John Oliver won’t miss Mike Richards following his surprise resignation amid the ongoing Jeopardy! hosting fiasco. This was actually the second time that the Last Week Tonight host took aim at Richards with Oliver revealing that he wasn’t really impressed with the executive producer who reportedly helped select himself when other guest-hosts like Ken Jennings and LeVar Burton (and even those who didn’t get a shot, like Laura Coates) would have been more welcome additions following the beloved Alex Trebek’s passing.
Fast forward a week, and Richards pulled off a surprise-Friday resignation move after The Ringer’s report (by Claire McNear) that surfaced Richards’ history of troubling remarks after what was already known about his controversial past as a game show producer. It was a development that left people hoping that LeVar Burton’s cheery and innocuous tweet meant more than it actually did, but John Oliver did not hold back. Here’s how he began Sunday night’s episode:
“It’s been a busy week. There was a bomb threat in Washington, this smirking golf bag was demoted from hosting Jeopardy to merely running it…“
Ouch, Last Week Tonight does not tread lightly with its nicknames that it bestows upon pop culture figures. Yet what’s most notable about Oliver’s disdain for Mike Richards is that — coupled with last week’s swift take (“It is genuinely hard to imagine a five word phrase less welcome than ‘we know who you are,’” the host declared. “Aside from obviously ‘new Jeopardy! host Mike Richards’”) — Oliver doesn’t even see the need to spend too much time on a clearly ridiculous situation. With that said, you can watch Oliver’s deep dive into a fiasco with more devastating effects (Afghanistan) here.
We take comedy very serious here at UPROXX which is why we made sure to craft a streaming recs list that has it all. From Will Ferrell-fronted action romps to stoner adventures, classic teen hijinks, and some more cerebral fare — there’s something here for everyone, as long as you’re looking to laugh.
Here are the best comedies streaming on Netflix right now.
Eric Andre borrows Sacha Baron Cohen’s schtick — combining scripted storytelling with secretly-filmed real-world pranks — to create this hybrid comedy masterpiece about two best friends on the road trip of their lives. Andre plays Chris while the always fantastic Lil Rel Howery plays his BFF Bud. The two head from Florida to New York (chased by Bud’s mentally unsound escaped convict of a sister played by Tiffany Haddish) while taking in America’s heartland by way of rodeo nights and unfortunately gorilla encounters at local zoos.
Will Ferrell entire filmography could fill this list and we wouldn’t complain but there is something about this fast-paced buddy comedy that feels special. Maybe it’s the instantly iconic, always quotable one-liners — “If you’re not first, you’re last” — or the friendship between Ferrell’s Bobby and John C. Reilly’s Cal. Maybe it’s Sacha Baron Cohen’s Euro-trash villain or Amy Adam’s surprising turn as Bobby’s love interest Susan. Or maybe it’s just the over-the-top accents and constant references to “baby Jesus.” Whatever kind of Tom Cruise witchcraft is happening here, we can’t stop laughing.
Melissa McCarthy is the queen of physical comedy and she throws all of her weight into this role, playing a woman who accidentally injects herself with a serum that grants her super-strength. She partners with Octavia Spencer, who plays a scientist, and her former friend, as the two take on a new crop of super villains — hopefully without making an even bigger mess of things.
Even if you’ve never seen any of the Monty Python films, you most certainly know of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. It’s been quoted, memed, gif-ed, and idolized by comedy fans for generations. At its core, it’s a parody of the legends of King Arthur and his knights. It’s stocked with an impressive cast — John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, etc — and its full of eccentric characters, bizarre adventures, and gut-bustingly funny jokes. Think failed Trojan Rabbits, modern-day murder investigations, animated monsters, and musical numbers. Intellectual midgets everywhere will love it.
Seth Rogen and James Franco star in this comedy about a process server and his drug dealer who go on the run from a couple of hitmen. Rogen plays Dale, a 25-year-old slacker who witnesses a murder and is hunted (along with his drug dealer Saul, played by Franco) by a drug lord intent on silencing him before he can go to the police. The two get into all kinds of hijinks involving Asian mobsters, barn explosions, and nursing homes.
Jonah Hill and Michael Cera play a couple of best friends in search of a good time in this raunchy high school comedy from pals Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. Seth (Hill) and Evan (Cera) hope to close out their senior year by getting wasted and getting laid with a blow-out to end all blow-outs. Their mission to get booze for the party, impress their crushes, and have a memorable night is derailed rather quickly thanks to fake IDs, a couple of incompetent cops, bar fights, and their own bickering. It’s a gross, over-the-top, and surprisingly poignant look at friendship and what happens when we outgrow people.
Zach Galifianakis brings back his beloved comedy talk show, this time in movie form. The viral internet series that saw the funny-man sit down for awkward interviews with celebs and presidents was picked up by Funny or Die, and it seems that Will Ferrell wants the final ten episodes he’s owed, so Zach and his crew go on the road to have some rather hostile chats with people like Bradley Cooper, Keanu Reeves, and David Letterman.
Wunderkind Paul Thomas Anderson synthesized all his greatest influences — Scorsese’s hyperkinetic camerawork, Altman’s profound empathy for human suffering, Tarantino’s flair for sleazy L.A. dialogue — into something completely original in his breakout film. He wasn’t even out of his twenties, and Anderson conducted a flawless ensemble cast including Burt Reynolds, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Don Cheadle, and a headstrong kid named Mark Wahlberg in a sweeping statement on Hollywood, America, and cinema in general. At turns side-splittingly funny and unspeakably dark, teeming with life in every meticulously constructed frame, traversing two decades in the life of an industry at a pivotal moment of flux, Boogie Nights remains one of the greatest American films to come out of the ’90s.
Eddie Murphy stages a bit of a comeback in this biopic about famed comedian, actor, showman Rudy Ray Moore, better known as Dolemite to fans of his raunchy comedy albums, stand-up tours, and blaxploitation films. Murphy plays Moore at the beginning of his career when he was just a record store clerk looking to break out in the business. He’s joined by a cast that includes Keegan-Michael Key, Ron Cephas Jones, Tituss Burgess, and others, but it’s Murphy who shines here, giving possibly the best performance of his career as a man who will stop at nothing to pursue his dream.
Matthew Broderick plays a depressed high school teacher, who tries to manage his imploding marriage while facing off against a determined and cunning student in this dark comedy that features Reese Witherspoon in one of the best performances of her career. Witherspoon plays Tracy Flick, an overachieving student with dreams (of becoming the student body president) that are quickly dashed by the school’s popular jock. Tracy’s willing to go to extreme lengths to win the race, but when Broderick’s Mr. McAllister thinks to intervene, his own failing personal life is put on display.
Edgar Wright’s 2010 action comedy about a hapless boy who must defeat evil ex-boyfriends in order to win the hand of the girl he loves is a fast-paced ride that bombards the senses. Michael Cera plays a loveable goof in the titular hero, a young man enamored with a woman named Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). In order to be with his lady love, Scott must fight her evil exes, six guys, one girl, who challenge him to truly strange contests. The film is a cinematic mash-up of Japanese anime and gamer culture, intended for the crowd who grew up on Nintendo and comic books, but it brings plenty of laughs all the same.
The ’90s gave us some iconic characters, but Jeff Bridges as “The Dude” has to rank high on everyone’s list of beloved stoner types. Bridge’s bowling fanatic and overall slob’s mellow is seriously harshed when he becomes the victim of a case of mistaken identity and must recruit his bowling buddies (Steve Buscemi and John Goodman) to help him navigate kidnappings and cover-ups and the hangovers caused by too many White Russians.
You’ve probably never heard of this rom-com starring Anna Kendrick and Sam Rockwell, which is a damn shame because the two have great chemistry on screen and the plot’s just quirky enough to feel refreshingly different from anything else on this list. Kendrick plays Martha, a woman reeling from a bad break-up and searching for direction in her life who meets Rockwell’s Francis, a hitman who targets his own employers and is on the run from a nasty government agent (and excellent Tim Roth). It’s weird, but in a fun way, ya know?
Reese Witherspoon is a certified icon, and she owes at least some of her popularity to this film about a privileged young woman who defies the odds in order to chase her unavailable ex-boyfriend. Witherspoon plays Elle Woods, a bubbly, air-headed blonde sorority girl who gets into Harvard (what, like it’s hard?) in order to impress a guy who dumped her. She ends up surprising herself, though, when she reaches the top of her class and is given the chance to serve on a high-profile case by her slimy professor and his well-meaning T.A. (Luke Wilson). Sure, this movie’s been quoted and meme-d twice over, but there’s no way you won’t have fun watching Witherspoon mine as much humor as she can from her dumb-blonde routine.
The Coen brothers are back with a slick new Western romp, one that serves as an ode to all of the tropes present in Hollywood’s best Wild West adaptations. Split into six parts, each story is loosely connected although thematically and tonally different. Tim Blake Nelson stars as the titular hero, a sharpshooting songster who takes part in the film’s opening musical portion. From there, we get stories of outlaws getting their due, prospectors mining for gold, ghostly hauntings, and wagon trails. Forget trying to follow the thread and simply enjoy the ride with this one.
Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams take on the planet’s most-watched singing competition with this campy comedy about an Icelandic duo named Fire Saga, who are set on achieving glory on the world’s biggest stage. Ferrell and McAdams play Lars Erickssong and Sigrit Ericksdottir, artists chosen to represent their nation in the Eurovision Song Contest, a real competition that features musicians from all over the world, who are often performing in wild get-ups. Dan Stevens almost steals the show while Pierce Brosnan and Demi Lovato make appearances. We’re calling it now: “Volcano Man” is going to be a bop for the ages.
Jonah Hill and Miles Teller feed off each other’s crazy in this action-comedy loosely based on a true story. The two play bros David (Teller) and Effraim (Hill), who hustle their way into a million-dollar contract with the Pentagon, selling ill-gotten arms to the military and paling it up with militants overseas. It’s a wild ride, one that’s heavy on violence and a bit dizzying with its fast-paced dialogue, but Hill and Teller have great comedic chemistry throughout.
You can’t think of classic ’80s teen comedies and not include Matthew Broderick’s rebellious school comedy in those musings. Broderick brought Ferris Bueller, a smart-mouthed kid with a flair for the dramatic, to life in this beloved movie that also stars Alan Ruck and Jennifer Grey. Bueller goes to extreme lengths to skip school with his best friend and girlfriend, leading them on an adventure that includes a musical parade in the city and a brush with the law. Being bad never looked so fun.
