering, school projects and kid collections, never-ending laundry and food purchased in bulk. Life is big during those years. It takes up space physically, mentally and emotionally.

Then come the empty nest years, when you find yourself swimming in a house full of unused rooms and piles of memories. Suddenly you don’t need all that space anymore, and you have to figure out what to do with those rooms and those piles and those memories.

For one couple, the process of downsizing brought about a reflection on their family life, their relationship with their kids and their stuff. Jimmy Dunne shared that reflection on Facebook in a viral post that’s resonating with many people who are at or near this stage in life.

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Dunne wrote:

“My wife Catherine and I recently moved.

I realized I had something I never knew I had.

Thirty-four years ago, I carried my wife in my arms over the threshold in our home. Thirty-four years ago. From newlywed days, to witnessing our babies go from little girls to young adults. So many great memories in every inch of every room of our home.

I didn’t think I was ready to ‘downsize.’ What an awful word. I liked walking through our girl’s bedrooms and still seeing their stuff on the walls and on the shelves. I liked our backyard. I liked imagining our kids coming down the steps every Christmas morning.

We put it on the market, it sold in a couple days, and suddenly agreements thicker than my leg were instructing me to clear everything I ever had and knew – out.

Every night I found myself saying goodbye to our backyard, to our garden of roses that Catherine would till and trim, to the sidewalk where the girls drove their Barbie cars and learned to ride their bikes, to our front lawn where we hosted tons of talent shows with all the kids on the block – and the red swing on the front porch.

We found a condo in town and started lining up our ducks of what we were keeping, and what we were tossing. We vowed, if we’re going to do this, we weren’t putting anything in storage.

I literally threw out half my stuff. Half. Half of the furniture. Half of my clothes, books. And the big one… way more than half the boxes in the attic.

The attic was more than an attic. It held our stories. Every thing in every box, every framed picture was a story. After we gave away almost all of the living room furniture, we split the room in half and brought down everything of the girls from the attic and from their rooms. We invited the girls over, handed them a cocktail and said, “There’s good news and bad news. We’ve saved all this stuff; your outfits, drawings, dolls, skates — for you. It’s now yours. The bad news, whatever’s not gone by Friday at 10 in the morning, it’s getting chucked in that giant green dumpster in front of the house.”

The girls thought we were Mr. and Mrs. Satan. But they went through it, and that Friday, most of it went out the front door and right in the dumpster.

I filled the entire dining room with boxes of all my old stuff. Grade school stories and pictures, report cards, birthday cards, trophies, you name it. Boxes of old plaques and diplomas and just stuff and stuff and stuff like that. How could I throw any of this out? I may as well have been throwing me in the dumpster!

But this little jerk on my shoulder kept asking — what are your kids going to do with all this a week after you’re six feet under? They’re gonna chuck it all out!

Here’s the crazy thing. The more I threw stuff in there, the easier it got. And I started to kind of like throwing it up and over in that thing. I started to feel lighter. Better.

And we moved in a half-the-size condo – and the oddest thing happened.

It became our home.

A picture here and there on the wall, Catherine’s favorite pieces of furniture, all her knickknacks in the bathroom. We blinked, and it looked and felt just like us.

And then I found that thing I never knew I had.

Enough.

I had enough.

The wild thing was that having less – actually opened the door to so much more. More in my personal life. More in my career. More in everything.

All I have to do is look in the eyes of my two girls — and they take me back, every time, to the most beautiful, colorful, emotional scrapbook I could ever dream of having.

All I have to do is hold my wife’s hand, and it hypnotizes me back to kissing her for the first time, falling in love with everything she did, seeing her in that hospital room holding our first baby for the first time.

It sure seems there is so much more to see, and feel, and be – if I have the courage, if I have the will to shape a life that’s just…

Enough.”

People have shared Dunne’s post more than 24,000 times and it’s easy to see why. He’s speaking a truth we probably all know deep down on some level. Things don’t make a life. Things don’t make relationships. They don’t even make memories, though we tend to hold onto them as if they do. We may associate places and things with memories, but we don’t need the places and things for our memories to live on.

Kudos to Dunne and his wife for looking ahead to what their children would have to go through after they pass if they didn’t go through it now themselves. And kudos to them for truly embracing the freedom that comes with having raised your children to adulthood. The empty nest years can be whatever you choose to make of them, and this couple has figured out a key to making the most of theirs.

The empty nest years that follow are whatever you make of them.

