It’s cold and flu seasons, folks. During this time of year, we’re all on a mission to avoid the demon viruses that threaten to invade our bodies and wage Armageddon on our immune systems.
But no matter how much vitamin C we consume or how diligently we wash our hands, we still have to rely on others to be smart about exposing people to their sick germs.
And that goes doubly for kids, who inexplicably do things like lick their own palms and rub communal crayons under their noses.
That’s why a mom’s recent Facebook post about keeping kids home when they have a fever has been shared more than 170,000 times. Samantha Moriá Reynolds shared a photo of a thermometer with a temperature of 101.4 with the following message:
This morning, Sam woke up and noticed her son wasn’t feeling well. Sam took her son’s temperature, and wow! A fever. Sam gave her son Tylenol and then… Sam did NOT send her son to school. Even after the fever went down a couple hours later, Sam did NOT send her son to school. Sam missed work knowing that the well-being of her son and the kids who attend his school is more important than work missed.
Sam’s son was invited to THREE birthday parties over the weekend. Sam’s son has been so excited to go, but he will unfortunately also have to miss them because Sam’s son is SICK. Sam knows passing along a sickness would not be a great birthday gift regardless of how bummed her son may be.
Sam knows her son is still contagious until he is fever-free, WITHOUT medication, for 24 hours. If Sam’s son is running a fever at 7am on Sunday, Sam’s son will also not be attending school on Monday.
Be. Like. Sam.
Some parents will give their kids fever-reducing medication, the fever will go down, the kid will feel a bit better, and off they go to school. But fever meds like Tylenol don’t do anything to kill the virus that’s infecting the kid’s body. They just mask the symptoms of the illness and provide some relief to a miserable kiddo. If a fever goes down with medication, the child is still sick and still contagious.
The same goes for adults who try to tough it out by popping a Dayquil before heading off to work. If you want to infect your coworkers and make them hate you, keep doing that.
Granted, some parents may have a hard time finding childcare or taking time off work, and there’s a lot to be said for employers being understanding and granting leave to care for sick children. Our whole society needs to work together on this front to make sure people don’t feel like they have no choice but to send a sick kid to school. But that starts with parents insisting that their feverish kids stay home from school until they are no longer a threat to other people’s health and well-being.
The coronavirus outbreak keeps making headlines and the mounting death numbers from it are making people nervous, but the truth is that the plain old flu already kills thousands of Americans every single year. This season, more than 8,000 people have already died from flu and flu complications, and we’re still in the thick of the season.
The best way to keep illness from spreading is to stay away from other people when you are sick and to keep sick kids home until they are fever-free for 24 hours.
Be like Sam. Keep sick kids home. It takes a village to keep us all healthy.
Parenting is the most important job that most people will ever have in life. Your decisions as a parent will be some of the most important determining factors in whether your child becomes a happy and productive adult or not. It’s a huge responsibility.
Parenting is a difficult and important undertaking, but many parents simply repeat the same strategies used by their parents. How often do we hear people rationalize their decisions by saying, “That’s what my parents did and I came out ok.”
This approach to raising children negates the fact that with every generation there are countless studies done on child development, many of which run counter to popular parenting wisdom from the past.
Dr. Kristyn Sommer, who has a PhD in child development, has received a lot of attention on social media because of her dedication to teaching “evidence-based parenting.” This expertise has made her an advocate for strategies that run counter to conventional parenting wisdom and have stirred up a bit of controversy.
Here are five TikTok videos where Sommer shares some of her evidence-based parenting strategies.
Three Things I Do Differently as a Mum with a PhD in Child Development
In Dr. Sommer’s first video where she references her degree she admits she refuses to sleep train, co-sleeps with her daughter, and never calls her “naughty” or “bad.” She delves deeper into her thoughts on discipline in the next video.
How To Discipline Your Child So They Actually Learn
Dr. Sommer uses positive reinforcement to discipline her child and as she said in the previous video, avoids the use of terms such as “naughty” or “bad.” If her daughter is doing something wrong she asks her to contemplate whether she’s making a good or a bad decision.
How to Handle Tantrums
Most people tend to think of a tantrum as naughty behavior. However, they are actually a combination of a bunch of little stresses that the child has experienced throughout the day that eventually overwhelm them. Once they hit the tipping point, all of their big feelings bubble up to the surface, resulting in a healthy expression of emotion.
Should You Spank Your Child?
Dr. Sommer is passionately against “spanking, corporal punishment, physical punishment, what ever you want to call it.” She says it needs to stop because it has little effect on behavior and can lead to antisocial tendencies in the future.
She Doesn’t Teach ABCs and 1,2,3s
Dr. Sommer isn’t worried about teaching her child her toddler alphabet or how to count. She says that it “doesn’t really help them with anything” but they should spend that time playing because that’s where they learn best.
Another day, another fascinating peek behind the curtain of the rich and famous. Just when we thought the conversations about nepo babies had finally fizzled out of the conversation, Romy Mars, the daughter of Phoenix’s frontman Thomas Mars and Oscar-Award-winning filmmaker Sofia Coppola, has thrown her hate into the ring.