Stranger Things star Natalia Dyer stars in this hormonally-charged teenage comedy, playing a young, naive high-schooler at a co-ed Catholic institution who goes through a kind of sexual awakening on a spiritual retreat. Dyer’s Alice is curious about sex, too curious for the priests teaching her morality classes at school and her judgemental classmates. When they all go on a three day retreat, Alice fields nasty rumors about her nonexistent sexual experience while pursuing an older boy and learning the truth about everyone else’s kinks. It’s the kind of buttoned-up, raunchy hornfest that you’d expect from a movie exploring how religion represses sexuality, and Dyer is hilarious in it.
Mike Meyers returns as the international man of mystery in this ’90s comedy with Heather Graham. Dr. Evil is back too and he’s stolen Austin Powers’ all-important mojo with a handy time-travel device, so he and Agent Felicity Shagwell (Graham) must travel back to the ’60s to recover it and stop Evil from ending the world. Jerry Springer, Mini-Me, and Fat Bastard all make an appearance but the draw is watching Meyers add a different look to the character as he struggles to find his sexy again.
Greta Gerwig’s love letter to her hometown of Sacramento, California follows Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf as they navigate the often-frustrating relationship between mother and daughter. Ronan plays “Ladybird,” a young woman attending Catholic school who longs for the culture and change of scenery that New York City promises. Her mother, Metcalf, is overbearing and overprotective, and the family’s lack of money and social standing contributes to a rift between the two. Some hard truths are explored in this film, but watching Ronan manage teenage angst, first love, and everything in between will give you all kinds of nostalgia.
Andy Samberg and his Lonely Island crew have given us plenty of comedy gems over the years, but this may be one of their more inventive shorts. The group spoofs notorious baseball stars Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire in this visual rap album that imagines the brothers in their heyday. Think Beyonce’s Lemonade but, you know, sports.
A charming, unconventional story about what it means to be a family, Hunt for the Wilderpeople follows a juvenile delinquent named Ricky (Julian Dennison), who is adopted by a couple living on a farm in a remote region of New Zealand. After Ricky fakes his suicide and escapes into the bush, his (reluctantly) adopted father Hec (Sam Neill) goes looking for him, and after a series of mishaps, the two are forced to survive in the woods together for months.
Gina Rodriguez, Brittany Snow, and DeWanda Wise team up for this romantic comedy about a young woman’s final hurrah before leaving NYC. Rodriguez plays a journalist named Jenny who must pack up her life, leave her friends, and travel to the West Coast for an exciting job opportunity. Unfortunately for her, her boyfriend of nearly 10 years decides to call it quits, which leaves Jenny on the party warpath, determined to have one final night of fun before her big trip. Lakeith Stanfield also stars in this, and with Netflix’s pretty stellar rom-com track record lately, bet on this being a fun watch.
The Coen brothers give fans another ridiculous romp supported by a mind-blowing cast of A-listers — think George Clooney, Josh Brolin, Scarlett Johansson, Tilda Swinton… really, we could go on. The film follows Brolin’s Eddie Mannix, a Hollywood fixer in the 1950s trying to uncover what happened to a major star who disappeared while filming an upcoming studio blockbuster. Hijinks ensue when nosy reporters and paranoid movie execs get involved.
Anyone who caught Jessica Williams during her tenure on The Daily Show knows that she’s destined for greatness. Despite being so young, she had a confidence, a voice, and a commanding presence that you just can’t fake. The Incredible Jessica James is her first starring vehicle since her time as a correspondent, and it is a true testament to where she’s headed. In a clever look at the life of a struggling playwright who is getting over a breakup, The Incredible Jessica James allows Williams to unleash her fire in the most charming way possible, and she and Chris O’Dowd have an easy chemistry that makes you root for them to make it despite not having a thing in common. Having just come out last year, The Incredible Jessica James is still one of the best comedy movies Netflix has delivered.
Jason Mantzoukas plays the road trip buddy from hell in this adventure comedy from Hannah Fidell. Mantzoukas is an enraged car mechanic (and probably an alcoholic) who invites himself along when college-bound teenager Nat (Tony Revolori) offers him a ride into town. That small gesture of kindness backfires in a big way when Richard (Mantzoukas) hijacks the trip, struggling to manage his past mistakes and bleak outlook while Nat pursues his dream of photographing the original Americana.
Radha Blank writes, directs, and stars in this autobiographical comedy about her unconventional career. Once a promising young playwright, Blank’s trajectory to fame has stalled and in this film, she pokes fun at her failures, reinventing herself as a rapper and using the worlds of hip-hop and theater to find her true voice. It’s darkly funny at times but incredibly relatable and inspiring all the same.
Ali Wong and Randall Park star in the latest rom-com from Netflix. This time around, the plot follows two childhood sweethearts who’ve spent the last 15 years apart and try to reconnect when one moves back home. Wong plays a successful chef opening a new restaurant in San Francisco while Park plays her former best friend still living at home and working for his dad. Both have some growing up to do, but the film eschews classic romcom tropes for bits that are funnier and more poignant than your average lighthearted fare.
A lot of 90s comedies haven’t aged well and parts of this film fare better than others but you can thank Chris Farley and his willingness to leave it all out there for a laugh for the elements that still hit. Farley plays Haru, a white man adopted by an ancient sect of ninjas when he washes ashore as a baby. As a grown man, Haru is clumsy and a bit stupid, which prevents him from becoming a full-fledged warrior, but when a mysterious woman comes asking for his help, he’ll discover abilities he didn’t know he had.
Recent Changes Through August 2021
Removed: My Best Friend’s Wedding, Zombieland, Safety Not Guaranteed, John Mulaney & The Sack Lunch Bunch
Added: Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Talladega Nights, Pineapple Express
Typically, when you hear a pitmaster’s introduction to the world of barbecue, tales of growing up around cooking and a passion for food come into play. This isn’t that type of story. Lance Kirkpatrick — lead pitmaster of Austin’s hottest barbecue joint, Stiles Switch BBQ & Brew — was working as a bartender before he learned his ‘cue expertise at the feet of the late, great Bobby Mueller.
Mueller, the legendary owner of Louie Mueller Barbecue in Taylor, Texas, just outside of Austin, was Kirkpatrick’s barbecue mentor — teaching him the importance of running a clean fire, along with so many other bits of expertise and nuance. The eight years Kirkpatrick spent working alongside the ‘cue legend no doubt shaped the upstart chef’s trajectory. Fast forward to the current day and it’s evident that Kirkpatrick has taken those teachings and fused them with his own hard-won knowledge and skill.
Though I initially went to Stiles Switch for the legendary brisket — which is phenomenal — it was Kirkpatrick’s Flintstone-esque beef ribs that left me completely mesmerized. Just check these beauties out:
After eating, I got the chance to learn a little more of Kirkpatrick’s story, along with what keeps him motivated. More to the point, he also divulged (a few of!) his secrets for the perfect rack of beef ribs.
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What initially attracted you to barbecue? Did you always set out to be a pitmaster?
No. Really, I just I was looking to get out of bartending and I had cooked in other kitchens. I didn’t know anything about barbecue. I literally answered an ad in the paper to Louie Mueller Barbecue out in Taylor, where I was living, and I knew nothing about barbecue.
I learned everything, all the basics from Mr. Mueller there, Louie Mueller.
Yeah, I’m familiar. My husband is from Taylor. He used to eat there. So, I’m guessing was it Bobby Mueller that was your mentor?
He was my mentor. I worked with Bobby for a little over eight years.
Wow. So what would you say was the biggest tip or takeaway you took from being mentored by Bobby?
He would always just tell you to watch your fire and watch your meat. I heard those words over and over. Just running a good constant [and] even fire and not letting it dip or spike was one of his big mantras.
What would you say is the key to keeping a clean fire?
Good wood selection and good management of it. I’ve changed different styles over the years, I like to kind of teach now like gentle is the way with the fire kind of let the fire cook to its full potential. Each log kind of has a potential when you put it on. And sometimes you want to go in and break it down and rebuild but letting each log cook to full potential is something I try to do. Timing of when that fuel source and potential is waning to time another one to go on, where you can keep a constant level of temperature without spiking.
And you cook with post oak, right?
Yes, that is right.
What do you think that adds to the flavor profile of the barbecue?
Oak has a really unique characteristic with a lot of vanillas and sweetness to it. There’s a caramel kind of you can really smell the sweetness and taste the vanillas in there. There’s a reason for that, you know. They store good whiskies in charred oak barrels, and it gives it that kind of vanilla sweetness. They’ll put nice wines in charred oak barrels for that reason as well.
That makes sense. I write about whiskey quite a bit and that’s such a relatable parallel there.
Whiskey and barbecue kind of goes together.
Lance Kirkpatrick
What would you say keeps you motivated, or who keeps you motivated, to be the best you can be as a pitmaster?
I’ll credit Shane [Stiles] with that. He’s always pushing us to get a little outside of our comfort zone and maybe do a special that we hadn’t done before. I’m inspired by all the good cooks that we’ve hired over the ten years. We’ve been really fortunate to build some really good relationships with these guys. And we’re kind of known right now to have an all-star team. It’s true, we do. Over the three restaurants that we have, we’ve got six or eight just outstanding pit cooks working for us.
That’s my inspiration is to just, be an example for these guys we’ve got coming on and learn from some of these experienced guys that we’re bringing on. The customer inspires me a lot. You form a relationship with customers. It’s different in barbecue than any other restaurant. I think that it kind of keeps me coming back to the impact it has with the customer and that relationships that exchange from cook to the diner is really important to me.
You mentioned impact. With being a pitmaster, how do you feel that role has impacted you on a personal level?
It’s helped me. I’ve started to study Daoism a little after the time I started cooking. It’s helped me kind of become a better student of Daoism. There’s a lot of similarities in the way that you can cook – just metaphors of nature and letting things kind of evolve on their own; because a lot of what has to happen in that barbecue pit is a process of evolution. From a raw state, you’re using these elemental resources, like wood and raw meat, fire, and that all kind of comes together.
It’s taught me patience. It’s taught me self-awareness. I’m kind of a philosophical type of fellow and the overnight cooks kind of lend to that. The early morning hours by yourself and a lot of time for meditation and self-reflection and thought. On a real personal level, I’m sober from alcohol for seven years now and it really helped me get in a better place mentally and it helped me overcome my addiction to alcohol.