Even the biggest Beatles fan might not be ready for Peter Jackson’s epic, three part, 7.8-hour behemoth of a documentary “Get Back,” which recently aired on Disney Plus (November 25). But if you have two minutes, there is a singular must-watch moment that not only encapsulates the distinctive brilliance of the band, but of the creative process itself.

It’s when we see Paul McCartney compose “Get Back” in all of two minutes.

A video of their hit song being born (or perhaps conceived?) has already racked up more than 300,000 views on YouTube. And you don’t have to be a Beatles connoisseur to appreciate being a fly on the wall.

Paul McCartney composing ‘Get Back’ (January 7, 1969)

“Lennon’s late again,” McCartney remarks as he grabs the bass. The band members (minus John, of course), sit in a circle and listen to McCartney nonchalantly strum and sing some “ohs” and “ahs.” In the blink of an eye, those strums become a rhythm, and the sounds become lyrics.

The video flash cuts to a fur coat clad John Lennon, waltzing into the jam session and—without missing a beat—he starts playing a bright yellow guitar, adding his own flair to the mix. It goes to show that despite the tension (don’t let the British politeness fool you, the drama was ripe), it was no match for their artistic attunement.

As the video says, that song would go on to become their next single. And it was practically pulled out of thin air.

We know that there are several hit songs that were written in minutes. But it’s another thing to see one come to life in real time. Perhaps this is what makes these tunes so inexplicably special; there’s an inherent visceral quality to them. It can’t help but be felt.

The documentary has a plethora of other behind-the-scenes gems that give an unparalleled richness to Beatles history. But this moment reminds us all of what made them so great in the first place. Anyone struggling with a lack of creative confidence might find inspiration from it.

Nicolas Cage is the top-billed actor in Pig (the most critically-acclaimed movie in his Oscar-winning career), but everyone knows the film’s real star is the titular truffle-hunting pig, played by Brandy. Sadly, as director Michael Sarnoski revealed in a recent interview with the Film Stage, Brandy passed away last year.

“She got a jaw infection, actually, at the beginning of COVID, and the sad thing is because of COVID all of the vets weren’t taking, like, new clients, so they couldn’t treat her. So she passed away, which was really sad,” he said. That’s a bummer, but there is some happy news. “She actually was pregnant while we were shooting Pig, so she does have some piglets still running around today,” Sarnoski added.

Cage (who’s truly excellent in the film) was asked about Pig getting Oscar buzz at Monday’s Gotham Awards. “Any kind of enthusiasm is always welcome,” he told ET Online. “But the reality is, it’s all about telling stories that communicate with the people. And I think this movie did, and that’s what we brought, and that’s good enough for me.” Even if Cage isn’t nominated, Brandy better show up during the In Memoriam.

Pig is available on VOD. You can read our interview with the film’s food consultant here.

(Via the Film Stage)

After once again facing criticism for how he portrayed the Gucci family in his new film, House of Gucci, prolific director Ridley Scott has fired back at the family members in a scathing rebuke. Leading the criticisms has been Patrizia Gucci, the granddaughter of Aldo Gucci, who was portrayed by Al Pacino in Scott’s film. (Aldo is also the son of Guccio Gucci, which we swear to God is a real name.)

At issue has been the “inaccurate portrayal” of Aldo and other members of the family as “thugs, ignorant and insensitive to the world around them.” Pacino’s physical appearance in House of Gucci has also rankled the family.

“My grandfather was a very handsome man, like all the Guccis, and very tall, blue eyes and very elegant,” Patrizia wrote back in April. “He is being played by Al Pacino, who is not very tall already, and this photo shows him as fat, short, with sideburns, really ugly. Shameful, because he doesn’t resemble him at all.”

Following a brand new round of criticism, Scott has finally had enough. Here’s what the iconic talker of sh*t told Total Film when asked about the Gucci family complaints:

“The people that were writing from the family to us at the onset were alarmingly insulting, saying that Al Pacino did not represent physically Aldo Gucci in any shape or form,” Scott says. “And yet, frankly, how could they be better represented than by Al Pacino? Excuse me! You probably have the best actors in the world, you should be so f*cking lucky.”

That would be Ridley Scott pulling out the rare “I cast Al Pacino as your freaking grandfather. What more do you want?” card. Will it work on the Gucci family? Probably not. Lady Gaga played their aunt, or something, and they still have notes.

(Via Total Film)