In a video uploaded and later deleted from her TikTok page, the the young Romy shared that she had been grounded by her parents and confined within the walls of her family’s manor. Why was she being punished? Because, in her words, “I tried to charter a helicopter from New York to Maryland on my dad’s credit card because I wanted to have dinner with my camp friend.”
As if that wasn’t enough to upset her parents, she also shared that her parents’ biggest rule is “I’m not allowed to have any public social media accounts.” Clearly she disregards that rule as well.
Romy did share that her parents had stated their reasons for keeping her off social media. As Romy explained it, “They don’t want me to be a nepotism kid, but TikTok is not gonna make me famous, so it doesn’t really matter.” Before the video was taken down, it garnered thousands of views.
While most Succession stars have been bittersweet about it ending after only four seasons, one cast member seems fine with it: Brian Cox. The legendary actor has said he felt nothing shooting the final scene of the show that made him super-famous, and he’s actually stoked to not have to treat other actors to Logan Roy’s signature catchphrase. That doesn’t mean he’s opposed to the show returning in another form. In fact, he has a not bad idea for a spinoff.
On the red carpet of the show’s splashy Season 4 premiere, The Hollywood Reportercaught up with the big screen’s first Hannibal Lecter, who is usually not above speaking his mind, including being very frank about what he thinks of Jeremy Strong’s curious acting method (which is not exactly Method acting). Cox was actually mostly warm, gushing about how great it was to work with his onscreen oldest biological son.
Cox was also asked about a potential spinoffs, and though he said creator Jesse Armstrong would probably not do one without the original characters, he had one idea. “I suppose Greg really would be the natural spinoff, ‘the life of an idiot’ would be an interesting thing — a tall idiot at that,” he joked.
Sarah Snook had a similar but different idea, one about “Tom and Greg, some sort of half-hour comedy setting up the head office in Vancouver, Canadian outpost.”
Nicholas Braun, aka Cousin Greg himself, chimed in, “You’d have to drop Tom and Greg into some weird world, drop them into the Philippines or something, drop them into some crazy weird micro-business world we never saw in the show. That’s the way.”
On one hand, it’s good, in an age where few shows or films ever come to an actual close, for Succession to end on top (hopefully). On the other, a spinoff with Cousin Greg and maybe also with Tom sounds delightful.
And with all that booze… Look, it can’t all be good. “New” doesn’t always mean something is worthwhile.
So to help you sort through all the new labels and new batches of classic bourbon hitting shelves, I’m pulling 10 brand-new bourbon whiskeys (all of these were just released or the current batch that was just dropped) from my shelves and blind tasting them. Our lineup today features the following bottles:
Michter’s Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 10 Years Old
Stellum Single Barrel Bourbon Leo Topflight Series By ReserveBar
Jack Daniel’s 10 Years Old Tennessee Whiskey, Batch 2
The ranking for this is very straightforward. This is about what tastes goodright now. It’s really that simple. Luckily, there are a lot of great whiskeys hitting shelves (spoiler alert: all of these whiskeys were pretty damn tasty). Still, when it came to ranking these bourbons, I didn’t hesitate. There were clear winners from the jump so scroll down and find the perfect whiskey to add to your bar cart this spring!
Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months
Nose: There’s a peppery sense of cedar bark and burnt orange next to salted caramel and tart red berries with a moist and spicy sticky toffee pudding with some brandy butter dancing on the nose.
Palate: The palate blends vanilla tobacco with salted dark chocolate-covered marzipan while espresso cream leads to new porch wicker and black peppercorns.
Finish: The end has a pecan waffle vibe with chocolate chips, maple syrup, blackberry jam, and minced meat pies next to old tobacco and cedar with a sweet yet toasted marshmallow on the very end.
Initial Thoughts:
Well, this is going to be hard to beat. This is classic deep Kentucky bourbon that’s delicious.
Taste 2
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a classic sense of spiced cherry with cinnamon cookies cut with raw brown sugar and vanilla next to a hint of taco seasoning spice packets.
Palate: The palate is lush with a sense of dark creamy chocolate, smoldering marshmallows, honey-dipped Graham crackers, and a light sense of peach tobacco.
Finish: The honey sweetens the finish with a sense of old oak and a dirt cellar floor next to a walnut cake and a mild warming buzz.
Initial Thoughts:
This is pretty damn nice too. It’s not quite as deep as the first sip, but very enjoyable overall.
Taste 3
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This opens with a sense of unbaked sourdough cinnamon rolls next to Graham Crackers dipped in vanilla-creamed honey served with a warm can of peach soda.
Palate: The palate leans into the fruitiness with a pink taffy vibe that’s countered by slight pepperiness, a touch of “woody,” and more of that creamy honey laced with vanilla.
Finish: The fruity take on a savory essence — think cantaloupe — on the mid-palate before circling back to the pepperiness with a bit of woody spice on the short end.