Lance Kirkpatrick
That is awesome. I’m glad to hear that and congratulations. Getting into the barbecue itself, as I mentioned before the interview, I know you’re known for your brisket. It’s exceptional. However, the beef ribs look like dinosaur bones — they were amazing! What’s the key to making the perfect beef ribs?
I see a lot of times folks just not cooking them long enough. That big beef rib is really a fairly easy cut of meat to cook, to be really honest.
It’s just again, running a good, clean fire and maybe cooking them a little hotter than you might think you want to, they can take a little bit of heat. I like to cook pork ribs around 265 to 275 jumping up a little hotter when they finish, but the bulk of the cook on those is around that.
The beef ribs, they’ll cook a little bit hotter, you can put them a little closer to your fire. Don’t be afraid to get a little bark on there. If it looks like it’s starting to burn a little bit. It might just be doing something that turns out to be okay.
I would just say keep it simple. Don’t try to overcomplicate with a lot of sauce. I don’t like to put sauce on beef anyway, but I just go with a dry rub on them. A lot of folks like just salt and pepper. We add a little house blend seasoned salt to our salt and pepper.
Just a good even temp and I do it by feel. I can put my hand around it with my thumb pressing down on the top portion of it. On those beef ribs, there’s a linear side where that blade kind of comes back. That’s where I always check, and I want my thumb to almost go through that. I want it soft enough for my thumb to really make an indentation. When I train people on cooking [beef ribs], I tell them you’re feeling for that bounce back, you don’t want that. You want to keep cooking it when you put your thumb in there and it bounces back a little, you want to keep cooking. You want a good give when you go to check it.
My last question pertains to Texas barbecue in general. I know that certain parts of Texas use mesquite or use post oak, for example. What would you say sets Texas barbecue or even Austin barbecue apart from other places in the country?
Maybe just the dry rub and the lack of sauce on the meat at the time of cook is one. Another is that it’s more of a beef-driven menu in Texas. Brisket and beef ribs are going to be at the forefront of every Texas barbecue. Whereas in Carolina, Georgia, etcetera — it’s probably going to be pulled pork or whole hog pork. I think what makes Texas unique, like you just said, is the different regionality to it with the different woods. Austin barbecue changed over the last five or ten years. I would say that even if you wanted to compare Austin barbecue to the rest of the state, you might be finding more examples of a chef-driven — not afraid to do different specials going outside of the normal menu of brisket, ribs, and sausage.
Irish whiskey is the fastest-growing whiskey segment in the world. In fact, Americans are drinking so much of the stuff that Irish whiskey is poised to retake its crown as the best-selling imported whiskey in the U.S. by 2030, dethroning Scotch whisky in the process.
That means there’s an increasingly solid chance that you’ve reached for a bottle of the Irish tipple over the past year. (If you haven’t and you like describing your drams as “sweet,” “delicate,” and “smooth”, give this refined style a try.)
As Irish whiskey takes up more space in liquor stores, the number of high-quality “value bottles” also increases. We’re talking rich, nuanced whiskeys that still clock in under $50. Good stuff at a sweet spot price.
To find the best of the bunch, we figured we would once again turn to a handful of well-known bartenders and mixologists — asking them to share their favorite Irish whiskeys under $50. Check their answers below and click on the prices if you want to test out a bottle or two for yourself.
Writer’s Tears Copper Pot is a great one that everyone should try. It has a blend of single pot still and single malt and is not your typical Irish whiskey. This whiskey has an apple and nutty nose, spice, ginger, and orchard fruit on the palate along with a honey and dark chocolate finish.
It was a medal winner at the International Spirits Competition.
West Cork Distillers’ Bourbon Cask whiskey is great. There are a lot of pleasant grain and citrus notes from the whiskey itself, and the bourbon cask gives it a nice caramel dessert-flavored finish. It’s a high-quality spirit and you can get it at a price point that doesn’t empty your wallet.
Sexton
Sexton
Chandra Richter, vice president of beverage development and chief mixologist at Drinkworks
Personally, I’ve been enjoying Sexton Single Malt Irish Whiskey. It is aged in Oloroso sherry casks, which really gives it that added complexity and depth of flavor. I love the dried fruit and honey aroma balanced with notes of cinnamon. It’s a great value Irish Whiskey, definitely worth keeping a bottle on the shelf.
If there was one Irish whiskey people should know more about it’s The Busker Triple Cask Triple Smooth. Priced at around $25, The Busker portrays the depth and the rich layers of flavor you would expect to experience from higher-priced whiskeys. The Busker has beautiful honey and grain notes in the nose and bright flavors of green apple and orange rind linger in the mouth.
The whiskey carries a long finish of confection notes, chocolate, and light spice. It has the complexity of a whiskey I’d certainly be happy to spend more on but am happy that I don’t have to.
Kilbeggan Small Batch Irish Rye
Kilbeggan
Austin Zimmer, bartender at Le Privé in New York City
The Kilbeggan Small Batch Irish Rye has great warm flavors such as marmalade, melon, peppercorns, lilac, with spices. It’s a kind of high-rye mash whiskey, however, the rye and the sweetness compliment each other very well, in such a unique way.
For me, the best Irish whiskey under $50 everyone should try is Jameson. It has a light floral fragrance, smooth sweetness of marmalade, hops, green apple, and vanilla flavors. It’s definitely worth the experience for your money.
I don’t think you can beat Knappogue Castle 12 Year Single Malt for the money. Hints of marzipan and honey are two hallmarks for this everyday delicious whiskey.
The Dubliner Bourbon Cask
The Dubliner
Maren Nazera Erickson, bartender in San Antonio, Texas
The Dubliner Irish Whiskey Bourbon Cask is full of bright and fruity aromas with tasting notes of citrus peel, almonds, coconut, and brown sugar. This is my number one recommendation for people looking to branch out from Jameson into more Irish whiskey at a similar price point.
The owners of Dead Rabbit in New York City teamed up with a Dublin-based distillery to create this smooth, yet malty whiskey with notes of vanilla sweetness. It also finishes with dry spice. The best part? You can get it for under $45 bucks.
Powers
Powers
Joseph Fredrickson, bartender at Society Lounge in Cleveland
I am a Powers guy. It’s the best-selling whiskey in Ireland and pacts more of an ABV punch than the other go-to Irish whiskies. It is smooth with hints of honey and baking notes and goes great in an Irish coffee or a quick shot to get the night going.
If you’ve already enjoyed the likes of Jameson, it’s time to take a step up to Tullamore D.E.W. This bargain-priced whiskey is filled with hints of charred oak, caramel, and a subtle, spicy finish. It’s well-suited for slow sipping or mixing into your favorite cocktails.
As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive a commission pursuant to certain items on this list.
There’s just nothing quite like a summer road trip. The freedom of setting out with only a loose itinerary and nothing but the winding road and endless possibilities is, frankly, close to unbeatable. It offers a chance to live in the now while reminding us that this moment is at once fleeting and eternal.
With just two weeks left before Labor Day and the unofficial end of summer 2021, there’s just enough time to hit the road for one last hurrah. Here are three road trips I recommend this time of year:
ITINERARY 1: Glacier National Park –> Waterton Lakes National Park –> Banff National Park –> Jasper National Park
I always go north in the summer. While many of these destinations are partially open year-round, often the weather will close some of the most beautiful areas in the winter months. You also can’t do this for much longer:
Glacier National Park has been an incredibly popular destination for summer 2021, but those who didn’t visit earlier now have an advantage: you can now legally continue on into Canada as a US citizen. Canada just opened its borders to fully vaccinated US travelers earlier this month, which means these destinations will still be slightly less crowded than normal — a perfect time to see them for yourself.
Glacier National Park to Waterton Lakes: Drive Time: 2.5 hours (including a border crossing)
After exploring Waterton Lakes, head on to Banff. If you have more time, make some stops in Kootenay and/or Yoho National Parks along the way. You can’t go wrong in Banff, it’s one of the rare places that is actually more incredible in person than any photo you have ever seen. The dramatic mountains that surround you, to the blue lakes that don’t seem real — this is a bucket list destination.
The drive from Banff to Jasper National Park might be the most incredible drive in North America. You’ll be traveling on the 143 mile (232 km, ’cause we’re in Canada now) Icefields Parkway through landscapes that truly don’t seem real. You’ll want at least three and a half hours, but I’d give yourself an entire day. There are many stops to make and things to gawk at on the way.
I was hesitant to travel to the Southeast this August, but pleasantly surprised that the hospitality outweighed the humidity. The west is a road-trip dream, but it’s also vast and far away for most of the United States population. Fortunately, there’s plenty to see and explore in the Southeast — specifically the coast of Georgia.
I spent a week traveling from Jacksonville to Atlanta and was charmed every step of the way.
Jacksonville to Cumberland Island National Seashore: Drive Time: 45 minutes + 45 minute ferry ride
I flew into Jacksonville to begin my Georgia adventure. From there, I drove the short distance to St. Mary’s, Georgia — where the ferry to Cumberland Island National Seashore departs. Cumberland Island has been on my bucket list for years now. The history and people are intensely interesting on their own, not to mention the ample wildlife and true wilderness. You can camp, stay at the Greyfiled Inn, or visit for just a day.
Whatever you choose you will feel like you have somehow completely escaped the world.
Must-Sees:
Rent a bike, take a tour or hike the island. Be sure to spend time on the longest undisturbed coastline on the eastern seaboard.
Cumberland Island to St. Simons Island: Drive Time: 1 hour
From Cumberland Island, it’s a short drive to St. Simons Island, a small beach community with beautiful beaches and a laid-back vibe. I stayed in an adults-only hotel (strongly recommended) and walked to the beach to relax and watch the waves.
St. Simons Island is just an hour and a half from historic Savannah, Georgia. Savannah, of course, has something for everyone. Walk (and legally drink) around the historic downtown squares, eat your weight in Southern cuisine, or drive out to Tybee Island for a beach day.
Must-Sees:
Stop at Fort Pulaski National Monument on the way to Tybee Island (stay for sunset). Stay at Perry Lane Hotel in Savannah, a luxurious spot that greets you with champagne upon arrival, has a beautiful rooftop pool and bar with views that can’t be beaten.
Summer in the Northeast is magic. I spent the entire summer traveling and whenever anyone asks me what my favorite trip was I have to say — “Maine.” The vibe was exactly as I wanted it to be. Quiet, but full of energy. Unassuming, but jaw-droppingly gorgeous.
It all felt like a movie set come to life.