Initial Thoughts:
This is nice and light. It feels like a solid cocktail base that also works as a sipper, kind of like a classic table whiskey that you don’t have to overthink.
Taste 4
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This pops on the nose with rich caramel next to soft roasted peach and apricot next to a rush of cinnamon bark and nutmeg with a creamy vibe.
Palate: Toffee drives the palate toward Nutella and honey over buttermilk biscuits with an apple/pear tobacco aura that leads to a soft orange.
Finish: The end is rich and full of stewed fruits — peach, pear, orange, raisins — and a mild sense of oaky spice and a mild graininess.
Initial Thoughts:
This is another one that’s just nice. It’s a tad on the lighter end (and very fruity) but well-built and deep.
Taste 5
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is creamy with deep notes of old boot leather, dark and woody winter spices, black-tea-soaked dates, plum jam with clove, and an underbelly of chewy toffee-laced tobacco.
Palate: That creaminess presents on the palate with a soft sticky toffee pudding drizzled in salted caramel and vanilla sauce next to flakes of salt and a pinch of orange zest over dry Earl Grey tea leaves with a whisper of singed wild sage.
Finish: The end leans into the creamy toffee chewy tobacco with a hint of pear, cherry, and bananas foster over winter spice barks and a deep embracing warmth.
Initial Thoughts:
This is great-tasting whiskey.
Taste 6
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Leather and spiced cherry drive the nose toward meaty dates and wet brown sugar with a very classic bourbon vibe.
Palate: That brown sugar turns a little molasses-y on the palate as vanilla cream pie drizzled in toffee leans toward spiced milk chocolate powder and a hint of hazelnut cream.
Finish: That creaminess drives the finish toward leathery dried fruits and dates next to a cherry/vanilla/spiced tobacco buzzing warmth.
Initial Thoughts:
This was another nice, classic bourbon.
Taste 7
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Dark oak and leather dance with caramel peanuts and peanut brittle with a good dose of spiced cherries dipped in dark chocolate.
Palate: Rich marzipan leads on the palate with more of that choco-cherry feel next to vanilla-laced whipped cream, nutmeg, clove, red berry fruit leather, and a whisper of fresh and sharp spearmint.
Finish: Brandied cherries with orange peel and clove settle on the finish with a nice sense of buttery salted caramel and creamy nuttiness.
Initial Thoughts:
Again, this is just good. It’s a very bourbon-y bourbon. It doesn’t grab me as fully as pours 5, 2, and 1 but this isn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination.
Taste 8
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This smells rich and lush with deep creamy eggnog next to sweet dark fruit leather, old oak cellars, and a sniff of vanilla cake bespeckled with crumbled-up hard-toffees covered in dark salted chocolate.
Palate: Those toffee chocolate candies drive the palate toward spiced oatmeal cookies with walnuts and raisins dipped in vanilla buttercream and dashed with brown sugar and salt with a fleeting sense of orange and vanilla.
Finish: Spiced cookies with plenty of fatty nuts appear on the finish as a matrix of orchard fruits — cherry, plum, orange — slowly fade toward burnt ends of rock candy dipped in winter spice liqueur with a brazen heat to it.
Initial Thoughts:
F*ck, this is delicious. It’s a tad hot at the end, but I kind of love it. It’s that classic “burn so good” vibe.
Taste 9
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Woody huckleberry jam over raisin scones mingle with eggnog spices and brown sugar cookies, spiced cherry fruit leather, and a twinge of sweet yet old oakiness.
Palate: That dark fruit leather leans into brandy-soaked dates and prunes with a sense of old oak cellars next to rich vanilla, soft apples, and sticky toffee pudding.
Finish: There’s a dark cherry spiced vibe to the finish that leans into fresh chewy tobacco packed into an old oak box and then wrapped in leather with a burnt orange rind and winter spice bouquet on top.
Initial Thoughts:
This is another winner. It just feels classic.
Taste 10
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This opens with a rich matrix of cherry syrup, apple cores, sticky toffee, vanilla ice cream, and a bold line of wet and sweet oak with a mild earthiness.
Palate: The palate opens up towards the dark fruit but dries it out and marries it to a woody and spicy tobacco leaf alongside toasted cedar soaked in salted caramel paired with dry corn husks that are just singed.
Finish: The finish really takes its time as the cherry attaches to an old cinnamon stick and the tobacco takes on a sticky chewiness with an almost smoked oak woodiness.
Initial Thoughts:
This is sweet and oaky but nicely balanced. It’s a really easy-going sipper for sure.
Castle & Key Distillery is the renovated Old Taylor Distillery outside of Frankfort, Kentucky. This distillery has spent years contract distilling for other brands, until this year when they released their first batch of this expression in April. The juice is a mash of 73% white corn, 17% malted barley, and a scant 10% rye. After four years, 80 or so barrels are chosen for this small-batch expression and proofed down with local water.
Bottom Line:
This is really good, standard bourbon. If you’re looking for a great cocktail base for spring cocktails, get this. It plays well with citrus, Campari, and mint.
9. Green River Kentucky Straight Wheated Bourbon Sour Mash Whiskey — Taste 4
This new release from Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Green River distillery is a wheated classic. The whiskey in the bottle is made from a mash bill (recipe) of 70% Kentucky-grown corn, 21% wheat, and 9% malted 6-Row barley. That whiskey then spends four to six years mellowing before batching, proofing, and bottling as-is.
Bottom Line:
This is another no-brainer if you’re looking for a cocktail base. I’d also argue that this makes a good table whiskey for everyday sipping over a lot of ice too.
This whiskey from out in Washington is a blend of two bourbons with an array of finishings. The blend is a mix of a 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley bourbon with a 60% corn, 36% rye, and 4% malted barley bourbon. After several years, those whiskeys were refilled into European oak casks, namely cognac, Olorosso sherry, and Pedro Ximenez sherry casks from anywhere from three to 16 months of finishing before batching and bottling.
Bottom Line:
This is where we get into the easy-sipping bourbons. This is really good but also… sorta felt like a typical $50 bourbon.
First off, this has a great name and reimagined logo (these are the new bottles for 2023). Secondly, the whiskey is made from a mash bill of 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley so we know this is MGP distillate, and that usually means high-quality booze.
Bottom Line:
This was a really nice, high-proof bourbon. It had a stone-cold classic flavor profile. If you’re in West Virginia, pick yourself up a bottle.
This new release from 15 STARS is a blend of two bourbons with a big finishing run. The whiskey is made from an eight and 16-year-old blend that was finished in Kentucky in port, cognac, and rum casks for eight additional months before batching and bottling.
Bottom Line:
This is getting pretty close to excellent. I can easily see sipping this on a sunny day next to a smoker or grill in the backyard.
5. Jack Daniel’s 10 Years Old Tennessee Whiskey, Batch 2 — Taste 10
This age statement released from Jack Daniel’s is a throwback to a bygone era in Tennessee Whiskey. The whiskey is aged for at least 10 years before batching. During that time, the barrels spend time in the “Buzzard’s Roost” at the top of the rickhouse. Once they hit the right flavor profile, those barrels are moved to the bottom floors of other warehouses to slow the aging down. Finally, the whiskey is batched, proofed, and bottled.
Bottom Line:
This was an oaky whiskey with a nice fruitiness to balance things out. I’d say if you’re looking for something oaky but more fruity than spiced, then get this.
4. Stellum Single Barrel Bourbon Leo Topflight Series By ReserveBar — Taste 2
This single-barrel pick from Stellum utilizes a classic sourced bourbon with 75% corn, 21% rye, and 4% malted barley from Indiana. Those barrels are transported over the Ohio River to Louisville, Kentucky where they finish their four to six-year-long rest. This release was chosen by the team at ReserveBar and released as a single barrel pick in their Topflight Series.
Bottom Line:
This is a really good sipping bourbon at a great price point. This could easily be $100 and no one would blink an eye. So in that case, get two.
3. Lost Lantern 2023 Single Cask #3 Watershed Distillery Ohio Straight Bourbon Whiskey 7 Years Old — Taste 8
The latest Lost Lantern single barrel release is a five-grain bourbon from our in Ohio. Watershed Distillery used corn, rye, wheat, malted barley, and locally-grown spelt for the mash of this bourbon. The whiskey then spent five years mellowing in Ohio before the barrel was shipped to Vermont for two more years of mellowing. Finally, the team at Lost Lantern thought this one was ready and bottled it as-is only yielding 65 bottles.
Bottom Line:
This is a great whiskey. Great. It was a tad hot on the finish, which is why it’s third instead of first. Otherwise, add some water and let this beauty bloom in the glass and take your time with it. Just hurry, this will be sold out very soon. And then that’s it — forever.
2. Michter’s Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey 10 Years Old — Taste 1
The whiskey barrels sourced for these single-barrel expressions tend to be at least 10 years old with some rumored to be closer to 15 years old (depending on the barrel’s quality, naturally). Either way, the whiskey goes through Michter’s bespoke filtration process before a touch of Kentucky’s iconic soft limestone water is added, bringing the bourbon down to a very crushable 94.4 proof.
Bottom Line:
This had a balance to it that the rest of the whiskeys on this panel just didn’t. This is quintessential and bold Kentucky bourbon from top to bottom and felt like a warm hug from an old friend. Plus, it’s hitting shelves right now, which means you might be able to snag a bottle if you’re savvy.
1. Jack Daniel’s 12-Year-Old Tennessee Whiskey — Taste 5
Jack Daniel’s doesn’t hide any of its processes. The mash at the base of this whiskey is a mix of 80% corn, 12% barley, and 8% rye. Those grains are milled in-house and mixed with cave water pulled from an on-site spring and Jack Daniel’s own yeast and lactobacillus that they also make/cultivate on-site. Once fermented, the mash is distilled twice in huge column stills. The hot spirit is then filtered through 10 feet of sugar maple charcoal that’s also made at the distillery. Finally, the filtered juice is loaded into charred new American oak barrels and left alone in the warehouse. After 12 years, a handful of barrels were ready; so they were batched, barely proofed, and bottled.