Portland Maine to Acadia National Park: Drive Time: 3 hours
I didn’t have time to visit Portland Maine this trip, but I would add it for next time. The drive from Portland to Acadia National Park in Bar Harbor is just three hours along the coast, with many stops to make.
Acadia National Park to Lubec: Drive Time: 2 hours
Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor are amazing and deserve at least 3-4 days of your time. You can read a lot more here. From there, continue north to Lubec Maine — the northeastern-most city in the United States and the access point to your next destination in Canada.
Must-Sees:
Watch sunrise or sunset at the summit of Cadillac Mountain (with a timed entry ticket), and eat popovers at Jordan Pond House after a hike around the lake at Acadia. Stop at Jasper Beach on your way to Lubec, and be sure to visit the lighthouse and gorgeous hiking in Quoddy Head State Park in Lubec.
Lubec to Campobello: Drive Time: 10 minutes + border crossing
Lubec is the only road access point to Campobello Island in Canada — home of Roosevelt Campobello International Park. Unfortunately, the border wasn’t open to US travelers when I visited, so I am itching to get back. The park is co-managed by the US National Park Service and Canada, preserving the summer home of Franklin Roosevelt through a museum, hiking trails, and gorgeous shorelines.
Chris Perugini started Single Malt Savvy back in 2014. Perugini writes whisk(e)y reviews, leads tastings, and educates the public about all things whisk(e)y — with a focus on single malts — all under the Single Malt Savvy shingle. He’s also built a social media following on Instagram, where he fills his feed with precise reviews of individual bottles to help all of us learn about whisk(e)y on a day-to-day basis.
We were lucky enough to pick Perugini’s brain about his five “must-have” bottles of single malt whisky. Perugini is someone who lives and breathes whisky every single day, so we couldn’t think of a better guide for your single malt whisky journey. Let’s dive in and see which bottles Perugini can’t live without.
If any of these bottles sound like something you’d dig, click on the prices to try them!
Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Scotch Whisky Posts of 2021
Aged in a combination of ex-bourbon casks and ex-sherry butts for at least 12 years, this whisky from Islay’s northernmost distillery is non-chill filtered and bottled at 46.3 percent ABV. In my opinion, Bunnahabhain 12 Year is also one of the best values in whisky today.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is a mashup of citrus, cherry, and ripe apples and pears. You can smell the sea air influence along with some leather and earthy notes. On the palate, the fruit jumps out as the clear winner as cherries and orange are out in full force atop baking spice and vanilla. The fruit is present but fades to the background as the sea salt and earthiness really take over on the finish.
Bottom Line:
Bunnahabhain 12 is an unpeated expression, though it shares maritime influence like most of the other distilleries on Islay. This makes for a well-rounded expression with a nice balance of sweetness, spice, and a bit of sea salt that works well for any taste preference.
A classic representation of ex-bourbon cask matured whisky, this ten-year-old expression is affordable and full of pleasant flavors. Aged in slow-growth oak from the Missouri Ozarks, Glenmorangie takes their aging vessels seriously and it shows in the end result.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, there are notes of oranges, vanilla, fresh-cut flowers, and a hint of white chocolate. On the palate, you’ll find apples and pears, vanilla, and light baking spice. The finish is medium-short and leaves behind honey, fresh fruit, and hints of oak.
Bottom Line:
Long before Glenmorangie X was created, the 10 Year Original was the single malt that I always recommended as a mixer. Its light and pleasant flavor set can be taken in a variety of directions in a cocktail and it’s priced well enough that there won’t be any guilt when mixing it.
If you’re looking for something a bit different to round out your week, Glen Scotia Victoriana is definitely worth considering. The whisky is first matured in ex-bourbon casks before being split into two different finishing casks. 30 percent of the whisky moves to ex-Pedro Ximenez casks while the other 70 percent moves to heavy char American oak.
Victoriana is non-chill filtered and bottled at 51.5 percent ABV.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is coastal and fruity with notes of salted caramel, 2x4s, apples, peaches, and a hint of leather. On the palate, one finds more stone fruit, gumdrops, fennel, sea salt, and a hint of musty basement. The finish is dry, earthy, and spicy with notes of charcoal, clove, and some warehouse dunnage with a bit of candy sweetness underneath it all.
Bottom Line:
Glen Scotia Victoriana is a malt that I think can really appeal to a bourbon drinker. Despite the fact that there’s a bit of smoke and coastal influence, it’s aged in ex-bourbon casks and features a finish in heavy char barrels, which lends a lot of bourbon-y notes to the whisky.
There’s also just a touch of “Campbeltown Funk” influence to keep things interesting.
The Celebration Dram: Glendronach 18 Year Allardice
While it’s often overshadowed by its slightly younger sibling (15 Year Revival), I think Glendronach 18 Year Allardice is where the distillery’s character really shines. Aged in a combination of ex-Oloroso and ex-Pedro Ximenez casks for at least 18 years, Glendronach Allardice is a full-bodied whisky that really leaves its mark with each sip.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, you’ll find dried red berries, dark chocolate, cinnamon, nutmeg, and almonds. The palate offers notes of plums, raisins, more nuttiness, cappuccino, creamy vanilla, and some nice oak. The finish is long and full of dried fruit, orange citrus, deep oak, toffee, and clove.
Bottom Line:
When in doubt, a heavily sherried whisky never disappoints. This release is the perfect after-dinner pour or the closing dram of the evening. Sherried sweetness, dried fruits, and baking spice offer a great combination of flavors and at 18 years old, there’s plenty of oak influence to ground the other flavors into a perfectly structured sensory experience.
Released twice a year in extremely small batches, The Balvenie 30 Year is a whisky worth splurging on for special occasion sipping. This whisky is aged in a combination of ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks for at least 30 years and is bottled at a respectable 47.3 percent ABV.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, there’s sugar-covered red berries, rich oak, floral notes, and a hint of mint. On the palate, you’ll find notes of honey, vanilla, orange citrus, Pixie Stix, and a big honeyed sweetness. The finish is long and oily with notes of creme brulee topping, old oak, and baking spice.
Bottom Line:
I only drink the Balvenie 30 every once in a great while, but when I do I immediately remember why it’s one of my favorite whiskies of all time. It’s rich, complex, and beautifully balanced the whole way through. This bottling sets the standard for how old whisky should be produced — with a higher bottling strength and lack of chill filtration in addition to a tremendous flavor set.
This whisky leaves a lasting impression on all who try it.
As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive a commission pursuant to certain items on this list.
Premium vodka is one of the most accessible and affordable spirits on the shelf. Vodka starts to get nuanced and very bespoke around the $30 price point and hardly ever goes over $50 per bottle. Yes, there are some rare gems out there that cost more than that, but it’s extremely rare for vodka to reach past the $100 per bottle mark.
To that end, we’re blind taste testing six premium or high-end vodkas today. The expressions we’re trying go beyond the entry-level stuff. These are the bottles that often feature one grain from one estate and have unique filtering processes that help make them that much more special. The best part is that all of these are considered premium vodkas and not one will cost you more than $50.
Our lineup today is:
Russian Standard Platinum
Absolut Elyx
Grey Goose
Crystal Head
Beluga Transatlantic Racer
Belvedere
We tried to keep this broad by including varying regions and mash bills. But in the end, this was all about taste. In my estimation, a vodka being 100 percent neutral isn’t the point of premium vodka. There has to be something there to taste that helps it stand out. Truth be told, the more neutral the spirit the lower it’ll rank for me — if you want something strictly to disappear into a mixed drink, check this piece out instead.
Okay, that’s enough preamble, let’s get to the tasting. Click on the prices if any of these vodkas jump out at you.
There’s a slight Graham cracker maltiness with soft mineral water notes. The taste remains fairly grain-focused as a very, very distant bitter note arrives late. It’s almost like a cardamom seed with a touch of bitter orange.
Otherwise, this is incredibly soft — with a rainwater vibe.
Taste 2
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This is pure mineral water on the nose. There’s barely even a note of alcohol. The taste, on the other hand, pops with notes of wet grains, rich soil, and lemon meringue with a touch of vanilla. The palate is bold yet very soft and leaves you with that lemon/vanilla note.
Taste 3
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Again, the nose on this is pure, soft mineral water with maybe a touch of graininess. The palate is subtle with hints of lemon oils and an echo of dried chili flake on the finish. That very dry and mild spice leaves you with a warm note next to velvety mineral water softness.
Taste 4
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
Woah! Cornbread! A can of vanilla frosting! The nose on this is wild. The taste is initially sweet, kind of like a vanilla cookie. Then the palate veers dramatically towards anise and black licorice (almost absinthe levels), leaving you with a bitter-yet-mildly-sweet finish.
Taste 5
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
The nose on this is saline leading to sea spray with a silky roundness. The palate goes from super soft mineral water neutral to the oyster liquor from a just-opened oyster with a very distant honey/oat vibe. That oyster liquor note intensifies on the next sip and the next, leading towards a real seaside depth.
Put the rest away, we have a winner!
Taste 6
Zach Johnston
Tasting Notes:
This opens with a malty lemon cookie on the nose. That fades quickly into pure neutrality. There’s nothing on the palate besides soft mineral water and a hint of wet wheat.
This Polish vodka is made with 100 percent Polish Dankowskie rye, or “diamond” rye, which is a rare baker’s rye grown specifically for its low starch content. The multi-distilled spirit is then cut with local well water before its charcoal-filtered and bottled.
Bottom Line:
This was by far the most neutral vodka on the list. If you’re mixing and just need ABVs in your drink with no flavor whatsoever, this is the drink for you. Standing up against these other vodkas with well-built flavors, it just didn’t work today.
Dan Akroyd’s vodka is as Canadian as the comedian. The vodka is made from peaches and cream corn in Newfoundland. The distillate is filtered through a crystal known as a Herkimer diamond. The vodka is then cut with glacial water from Newfoundland and is bottled in a bespoke crystal head.
Bottom Line:
I went back to this twice. I love absinthe and black licorice but I just couldn’t square those notes in this vodka. It’s not that it’s bad by any stretch. This just felt a little too focused on those bitter notes.
That being said, this might make a very interesting clear Sazerac one day when I’m tinkering behind the bar.
This French vodka is created using winter wheat grown in the north of France. The distillate is shipped down to Cognac where it’s cut with demineralized spring water from the region, rested, and then bottled.
Bottom Line:
Full disclosure, the next two vodkas are kind of splitting hairs. I considered just having a tie for third place but this works too. This is a solid vodka with equally solid flavor notes. It’s subtle but very sippable.
This classic Russian vodka from St. Petersburg is made with locally grown winter wheat. The spirit is then filtered through silver before it’s cut with local well water and bottled.
Bottom Line:
This was a dream to sip. It’s so soft and carries very delicate-yet-nuanced flavors. I can see sipping this on the rocks with a squeeze of lime all day long.
Elyx (pronounced “ee-lix”) is a single-estate vodka made from winter wheat grown only at Råbelöf Castle near Åhus in Sweden. The vodka is mashed and distilled on antique copper gear and is then cut with local well water.
Bottom Line:
This is where things get interesting. This is a deeply flavored vodka that makes perfect sense on the palate. It’s incredibly mixable while also being a great on the rocks or poured into a highball.
This vodka from deep in the Siberian forest was built to celebrate Russia’s sailing team. The juice in the bottle is made from local wheat and cut with Siberian well water before it’s filtered through fresh cotton. The vodka then rests in tanks for 45 days, allowing it to mellow out even more.
Bottom Line:
The moment that oyster liquor note hit my palate, I knew this contest was over. The thing is, that flavor note is set up on the nose with the saline/sea spray vibe and then this vodka delivers on that promise with a fresh, almost cold oyster liquor. It’s delightful and feels natural.
I can’t wait to get some fresh oysters and start shucking while sipping on this bottle of vodka.
Part 3: Final Thoughts
Zach Johnston
This was illuminating. One thing I learned is that price really doesn’t denote the power of the vodka — two of the top three were in the $20 to $30 range. Again, that’s what makes premium vodka such a great category. The fact that you can get really well-made juice for the cost of a cheap bottle of bourbon really counts for something.
I was surprised by the Beluga though. That was like a firecracker going off in my senses. I might have found a new favorite with that one, especially if I’m pairing vodka with seafood.
As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive a commission pursuant to certain items on this list.
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: the breakfast realm is fast food’s most exciting frontier. It’s where most of the new menu innovations happen and, at some establishments, you can’t even order it after a certain hour — which just adds to the mystique. It makes the breakfast menu seem like it’s being curated for some exclusive club, the early risers and the out all-nighters. There is a whole world out there you probably don’t even know about if you only grab fast food on your lunch break. Did you even know Wendy’s has potato wedges? They’re about 100% better than the French fries but you can only get them at breakfast time. It’s worth taking a morning trek to Wendy’s for those wedges alone.
If you like fast food (or tolerate it because it fits your lifestyle in other ways), we implore you to go at breakfast time. You’ll be stepping into a whole new world.
Where to start? We’ve already broken down the best breakfast sandwiches in the fast food universe, so now we’re hitting the next best option — the decadent culinary wonder that is breakfast burritos. Sausage, eggs, cheese, hashbrowns… As much as we wanted to have a strict set of parameters here, the range is so wide that “don’t taste sh*tty” was really the first bar every highly ranked burrito had to clear. From there it was something of a free for all, with some clear choices head and shoulders above the rest.
Let’s get into it.
10. McDonald’s — Sausage Burrito
McDonald
Calories: 310
The weirdest thing about McDonald’s sausage breakfast burrito — aside from the fact that it’s a burrito from McDonald’s, which just feels wrong — is that this thing actually has its fans. “McDonald’s breakfast burrito is dope,” “You have to give McDonald’s a try!” “McDonald’s breakfast burrito is seriously underrated!” That’s what friends and commenters told me.
They were wrong. This is hands down the worst burrito I’ve ever had in my entire life. You could blindfold me and force me to cook each of the ingredients without sight and I’d be able to make a better burrito than this.
The scrambled egg — dry. The green chiles and onions — bland. The tortilla — obviously microwaved — I mean if they would just throw the chiles and onions on the griddle for a minute that would make a world of difference. The only thing palatable is the pork sausage, and even that is seriously lacking in any discernible flavor. Also, American cheese? In a burrito? GTFO McDonald’s.
The Bottom Line:
You couldn’t find a worse breakfast burrito if you tried.
I’m a huge Wendy’s head and the chain often ranks on the higher end of our fast food rankings, so it’s a bit of a surprise for us to see it ranked so low. Before Popeyes dropped its massively popular sandwich, Wendy’s chicken sandwiches were in the running to be fast food’s best and their burgers are similarly amazing, easily some of the best burgers you can get from a drive-thru. As for breakfast, the aforementioned potato wedges are unforgettable.
Then there is the Sausage Egg & Cheese Burrito. This burrito is so lackluster that it’s not even available at every Wendy’s drive-thru — of the three closest to me, only one carries it.
Like McDonald’s, this burrito is incredibly bland. It desperately needs salsa, which Wendy’s has (it’s bad) but is not always in stock, at least at the Wendy’s I order from. Ordering this thing can be seriously frustrating because it feels so unsupported by Wendy’s. Inside is dry scrambled egg (too much of it), peppery sausage bits, and American cheese, which automatically makes it bad. That’s a line in the sand I just won’t pass — if a burrito has got American cheese in it it’s probably horrible. Wendy’s packs a lot of egg into this one, which makes each bite take forever to chew through, and with the pathetic serving of salsa inside what you’re chewing is mostly egg and stale tortilla.
The Bottom Line
Almost every item on Wendy’s menu is better than this.
For Carl’s Jr, I was a little torn between deciding to include the Loaded Breakfast Burrito, which features sausage, ham, bacon bits, egg, hash browns, cheddar cheese and pico de gallo or the Big Country Breakfast Burrito, which is the same thing but swaps out the pico de gallo for sausage gravy — a nice bit of fast food innovation. Ultimately, I’m decided to include the better of the two (without giving creativity points), which means we’re talking about the Loaded Breakfast Burrito. Regardless, both of these burritos are sadly middling.
The Loaded Burrito’s pico de gallo isn’t great, the tomatoes lack brightness, the onion is too cutting, and the cilantro somehow manages to provide none of the herb’s distinct flavor (the sausage gravy of the Big Country Burrito is somehow even blander and provides a weird and thick consistency that I found to be distracting. Can a flavor be described as wet? That’s what the gravy tastes like). The meat trio in the Loaded Breakfast Burrito is passable, but because Carl’s Jr uses bacon bits instead of strips of bacon, you’ll be left wanting more bacon.
Carl’s Jr.’s tortilla is also pretty bland and powdery, matching the ingredients inside.
The Bottom Line:
Carl’s Jr has some truly amazing breakfast offerings like the Breakfast Burger and the Monster Biscuit. Both of those options will leave you more satisfied than the Loaded Breakfast Burrito.
Beware! Jack in the Box’s Meat Lover’s Burrito is so greasy that your bag will be wet with grease by the time you get from the drive-thru to wherever it is you’re going to scarf this thing down. It’ll also leave a smell in your car that will take a whole day to fully dissipate. Is that why I’ve ranked it so near the bottom? That’s at least half of the reason. It definitely made a negative impression on me.
This thing is just okay. It combines bacon, a chopped-up sausage patty, and ham with scrambled eggs and some cheddar cheese before wrapping it in a microwave-warmed tortilla. On the side, Jack in the Box serves what they are calling fire-roasted salsa. What does that mean? No one roasted any peppers at Jack in the Box before making this sauce, it was probably made in a lab hundreds of miles away from the JiB that’s serving it and includes liquid smoke. Skip it, instead ask for a packet of Frank’s Red Hot sauce, it’ll provide much more heat.
This burrito’s strength is that it has a lot of meat, so if you’re after savory and salty flavors this burrito is definitely for you. I just wish its individual parts were actually notable enough to enjoy. Instead, they all come together in a mix of textures that just gel into a one-note salty meat flavor. Jack in the Box also has what is called the Grande Sausage Burrito which swaps out the shredded cheddar for cheddar cheese sauce, and while I appreciate the inclusion of sriracha in that one, the cheese sauce makes it way too salty.
The Bottom Line:
Greasy and salty as all hell but it’s got the meats! If you’re looking to start your morning off with a fistful of protein, this is your place.
We consistently hate on Burger King in our fast food rankings, so I’m always secretly rooting for them to do something well. I have to say, the Egg-Normous Burrito is actually pretty solid. As its name would suggest, this burrito has a whole lot of egg, but unlike Wendy’s burrito, it also has greasy and crispy hashbrowns, strips of bacon, sausage patties, and melted cheddar cheese. Yes, that’s right, cheddar baby! There might be some American cheese mixed in there as well — because the consistency is a little bit waxy — but the overwhelming flavor is distinctly sharp, as it should be. Burger King also throws a “picante” sauce in there which is ironic because picante means “spicy,” and no palate would find this even remotely spicy. It has no kick to it and tastes mostly of tomato.
The weirdest part of this burrito is BK’s decision to put whole sausage patties inside rather than sausage bits. That makes the form factor of this burrito massive and it truly feels like the sort of breakfast that will make you sleepier than it will give you energy. Which is probably not what you want out of a breakfast burrito (unless you’re waking and baking on the weekend), so we suggest you cut this one in half and eat it with a friend.
The Bottom Line:
Burger King does so many foods badly and here they have a minor hit on their hands that, with a few alterations (smaller sausage, better sauce), might actually be able to be described as delicious. You’re so close, Burger King!
Here we are in the top five and it’s almost like we’ve taken a giant leap ahead in terms of flavor. This is leagues better than Burger King’s Eggnormous burrito, I’d go as far as to call it delicious, but it’s a little bit lacking in a few key areas. The Hash Brown Scramble consists of Chick-fil-A’s fried hash browns (which are really just tater tots) scrambled eggs, Monterey Jack and cheddar cheese, and your choice of either sausage or Chick-fil-A nuggets. I go with the nuggets because, when in Rome! Chick-fil-A has the best nuggets in the game and while I don’t think a chicken nugget is a great burrito filling, I’ll take it.
Let me just take some time to gush about the cheese used here, I love Monterey Jack cheese. It’s a lot more buttery and mild than cheddar, and pairs perfectly with tortilla. The tortilla is another thing Chick-fil-A gets right, it’s gummy and pliable, and not overly powdery and dry. But what holds this burrito back is the salsa, Chick-fil-A just can’t do salsa right. It’s too heavy on the tomato and little else. Pouring it over your burrito adds a weird sour taste that’s pretty off-putting.
The Bottom Line
A delicious fast food breakfast burrito. It’s just missing a great sauce to pair with it.