Bottom Line:
This was the stand-out of the panel. It’s so well-balanced, nuanced, and just freaking tasty. It leaned more into the sweet fruit yeasty flavor notes while still holding onto classic and deep bourbon flavor notes. This is the good stuff, folks, that’s also just hitting shelves and still might be findable.
Part 3 — Final Thoughts on New Spring Bourbons
Zach Johnston
There isn’t a bad bourbon on this list. Seriously, Castle & Key and Green River are excellent mixing whiskeys for cocktails. Don’t sleep on those. Tastes eight through four are all stellar pours. Go back through the tasting notes and find the whiskey that speaks to you and then get it. You won’t be disappointed by any of those.
But, wow, the top three whiskeys were all stone-cold killers. You’ll be in good hands whiskey-wise after grabbing any of those gems.
The jury’s still out on whether Donald Trump will become the first U.S. president to be indicted, but at least he’s already achieved one milestone: He’s the first U.S. president to have a failed music single. (Probably, unless Ronald Reagan once tried his hand at music and history forgot.)
Amid all the hubbub going on in Trump’s life right now, he found time to record and release a single called “Justice for All.” It’s a collaboration between him and a group known as the “J6 Prison Choir,” which is comprised of about 20 people jailed for their involvement in the Capitol riot. It’s a charity single, with proceeds supposed to go to legal aid for the latter group.
Well, as per The Daily Beast, the song did chart — but only on the Bubbling Under Hot 100. There it reached #4, close to cracking the 100, but no cigar.
Perhaps people weren’t blown away by the content. Despite Trump’s professed love for those who tried to overturn Democracy at his bidding, not a whole lot of effort went into the single. The entirety of it finds a scratchily-recorded men’s choir dutifully singing “The Star Spangled Banner” while every now and then a semi-engaged Trump occasionally reciting The Pledge of Allegiance. Not only is it lazy, but it doesn’t even sound very good. It runs a mere two minutes and 20 seconds. For perspective, that’s only less than 30 seconds longer than the super short original version of “Old Town Road” (and 17 seconds shy of the Billy Ray Cyrus remix).
It may sound cliché, but half the fun of drinking wine is learning about what’s in your glass. If we’re being honest, not even a lifetime of studying could lead to mastery of the subject but… that’s kind of the beauty of it all. However, learning the foundations is a great place to start. While there are a plethora of regions, grape varieties, and styles to understand, locking in the basics can be done with as few as 10 bottles.
First thing’s first, there are some keys to know. When tasting wines—no matter what color or style—assessing a wine’s body (light, medium, full) is always on the table, followed by acidity (high, medium, low). When it comes to red wine, tannins—that is, the astringent compounds responsible for leaving drying sensations on your tongue, cheeks, and gums—are also assessed. Put these three things together, and you’ve got a 101 understanding of wine’s structure! And that’s good to know because these components are far more foundational than “flavor” notes (think fruit, earth, and other descriptors) when assessing a wine.
Note: There’s plenty more to learn than via our list below, and the bottles can certainly be substituted with other producers, but you’ll get the drift. Check out our 10 foundational bottles to learn the basics about wine below—trust us, this may just be the most fun you’ve ever had while “studying.”
1. Cooper Mountain Pinot Noir 2019
Cooper Mountain Vineyards
ABV: 13.5% Region: Oregon, USA Price: $27.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
For understanding what wines with lower levels of tannins and higher levels of acidity taste like, Pinot Noir is a great place to start. The low levels of tannins are due to the grapes’ thin skins, as skins are where tannins generally come from. The thicker they are, the more prominent they’ll be.
Tasting Notes:
This savory, earth-driven Pinot Noir shows flavors of red cherry, blueberry, raspberry, damp earth, and hints of sweet spice. The wine’s ample acidity and soft tannins make this bottle extremely easy to drink—especially when served with a slight chill on it.
The Bottom Line:
Pinot Noir really spans the “nuances” gamut of styles and flavor profiles. To best understand the unique differences, we recommend grabbing a bottle from California, as well as a Burgundian expression (such as this one: Domaine Pillot Bourgogne Rouge 2021) to really explore the spectrum.
2. Domaine Saint Roch Touraine Sauvignon 2021
BuyRite Wines
ABV: 12% Region: Loire Valley, France Price: $17.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
Sauvignon Blanc is one of the most widely planted grape varieties in the entire world. While New World expressions tend to show a bit more grassiness, Old World styles tend to be a bit more flinty and smoky. In addition to fruit-driven traits, these wines will offer great examples of non-fruit characteristics, too.
Tasting Notes:
This textbook expression of Sauvignon Blanc shows crisp flavors of citrus rind, crushed rocks, and flinty undertones. Ample amounts of zesty acidity lead to long, lip-puckering finish.