4. Sonic — Ultimate Meat & Cheese Breakfast Burrito
Sonic
Calories: 840
I rarely like anything from Sonic and the chain often inhabits the low end of our other fast food rankings, but they sure know how to make a delicious and decadent breakfast burrito. Smokey bacon (strips not bits!), tater-tots, peppery savory sausage, and a scrambled egg that puts McDonald’s, Jack in the Box, and Carl’s Jr to shame. Admittedly, the bar is set pretty low which is strange because eggs are the easiest thing to make, so it’s insane how many fast food joints just can’t make a decent scrambled one.
This burrito truly tastes like all the best parts of breakfast — great bacon, good sausage, and the aforementioned fluffy scrambled egg — wrapped in a warm tortilla, which is exactly what you want out of a breakfast burrito. In lieu of a salsa, this one features a cheese sauce which supplies a zesty flavor that is a little heavy on the salt for my liking. I prefer shredded cheese but the cheese sauce makes it so that you don’t have to use Sonic’s horrible packet salsa, so I’ll take it. Everything included in the burrito delivers and the tater tots add a nice crunch and a good serving of carbs which just makes the whole thing taste more hearty.
The Bottom Line:
A great breakfast burrito but if you want to take it to the next level definitely add diced jalapeños, which Sonic does have. Why they weren’t included automatically is a mystery! That’ll supply some of the heat that’s missing from this burrito.
I had a lot of trouble with this one. I really feel like it should be ranked higher. The eggs look and taste like fresh scrambled eggs out of your kitchen, they’re perfectly fluffy but not so cooked to the point that they no longer have any moisture in them. Qdoba’s eggs are a 10/10. The tortilla is also in another class, it’s pliable, with a hint of sweetness, it has a depth and character that almost all of the other burritos on this ranking lack. The salsa is legit fresh salsa, it’s complex with actual lingering heat (I get the salsa verde, but the fiery habanero is also very good). Qdoba also offers guacamole which is always a good idea (avocado slices are even better).
Being fully customizable you also get to choose between potato, chicken, chorizo, or steak (go with chorizo, duh) and a really runny three-cheese queso blend and yet… there is just something incredibly forgettable about this burrito. It doesn’t linger in my mind after I eat it and I can’t ever see myself waking up with a craving for a Qdoba breakfast burrito. It lacks character and the flavors don’t really gel together harmoniously despite each one of them being good and prepared with care. There is a soulless quality to Qdoba that makes their food all so unappetizing to me, and for that reason, I can’t in good faith rank this one any higher than third.
The Bottom Line
Quality ingredients that are well prepared and fully customizable. It just lacks character, which holds it back from truly being great.
2. Taco Bell — Grande Toasted Breakfast Burrito (Steak)
Taco Bell
Calories: 560
This is the highest I’ve ever ranked anything from Taco Bell. My editor is a huge Taco Bell stan, we go back and forth about Taco Bell all the time and while I’m not a fan of the Bell, I understand its appeal. Growing up in the late ’90s and early ’00s Taco Bell was one of the only fast food chains repping Mexican flavors nationwide, but being that I’m Mexican and grew up in southern California, I’ve been surrounded by amazing Mexican food all my life, so I’ve always viewed Taco Bell as its own thing. When you want Mexican food in SoCal you don’t go to Taco Bell, you go to Taco Bell when you want Taco Bell. Which is to say when you’re stoned or when you really want to stretch a dollar.
So while I don’t think Taco Bell does Mexican food well (or at all if you want to really get into it) they do know how to make a damn delicious breakfast burrito, which isn’t even Mexican food to begin with! I get this one with steak, which is admittedly a little chewier than I’d like it to be and lacks that delicious carne asada char, but it gets the job done, it also features a three-cheese blend, eggs, hashbrowns, and tomatoes. The tomatoes are bland and watery but everything else in this burrito is pretty solid. Where it really shines is in the tortilla, which is toasted and provides a nice crisp texture to every bite and brings an added warmth to the fillings that make it feel freshly prepared, even though I know it’s not because this is Taco Bell we’re talking about.
I like to pair this burrito with Taco Bell’s green sauce which really helps to add some spice and earthy notes to this more sparse breakfast burrito. While all of that doesn’t sound like it amounts to a great experience, I’d still rather have one of these than what Qdoba offers. It at least tastes like Taco Bell, so if you’re a fan of the chain it’s safe to assume you’re going to like this too.
The Bottom Line
It’s a solid breakfast burrito with a crispy tortilla that adds a level of uniqueness to it that the other burritos lack. The flavors won’t blow you away but it’s almost guaranteed to not disappoint so long as you’re already a fan of Taco Bell to begin with.
As I mentioned earlier, I live in Southern California which means I’m not just spoiled with amazing Mexican food, but there are also more great breakfast burrito spots throughout the city of Los Angeles than I can ever count or actually eat at. If I want a breakfast burrito, I’m not going to lie, I’m going to go to a place that isn’t a chain but if I’m out of my neighborhood and I feel like a breakfast burrito and don’t want to take a chance, I’ll turn to Del Taco every time, it’s the only chain that makes something that comes close to a greasy spoon breakfast burrito.
The Epic Scrambler Burrito, which is available in your choice of bacon or carne asada (I get carne asada) is on a whole other level that Taco Bell isn’t operating on. The scrambled eggs are decent, they’re not quite as good as Qdobas, but Del Taco’s hashbrowns have a great texture without tasting overly salted, the carne asada actually has a delicious grilled char to it that is sorely missing in almost every other option. The pico de gallo offers a lot of character and complexity, striking that perfect balance between bright and bitey onion, juicy acidic tomatoes, and peppery cilantro. Is it as good as homemade pico de gallo? No, but it at least tastes like someone in Del Taco made it and it didn’t come pre-mixed. The freshly grated cheddar cheese is nutty with a subtly sharp and salty flavor and melts perfectly, leaving every bite with a gooey trail of cheese. I always ask for extra cheese on this one.
It’s also perfectly wrapped, unlike a lot of the other burritos on this list (namely the Egg-enormous), I don’t feel the need to constantly readjust this burrito to keep it from falling apart between bites. Tieing all these flavors together is a red salsa that brings some zest but not nearly enough heat. It’s nothing a few packets of Del Scorcho sauce can’t remedy though.
The Bottom Line
The closest thing you’re going to find in the fast-food landscape to a greasy spoon or food truck-made breakfast burrito. Every ingredient in this burrito is in its proper place.
Amazon Prime might not be your first stop when you’re trying to pick a movie night binge, but it should be. That’s because there are a ton of interesting, entertaining films lurking on the streaming platform. You just have to know where to look.
To help you out, we’ve rounded up the 35 best movies on Amazon Prime right now. From new Oscar winners to indie dramas, fantasy musicals, and a bunch of action flicks, you might be surprised at how stacked this lineup is.
Riz Ahmed stars in this powerful, heartbreaking Amazon original movie from director Darius Marder. Ahmed plays a heavy-metal drummer named Ruben who, along with his girlfriend and the band’s lead singer Lou (Olivia Cooke) hopes to make it big in the music scene. His plans are thrown for a loop when he begins to lose his hearing, putting his life, and his love for music, in jeopardy.
Awkwafina stars in this dramedy from director Lulu Wang that got a fair amount of Oscar buzz this season. The story follows a Chinese family, who discovers their beloved grandmother has only a short time to live. Instead of telling her, they keep the news to themselves, planning a wedding so that everyone can gather to say their goodbyes. It’s a dark comedy to be sure, but it’s given heart by some brilliant performances including Shuzhen Zhao as the central Nai Nai.
Nauseating. Disturbing. A total mindf*ck. Those are all fitting descriptions of Ari Aster’s Hereditary follow-up, a sophomore outing that gleefully embraces the very worst of humanity and shines an unforgiving light on those universal flaws. It’s a horror story, sure, but it’s a relationship drama at its core, flavored with pagan rituals, brutal killings, unsettling imagery, and all-consuming grief. Florence Pugh gives a career-defining performance as Dani, a young woman reeling from a terrible familial tragedy who accompanies her distant, disinterested boyfriend Christian (Jack Reynor) and his college bros to a small Swedish village to celebrate the summer solstice.
John Boyega was battling evil creatures from space long before he got his big Star Wars break. This scrappy sci-fi flick which sees Boyega play Moses, a stree-wise gang leader in South London who leads his crew in a fight against an alien invasion, has become something of a cult classic over the years. It’s got a strong cast — Jodie Whitaker pre Doctor Who — a compelling story, and enough ridiculously fun action to keep things interesting.
The latest Leos Carax joint is this musical fantasy epic that sees Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard play a pair of star-crossed lovers whose whirlwind romance meets a tragic, weird AF end. Driver plays Henry McHenry, a comedian who loves to stoke controversy with his art. Cotillard plays Ann, a beautiful and talented opera singer at the height of her career. Jealousy and infidelity destroy their relationship, but not before the couple has an extraordinary child with an unusual gift that takes the world by storm. It’s a strange, absorbing, surrealist journey Carax takes audiences on here, and Driver has never been better.
Regina King’s first outing as a director comes in the form of this moving drama that imagines a meeting between some of the most influential icons in the Civil Rights Movement. In a room at the Hampton House in February 1964, Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke gather to celebrate Ali’s victory over boxer Sonny Liston where they also discuss their own roles in the movement and confront the harsh realities of the Jim Crow Era.
Ridley Scott basically invented sci-fi horror with this alien thriller about a crew on a commercial space tug who must battle a violent extraterrestrial being that’s infiltrated their ship. Sigourney Weaver plays Ripley, an officer aboard the Nostromo, who’s forced to face down the titular Alien, an aggressive life form intent upon killing the ship’s human crew. Most of the action revolves around Weaver’s attempts to destroy the creature and save her shipmates, but it’s Scott’s direction behind the camera that creates the suspense and terror this film has become known for.
Steven Spielberg is the genius behind this mind-bending futuristic crime drama starring Tom Cruise and Colin Farrell. Cruise plays John Anderton, a police chief in charge of a unit capable of arresting criminals before they commit their crimes thanks to a trio of psychics called “precogs.” When Anderton is identified as a future murderer, he goes on the run with one of the precogs and uncovers a deeper conspiracy that forces him (and us) to question the nature of free will.
Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara star in this muted crime thriller from David Fincher based on a best-selling series of books. Mara plays a gifted young hacker with a dark past who teams up with Craig’s journalist to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a wealthy woman from a prominent family 40 years earlier.
Jimmie Fails plays himself in this semi-autobiographical drama about a young man’s attempts to reclaim his childhood home. Fails and his best friend, Mont (Jonathan Majors), visit the old Victorian house where Fails grew up, only to find it in disarray. When the current tenants find themselves embroiled in a fight for ownership, forced to move out while the battle plays out in court, Jimmy and Mont move in, fixing up the place and fighting to restore some of the neighborhood’s old school charm.
Burn After Reading is for people who like their comedy unapologetically mean. Pitch black and filled with irredeemable idiots, Burn After Reading features Brad Pitt as the opportunistic himbo Chad who accidentally acquires the sensitive memoirs of a CIA agent and George Clooney as the inept and unscrupulous U.S. Marshall who is trying to retrieve it. While these two morons may be at the center of the film, scene-stealing supporting performances from Frances McDormand and John Malkovich really elevate this to one of the Coens’ funniest and best films to date.
Robert De Niro stars in this boxing drama from Martin Scorsese playing famed fighter Jake LaMotta. LaMotta succeeded in the ring because of his infamous temper and violence but those same traits are what led him to ruin away from the mat. De Niro plays LaMotta with a kind of swagger and ruthlessness that’s magnetic on-screen, even though the character sees-saws between hero and villain in his own story.
Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt star in this dramedy based on a true story about a 27-year-old guy battling cancer, and the friend that tries to support him along the way. Levitt plays Adam, a reserved young man facing a cancer diagnosis that requires a risky surgical operation to cure. Rogen plays his best friend Kyle, an outspoken slacker who uses his friend’s illness to pick up women. The two share some darkly comedic jabs on the topic that’ll have you laughing out loud, even though you probably shouldn’t.
Brad Pitt and Jason Statham star in this crime comedy from Guy Ritchie. One half of the story follows Benicio del Toro who plays a diamond thief trying to sell his stolen goods to some double-crossing gangsters. The other story follows Statham as a small-time boxing promoter struggling to get out from under the thumb of a ruthless drug lord with a love for torture. Ritchie’s patented vibe is on full display here which makes it a quintessentially fun British jaunt.
Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton star in this darkly comedic love story about a pair of centuries-old vampires who are contemplating the respective ends of their very long lives together. Hiddleston plays a reclusive undead musician who, despite his fame, seems suicidally depressed. Swinton plays his wife, living at the opposite end of the world, who pays him a visit in the hopes of cheering him up. And Mia Wasikowska shows up at some point, playing Swinton’s younger, erratic sister who makes a mess of everything. It’s a quirky drama that tackles specific genre tropes in a fresh way.
In Bruges was the movie that revealed Colin Farrell could be funny. A character actor stuck in a leading man’s body, Farrell gives arguably the best performance of his career as Ray, a rookie Irish hitman on the run with his partner and mentor, Ken (Brendan Gleeson), after accidentally killing a kid while executing a priest. While that may not sound much like the premise of a comedy, director Martin McDonagh crafted a truly hilarious movie. Farrell and Gleeson play off each other wonderfully all the way to the film’s dark finale. But as great as they are, they’re overshadowed at times by an incredible performance from Ralph Fiennes as their boss, Harry. Fiennes is at once funny and terrifying as a man steadfast in his principles, even when that involves committing murder.
Sometimes, the world just needs a dumb sci-fi action flick. Chris Pratt knows this which is why he gave us The Tommorrow War, a movie with an interesting premise that ends up following conventional blockbuster beats that never surprise us, but still manage to keep us entertained. Pratt plays a family man and scientist, who’s drafted into a future war with an alien race intent on the extinction of humanity. Once he arrives in the future, he uncovers some shocking truths about the origins of this all-consuming fight and the specific role he has to play in its eventual end. JK Simmons shows up eventually to play, what else, a bada**. Really, what more do you need to know?
Call us jaded, but few movies that are as hyped up as this Rian Johnson whodunnit actually live up to the hype. You’ve got an A-list cast that’s somehow managing to share the screen and carve out singular moments for their characters despite a packed plot. You’ve got a story with twists and turns and darkly comedic gags you could never see coming. And you’ve got Johnson, who managed to make an original film that actually competed with, and surpassed, some established franchises at the box office. Something’s got to be wrong with this movie, right? Wrong. It’s as layered and nuanced and perfect as Chris Evans’ waffle-knit sweater. Enjoy.
Faye Dunaway and Jack Nicholson star in this neo-noir about a private investigator who becomes entangled in a government scheme. Nicholson plays Jake Gittes, a P.I. hired by Evelyn Malwray (Dunaway) to follow her husband and report on his dealings. It turns out, Mr. Malwray was at the center of a government cover-up as the local water authority was trying to run people off their land by drying up their water source. There’s a lot going on here — corruption, a twisted family secret, romance, and plenty of violence — but watching Nicholson confusedly sort through it all is most of the fun.
This fantasy-comedy from Tim Burton stars Ewan McGregor as a young Edward Bloom, a man with a gift for story-telling and a lust for life. In the present, Edward Bloom is an old man, on the outs with his son and on his deathbed. His son Will (Billy Crudup), having grown up hearing his father’s tall tales, believes he’s lied to him his entire life. As Edward narrates his life, the fantastical adventures he went on, meeting Will’s mother, joining a circus, saving a town, meeting a big fish, Will decides to investigate his father’s claims and discovers that the truth is just a matter of perspective. In the end, the film is about reconciliation and appreciating life to its fullest.
When filmmaker Kurt Kuenne’s childhood friend Andrew Bagby is killed and his suspected killer/ex-girlfriend reveals she’s pregnant, Kurt decides to make a documentary chronicling Andrew’s life. While largely a love letter to a man who touched the lives of many for Zachary, the son he never met, Dear Zachary also tells the starkly bitter side of a broken Canadian legal system that directly endangered a baby. We follow the drawn-out custody battle between Andrew’s parents and Zachary’s mother, interspersed with loving snapshots into the Bagby family. The story sucks you in, but it’s also the at times comedic, fast-paced, and downright enraging documentary style of the film that breaks up the emotional tale.
Mindy Kaling and Emma Thompson team up for this comedy that imagines the grit and humor it takes to lead a late-night talk show as a woman. Thompson plays Katherine Newbury, an accomplished TV personality who fears she may lose her talk show because of declining ratings and competition from a younger, male comedian. She hires Molly (Kaling) a comedy writer with little experience to diversify her team, and the two women weather hilarious mishaps and a few scandals to bring the show back on track.
With just a few bars on the piano and an oversized mechanical shark, Steven Spielberg terrorized generations of moviegoers with Jaws. The film follows a local sheriff, a marine biologist, and an old seafarer who team up to hunt a great white shark who has a worrisome bloodlust and seems to be targeting a small beach town during the busiest time of the year. Spielberg’s camera work — the lingering, under water shots, the quick cuts of flesh being torn from bone and rows of teeth flashing to the surface — makes this exercise in inciting aquaphobia even more chilling. You’ll never look at a carefree day at the beach the same way again.
Shia LaBeouf writes and stars in this semi-autobiographical tale of his time as a child star. Noah Jupe plays the younger version of himself while LaBeouf plays his controlling, often abusive father. The two live in motel rooms in L.A. while Otis (Jupe) works on a popular kids TV show. Their relationship becomes strained as Otis ages, and his dad James (LaBeouf) grows resentful of his son’s success. Lucas Hedges plays an elder Otis, who struggles with all kinds of addictions because of his rough, unconventional upbringing. It’s a tough watch but one that feels refreshingly honest, and you can’t deny LaBeouf’s talent and courage in telling such a raw, intimate story.
Based on a historical crime novel set in Victoria-Era England, Park Chan-wook’s lavish, mesmerizing thriller focuses on two young women fighting to escape oppression by the men in their lives. Chan-woo has traded the stuffy British countryside for Japanese-occupied Korea, telling the stories of Lady Hideko and her handmaiden Sook-hee in three parts, weaving a tale of passion, betrayal, dark secrets, and revenge with grander themes of imperialism, colonial rule, and patriarchal corruption. The two women are the draw of the film with both resorting to illicit, illegal, morally compromising schemes in order to gain their freedom, but love is an unintended consequence that leaves the third act — one you might think you have figured out halfway through the film — completely unpredictable.
Kumail Nanjiani and Emily Gordon drew from their own unusual love story for their script about a Chicago comic named Kumail (Nanjiani) who falls in love with Emily, a woman (Zoe Kazan) who falls into a coma while in the midst of a rift in their relationship created by the expectations of Kumail’s traditional parents. The funny, moving romantic comedy also features strong supporting work from Ray Romano and Holly Hunter as Emily’s parents, who form an awkward bond with Kumail as they wait for Emily’s recovery.
Joaquin Phoenix stars as a troubled hitman with a dark past in this thrilling crime flick from Lynne Ramsay. Phoenix plays Joe, a gun for hire, former military man and FBI agent, who spends most of his time rescuing victims of sex trafficking. He’s recruited to save a Senator’s daughter from a brothel that caters to high-end clientele, but the job thrusts him into the center of a conspiracy that costs him everything and ends in blood and tragedy. It’s a relentless slog to be sure, but it works because Ramsay is more interested in profiling the man, not the hits he makes.
Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe star in this truly bonkers period drama from Robert Eggers. It’s a beautifully shot portrait of two men slowly driven to the brink of insanity by their choice in career — they’re stuck alone on a slab of rock, looking after a crumbling lighthouse. Pattinson masturbates to visions of mermaids, and Dafoe gets drunk and does a jig. To say anything more would be spoiling the fun.
Steve Carell and Timothee Chalamet star in this heartbreaking drama about a father trying to save his son from a drug addiction that’s slowly eating away at his family. Carell plays David, a New York Times writer who struggles to help his son Nic (Chalamet) after he falls victim to a worrying drug habit. He has moments of sobriety, attending college, living with his mother in L.A., and working at a drug clinic to help others battling the disease. Yet eventually, his addiction returns, and Nic is powerless to fight it. David is forced to choose between sacrificing his family and his own sanity or continuing to help his son. Both Carell and Chalamet give powerful performances that elevate what essentially is an emotionally restrained look at father-son relationships and the landmines they navigate.
A portrait of a particular moment in music history, when the folk revival found young musicians discovering their voices in old styles and old songs, Inside Llewyn Davis stars Oscar Isaac as a singer/songwriter who can never quite translate his talent into professional success. Joel and Ethan Coen both exactingly recreate early ‘60s New York and use it as the site of one of an affecting tale of the clash between artistic impulses and the needs of the material world, a theme they’d previously explored with Barton Fink and would pick up again with Hail, Caesar!.