The Bottom Line:
Acid, acid, acid, as well as what herbaceousness (and hints of flintiness) in wine taste like. We generally don’t suggest tasting wine with preconceived thoughts in mind, but keep these descriptors handy when actively seeking them out this time around.
3. Château de Bellevue Lussac Saint-Emilion
Vivino
ABV: 13% Region: Bordeaux, France Price: $24.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
Merlot is usually known for producing medium-bodied wines with smooth, supple tannins and moderate amounts of acidity. For a good gauge of what a middle-of-the-road expression is in all of these facets of red wine, Merlot is a great place to start.
Tasting Notes:
Merlot is synonymous with flavors of blueberry, blackberry, and hints of red flowers, and this Right Bank Bordeaux blend shows exactly that. Expect a fleshy and juicy wine marked by pleasantly firm tannins and a palate-coating finish.
The Bottom Line:
Old World versus New World plays a big role here, in that most Old World expressions, specifically from Bordeaux, are blends (and are labeled by region), whereas New World examples are monovarietal, meaning 100%. Check out this example from Washington (L’Ecole 41 Columbia Valley Merlot 2019) to dive into the latter.
4. Domaine Mathias Bourgogne Chardonnay 2021
Astor Wine & Spirits
ABV: 13.5% Region: Burgundy, France Price: $24.96
What This Wine Will Teach You:
On its own, Chardonnay is generally pretty bland and neutral. This can be a good thing and a bad thing—good in that it can greatly reflect the terroir from which it comes, bad in that it will also very obviously reveal imbalances in wine, such as excessive use of oak.
Tasting Notes:
This medium-bodied Chardonnay is a very typical expression of White Burgundy, in that it shows supple flavors of stone fruit, lemon cream, pear, and saline-driven undertones. For those looking to understand the texture of a medium-bodied white wine, this bottle is it.
The Bottom Line:
Chardonnay is basically a chameleon, in that it will greatly reflect where it’s grown and how it’s made. Unfortunately, the majority of affordable Chardonnay out there is pretty bad—in that it’s pretty good at reflecting a lack of balance. On the contrary, great expressions, such as the one above, show beautiful balance.
5. Pecchenino Langhe Botti Nebbiolo 2020
Vivino
ABV: 13.5% Region: Piedmont, Italy Price: $17.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
While it was tough to choose between including Sangiovese and Nebbiolo on this list, the latter really stands out in helping to learn about tannins. Even approachable styles of Nebbiolo, such as this one from Pecchenino, very obviously leave a drying sensation in the mouth.
Tasting Notes:
Ruby-hued in the glass, this perfumed Nebbiolo shows classic flavors of dried strawberries, rose petals, leather, and hints of potting soil. Don’t let its light color fool you – the tannic grip on this wine is pretty strong!
The Bottom Line:
Think about over-steeped black tea or underripe fruit – these are other ways to understand what tannins feel like. Comparing Nebbiolo and Pinot Noir side by side is a great way to understand tannins, in that both varieties produce high-acid red wines, though their tannic structures couldn’t be more different.
6. Hervé Rafflin, ‘Nature’l’ Extra Brut NV Champagne
Vivino
ABV: 12.5% Region: Champagne, France Price: $39.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
The traditional method of making sparkling wine! There are three main ways in which bubbles are produced: the traditional method, the tank method, and the ancestral method. The first is used in Champagne (and other regions), the second mostly in Prosecco, and the third in pét-nats. Traditional method sparklers undergo a secondary fermentation in bottle, then age on their lees (AKA the dead yeast cells from fermentation), which imparts toasty flavors and ample texture to the final wines.
Tasting Notes:
Rafflin’s Nature’l Extra Brut uses Champagne’s signature trio of grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. Expect flavors of citrus, white stone fruit, brioche, and a touch of saline to lead to a vivaciously zingy finish.
The Bottom Line:
Sparkling wine is made all over the world and is produced in a variety of styles, though Champagne will always reign king. Fun fact: the traditional method is also used in Cava and crémant production, too.
7. No Fine Print Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
Gold Eagle Wine
ABV: 13.5% Region: California, USA Price: $19.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
Cabernet Sauvignon from California is generally the stereotypical example of what “New World” style wines are, although that is shifting as climate change (and global winemaking preferences) evolve – in other words, bold, fruit-forward, and often marked by some influences of new oak.
Tasting Notes:
While many California Cabs tend to err on the jammy side of things, this well-balanced pick from No Fine Print is just right. The wine’s concentrated-yet-balanced profile is laden with flavors of plums, blackberry, and subtle hints of toasty oak. Fun fact: This wine was crafted by Pat Corcoran and Tim Smith (managers of Chance the Rapper and Skrillex, respectively), to create “wine by the people, for the people.”
The Bottom Line:
This flavor-packed and extremely fruit-forward Cabernet Sauvignon is a quintessential example of West Coast Cab, though its relatively lower ABV (most are over 14%) render it a bit more restrained than the majority of expressions—which we definitely appreciate.
8. Pfeffingen Dry Riesling 2021
Field Blend Selections
ABV: 12% Region: Pfalz, Germany Price: $23.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
Similar to Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling is a quintessential variety used to showcase acidity in wine, as bottles produced from it are known for their laser-like depictions. This dry example from Pfeffingen is no exception.
Tasting Notes:
High-acid wine lovers, don’t sleep on this tasty bottle. Notes of lemon, lime, green apple skin, and crushed stones offer a juicy, mineral-driven finish. In short, this wine is lively, balanced, and kind of like sunshine-meets-lightning in a glass.
The Bottom Line:
Another key takeaway here – Not. All. Riesling. Is. Sweet! Dry Riesling is the perfect example to show that many grape varieties can span the entire flavor profile spectrum, from bone dry to sticky sweet.
9. Catena Malbec 2019
Young
ABV: 13.6% Region: Mendoza, Argentina Price: $17.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
Although Malbec isn’t always included on lists like this, we believe that the wines often depict a distinct florality — which can be hard to pick up in wines. A classic tasting note in Malbec is often violets, hence the inclusion of this wine on the list (plus, historically speaking, Catena has done loads for South America’s viticultural scene. Google their story.)
Tasting Notes:
Full-bodied red wine fans, this one’s for you. The dark violet hue of Catena’s Malbec is undeniably reflected in the glass, offering flavors of ripe red and dark berries, violet, hints of and hints of coffee. Despite the wine’s concentrated palate, tingly natural acidity allows the wine to finish lengthy and bright.
The Bottom Line:
In addition to depicting florality, Malbecs are generally very fruit-forward and see some new oak, which helps to showcase the stereotypical “New World” style used on tasting grids.
10. Mary Taylor – Pascal Biotteau Anjou Blanc 2021
Vivino
ABV: 12% Region: Loire Valley, France Price: $15.99
What This Wine Will Teach You:
Chenin Blanc-based wines are bottles that novice wine drinkers generally describe as “sweet,” when they’re actually just fruit-forward. This is a great bottle to understand what wines with honeyed, fruit-driven characteristics without the presence of residual sugar taste like.
Tasting Notes:
This budget-friendly Chenin Blanc from Anjou is exactly what you’d expect from the region/grape: ripe stone fruit, honey, canned peaches, green apple, and hints of crushed rocks. Tangy, bright, and simply delicious – what more could you ask for?
The Bottom Line:
Similar to Riesling, Chenin Blanc can go the limits, in that it can be vinified bone dry, as well as into dessert-style wines. This expression beautifully depicts the notion described above – dry Chenins are often very honeyed and fruit-forward, though they don’t necessarily contain any residual sugar content.
Insults of any kind are painful, but jabs towards someone’s financial status are their own breed.
In January 2023, Singapore-based Zoe Gabriel was on the receiving end of this particular flavor of mockery when she posted a TikTok about a purse from local retail brand Charles & Keith—a gift bought for her by her father.
In her excitement, the 17-year-old called the bag, which costs around $80, a “luxury” item as she unwrapped it. Her excitement was sadly cut short by some of the negative comments she received.
One comment seemed to stand out above the rest and prompted Gabriel to post an emotional response video.
The now-deleted comment, which read, “Who’s gonna tell her?” followed by a laughing emoji, showed in the background as Gabriel tearfully explained why the purse meant so much to her as someone who grew up without a lot of money.
“We couldn’t buy new things as simple as bread from BreadTalk,” she said, referencing a popular Singaporean bakery. “That kind of thing was a luxury to us…Every time we passed by a store, my parents would just say next time, but next time would never come.”
With this context, Gabriel shared why the shameful comment was so inconsiderate.
“To you, an $80 bag may not be a luxury. For me and my family, it is a lot, and I’m so grateful that my dad was able to get me one. He worked so hard for that money.”
Gabriel’s video quickly went viral, even making its way to the actual founders of the Charles & Keith brand, Charles and Keith Wong. According to The Straits Times, the brothers were so “impressed” with Gabriel that they invited her and her father to have lunch and an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour at the company’s headquarters.
The brand later posted a photo on its Instagram page showing Gabriel modeling a lilac-colored Charles & Keith bag for International Women’s Day, even announcing her as a new brand ambassador.
You’d think it would go without saying to just let people enjoy things, but we know that on the internet simple courtesy sometimes goes out the window. However, this is a heartwarming reminder that for every ignorant remark, there are also those who want to lift others up.
Gabriel might have been ridiculed, but she has since seemed to come out on top, posting videos of herself wining and dining and dancing and traveling and basically having the time of her life. Sounds like the ultimate luxury to me.
Fans of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” are well acquainted with the “Rusical” segment, but in case this word seems like something out of Dr. Seuss, here’s a brief explainer: A Rusical is a challenge on the show where contestants put on a live parody drag musical. Since debuting in Season 6, the Rusical has become a beloved staple of the series, with some of the most popular titles being “Madonna: The Unauthorized Rusical,” “HERstory of the World” and “Moulin Ru: The Rusical.”