Tom Hanks stars in this mafia drama about a mob enforcer whose son witnesses a terrible crime. Hanks plays Michael Sullivan, a loyal employee of mob boss John Rooney. When Michael’s son witnesses a hit that Rooney had instructed his henchmen to carry out, the two go on the run, seeking redemption and revenge for the violence they’ve helped to cause
Eva Khatchadourian (Tilda Swinton), who’s unwilling and unable to properly care for her troubled son Kevin, watches her life unravel as her husband (John C. Reilly) ignores their problems and Kevin grows more and more sociopathic and violent. The story jumps around in time, showing Swinton’s character as both a new mother who blames her son for ruining her life and as a woman who eventually blames herself for what becomes of her son. Swinton proves once again that she’s the actress that indie movies need for complex characters that live their lives in grey areas. At its core, We Need To Talk is about the importance of proper parenting, communication, and probably therapy. And it’s not for the faint of heart.
Another Dunst/Coppola team-up, this period drama is a visual feast that gives Dunst two hours to play, in costume, as France’s once most-hated woman, Marie Antoinette. Born to marry the French King Louis XVI, the ill-fated queen lived lavishly, died tragically, and in-between, shouldered the burden of making a marriage to an apathetic man work while carving out her own bit of freedom.
This Steven Spielberg sci-fi film is a bonafide classic. Entire childhoods were built around this thing. So there’s not much more we can add to persuade you to watch it if you haven’t already, but just in case, here’s the cliff notes: boy discovers alien lifeform, boy befriends alien lifeform, boy helps alien lifeform get back to his planet before the government can experiment on him.
Coherence is one of those low-budget sci-fi stories that is extremely tough to explain without either giving too much away or requiring an extended entry. Essentially, a group of friends sifts through their own issues and insecurities during a mind-bending paradoxical experience. Taking place almost entirely in the same room on a single night, the characters struggle to find answers just as much as the viewer. It’s a challenging yet enthralling film, perfect for those who love to overthink things.
Recent Changes Through August 2021
Removed: Fight Club, Saint Maud, It’s A Wonderful Life, Signs, Unbreakable, A.I. Artificial Intelligence
Added: The Tomorrow War, Attack The Block, Annette, Only Lovers Left Alive, Jaws, In Bruges
It’s not hard to find a cheap bottle of bourbon in America. It is a little harder to find a good cheap bottle of bourbon, though. Not impossible, mind you — but there’s a lot of rough stuff on those lower shelves. That’s why we’re calling out ten bottles of cheap bourbon to help you make the right decisions when picking out mixing whiskeys for your bar cart.
While there are bourbons that cost less than $10, they’re not really worth our time right now. Our cut-off for cheap bourbon is the lower-shelf whiskeys that are still “straight bourbon” whiskeys. That denotes at least two years of aging in new oak, proofing standards, and bourbon-only juices. Cheap labels with just “bourbon” on them or “blended bourbon whiskey” will be bourbon cut with neutral grain spirits, making them dirt cheap.
We’re only calling out straight bourbons below. Each one should cost less than $20 for a standard bottle. Some of the prices below may inch higher or lower depending on your state’s taxes but those prices won’t shift dramatically. And if you want to give any of these cheap bourbons a shot, click on the prices!
Heaven Hill’s Henry McKenna is a classic bourbon dating back to the 19th century that was billed as a “table bourbon.” While this doesn’t reach the heights of the single barrel version under the same brand name, it’s an everyday whiskey that works in any application.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a sense of old sawdust next to hints of corncakes, Caro corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and a touch of caramel. The palate really holds onto those notes with a touch of ground cinnamon next to more of that vanilla, corn syrup, and sawdust. The end is short, hot, and sweet.
Bottom Line:
This isn’t mind-blowing but it’s got enough of its own charm to make this list. It’s also cheap enough to be a solid whiskey to use when practicing your cocktail mixing skills. That said, we wouldn’t really recommend pouring this one into a Glencairn and spending too much time looking for something deeper.
Early Times has had a very tumultuous 160+ year history. This release was an early 2010s attempt to bring the brand back to prominence but fizzled out by the middle of the decade. You can still find bottles floating around and… they’re not bad.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a clear sense of cornmeal, light vanilla, wet oak, and an orange/apple vibe on the nose. The palate isn’t too drastically different, with plenty of that orchard and citrus pushing towards a light dusting of dark spices and more vanilla. The end is short and sweet.
Bottom Line:
If you do find a bottle or two of this, it might be worth storing it away, in case this expression never comes back. Or just drink it and see if you can figure out why it failed at the time. If this were still widely available, it’d probably rank a bit higher but here we are.
The McAfree brothers were the trio who followed the Great Buffalo Trail from Virginia into Kentucky in the 1770s and founded what would become part of today’s Buffalo Trace. The bourbon in this very cheap bottle is a standard “small batch” though there’s not a whole lot of information on what that entails exactly. Otherwise, this is a standard bourbon that’s made for mixing.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a truly basic bourbon vibe on the nose and throughout the palate. Vanilla extract, slightly wet oak, and that raw Buffalo Trace leather dominate the nose. The taste pretty much stays in that arena, with caramel apples and floral honey popping up next to a slight metallic note and soft mineral water mouthfeel. The end is short and sweet and leaves you with that leather, oak, and vanilla primarily.
Bottom Line:
This is Buffalo Trace’s other cheap bourbon (along with Ancient Age). This is inching towards “on the rocks” territory but still feels very much like a good, cheap mixer more than anything else.
Luxco’s Ezra Brooks is a throwback to the Mad Men days of bourbon. The juice is a standard rye-infused bourbon without an age statement. It’s made as a workhorse whiskey that’s easy to find and cheap when you do find it.
Tasting Notes:
Classic yet mild notes of caramel corn, vanilla, and oaky spice lead the way. There’s a continued sense of those notes on the palate, with a hint of dark chocolate and spice when a little water is introduced. The end is short, caramel sweet, and has hints of kettle corn.
Bottom Line:
This is complex but will still have that cheaper vibe going on, making it the perfect mixer. A classic highball will bring out more of those mild dark chocolate notes with a hint of orange.
This is Heaven Hill’s other gateway bourbon. There are no frills involved. This is standard bourbon that’s aged for three years before blending, proofing, and bottling.
Tasting Notes:
This is light, with a sense of cornmeal next to classic bourbon vanilla and butterscotch. That butterscotch sweetness tends to be the defining point as the corn and vanilla fade. The end has a bit of warm spice that works well with the corn syrup sweetness and vanilla.
Bottom Line:
This is one of those bottles that I dismissed for the longest time. Then I tried it in a blind tasting and it popped. Look, it’s not a life-changing bourbon. It’s a really solid mixing bourbon with real nuance for highballs, and that’s enough at this price point.
This whiskey is made from Beam’s other mash bill. That’d be their high-rye bourbon mash. From there, the whiskey rests for a few years in Beam’s expansive rickhouses before it’s vatted, proofed down with that Kentucky limestone water, and bottled.
Tasting Notes:
This is very even-keeled between the nose and palate. You’re drawn in with notes of cream soda and maybe even Vanilla Coke next to a touch of Beam cherry and oak. That cherry leans into spicy cherry tobacco territory with a light chewiness next to notes of cinnamon, clove, and maybe a touch of pepper. The end is short, hot, and leaves you with a cherry vanilla vibe.
Bottom Line:
You really can’t go wrong with good ol’ Old Grand-Dad for mixing. It’s solid as a shooter with a beer back, as well. Beyond that, we’re not really talking about a sipper so stick to cocktails (and highballs).
This is a quality whiskey (from Heaven Hill) at a very accessible price point. It’s a bottled-in-bond, meaning it’s from one distilling season, aged for at least four years, and bottled at 100 proof.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a clear caramel and cream soda sweetness that definitely does draw you in. A touch of dark spice lingers in the background with a bit more of that vanilla-forward cream soda sweetness on the palate, making the sip very easy. The end has a touch more of that spice, followed by a moment of oak buried under the creamy vanilla.
Bottom Line:
This is another bottle that’s grown on me the more I poured it over ice and mixed it with soda water. It’s easy, a little warm, and perfect for highballs thanks to that bottled-in-bond ABV.
This bourbon has a low-rye mash bill. It’s aged for four years before the barrels are blended and it’s cut down to 80 proof. This is a lot of folks’ entry point into the wider world of bourbon because it’s a quaffable whiskey that’s very affordable and on pretty much every liquor store shelf right at eye level.
Tasting Notes:
You can sense the corn next to classic bourbon notes of caramel, vanilla, and orchard fruit. The sip centers the vanilla and caramel as a distant echo of oak arrives on the tongue. The sip warms, with a bit of spice next to a sweetened caramel corn edge on the fast finish.
Bottom Line:
This is the perfect party bourbon for mixing, shooting, or drinking however you want. It’s super cheap, available literally everywhere booze is sold, and delivers a solid bourbon flavor profile.
This was devised as a more approachable and mixable version of Wild Turkey 101 (Campari Group). The juice is rye-forward and aged from six to eight years in heavily charred “alligator” barrels. Finally, it’s brought down to proof with that famously soft Kentucky limestone water.
Tasting Notes:
This is truly classic bourbon through and through. The nose has hints of that oak with sweet pears covered in caramel with a slight spice and plenty of vanilla. Hints of buttery kettle corn mix with more pear and maybe a touch of peach too. The spiciness edges towards a Christmas spice boldness as the oak, vanilla, and caramel slowly fade out.
Bottom Line:
No list of cheap bourbon is complete without a little Turkey. This pared-down version of 101 is designed specifically for mixing behind the bar. It’s bold-yet-easy, making it the perfect cocktail base but it also works as an on the rocks sipper in a pinch.
So this is a “small batch” in theory and name more than practice. The expression is a marrying of 200 barrels of bourbon from Heaven Hill’s warehouses. That juice is then proofed down to 45 proof and bottled as is.
Tasting Notes:
The whiskey pulls you in with a touch of cornbread dripping with butter next to bourbon vanilla and hints of oak. The taste adds a drop of honey to that buttery cornbread as fruitiness takes on a tart caramel apple edge. The end is short, sweet, full of corn, and a little oaky.
Bottom Line:
This is squarely in the workhorse genre. It’s perfectly suitable as an “on the rocks” sipper, highball base, or cocktail bourbon. You really can’t go wrong with this one and that’s why it’s taking the top spot today.
As a Drizly affiliate, Uproxx may receive a commission pursuant to certain items on this list.
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