For Episode 12, the queens drew inspiration from the 1984 movie “Footloose” to tell a story about a small town that prohibits drag rather than dancing. The performance got a sweet seal of approval from the OG Ren McCormack himself.
“Big shoutout to @rupaulsdragrace’s Wigloose: the RuSical (and props to Heaven Bacon),” he wrote, adding that with the recent controversial legislation against drag shows, the performance “came at just the right time.”
“Drag is an art and drag is a right,” his story concluded.
LaDuca’s response? The same as anybody who just got a shoutout from Kevin Bacon would be.
“Well, I’m dead.”
Bacon wasn’t the only one to love “Wigloose.” Fans of the show were gushing about how they felt this was the best Rusical of the entire series.
Check out some of these lovely comments gleaned from Youtube.
“This was the BEST Rusical in Drag Race history across franchises.”
“Literally no one did bad, they all slayed.”
“This is one of the best rusicals they’ve ever done. Professional vocalists, catchy songs, tight choreography, and a timely and touching storyline. Everyone who had a hand in it should be super proud.”
Watch the full performance of “Wigloose: The Rusical” below:
Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.
While we’re at it, sign up for our newsletter to get the best new indie music delivered directly to your inbox, every Monday.
100 Gecs — 10,000 Gecs
With videos featuring fireworks set off in the living room and a guitar being smashed on the ground, 100 Gecs know how to keep the attention on them. 10,000 Gecs was their highly anticipated answer to a groundbreaking debut that was hard to follow; however, the duo managed to get even weirder, making fans surprised and satisfied.
Yves Tumor — Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds)
The singles for Yves Tumor’s new album Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds) previewed an atmospheric, eclectic experience, which one can already guess from the dramatic title. Together, the different songs blend together to create a cohesive, immersive listen-through. “Lovely Sewer” vibrates and buzzes with subtle excitement; “Parody” is a laid-back ballad in the realm of Tennis or Mac DeMarco. “In Spite Of War” is a memorable highlight.
Meet Me @ The Altar — Present // Past // Future
Finally, Meet Me @ The Altar unveiled their highly anticipated debut album Present // Past // Future, whose blazing singles were nothing short of exciting. But the ebullience of songs like “Kool” and “Say It (To My Face)” are also balanced with more downtrodden tracks like “A Few Tomorrows,” a thoughtful meditation on loss.
Unknown Mortal Orchestra — V
“The Garden” is a groovy, hypnotic hook for Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s new double album V. It encapsulates the dreaminess that’s to come throughout the next hour; the atmospheric songs pour into one another, sharing a spellbinding, celestial texture that keeps the listener in his hold the entire time.
Dazy — OTHERBODY
Dazy’s surprise OTHERBODY EP is a treat after they’ve unleashed the explosive OUTOFBODY last year. Those songs were reverb-drenched rock anthems with sticky melodies, especially the infectious “On My Way.” OTHERBODY is no less electrifying. “Every Little” is a fuzzed-out ripper that sounds like American Idiot on steroids; “Submarine” is a catchy, idiosyncratic ballad, still staticky.
Fenne Lily — “In My Own Time”
About “In My Own Time,” Fenne Lily shared, “This song’s about the weight of stasis — about time moving too quickly and too slowly and every mistake feeling both permanent and inconsequential.” It’s painfully relatable as she sings about the pressure of existence against soft guitars: “Sometimes I feel like I’m just killing time here / Or maybe it’s killing me.”
Feist — “Borrow Trouble”
“[‘Borrow Trouble‘] began as a contemplative acoustic morality tale and shape-shifted itself into the sound of trouble itself,” Feist said about their kaleidoscopic new song. “It’s a mess that holds its own logic. It’s the convincing cacophony that thoughts can be.” “Borrow Trouble” follows its own rules, and the lyrics are as boundary-breaking as the sprawling sound: “Even before your eyes are open / The plot has thickened ’round your fears.”
Warm Human — “Daylight Savings”
“Daylight Savings” is a mellow, lush ballad that Warm Human describes as being “my stream of consciousness about whether or not to text an ex on their birthday, and the cyclical thinking that comes from staring at a road for fourteen hours a day.” The pain is palpable in the sullen guitars and airy vocals; it’s a sprawling but heavy listen.
Phoenix, Clairo — “After Midnight”
Phoenix unveiled Alpha Zulu last year with a bang, and they’ve spiced up the track “After Midnight” by recruiting the one and only Clairo. Her voice is a wonderful contribution to the already invigorating song; her harmonies with Thomas Mars’ voice are one-of-a-kind, adding a new texture of bewitching lightness.
Lauren Early — “Good Girl Bad Boy”
Lauren Early’s new song “Good Girl Bad Boy” kicks off with a memorable hook: “Am I an incel, am I hysteric? / I don’t care, I love you, I can’t bear it / I don’t care if it’s problematic / I don’t care if it’s overdramatic.” With a lo-fi, bedroom-pop sound, Lauren Early captures the feeling of Gen Z: “Is this a romance or a horror?”
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
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.
