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The Biggest X-Factors For The Celtics-Sixers First Round Series

For the second time in three seasons, the Boston Celtics’ and Philadelphia 76ers’ respective postseason paths will intersect with one another. The last time the two teams met up in the playoffs, a Kyrie Irving-less Boston put the clamps on a promising young Philly bunch to win in five games during the 2018 conference semifinals.

A whole lot has happened in that time — including an integral part of that Celtics team moving to the City of Brotherly Love — but the expectations are as high as ever. The two teams are awfully familiar with one another, and even if Boston has been something of a surprise while Philly has disappointed during the 2019-20 campaign, both have their sights set on this being merely one hurdle en route to a conference finals cameo.

These two teams are as familiar with one another as any squads in the league, and as such, x-factors might not be as impactful here as they will be in another series. Still, there are areas that could very well tilt this one way or another for the two teams if all goes right.

Boston Celtics: Their two young stars keeping it up

The Sixers, for all of their issues, are the only team to beat Boston three times this season. In those losses, both Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum have struggled. Brown, in those games, has scored 7.3 points on 29.6 percent shooting from the field, while Tatum’s at 17 points on 32.1 percent shooting. The Celtics have been outscored by 12 points in the 31.9 minutes the former played in those games and 5.7 points in the 35.6 minutes the latter played.

Now, there is a lot of extra context that should be added here. Ben Simmons, of course, is out, and he’s been Philly’s main defender against Tatum. Both played quite well in the fourth matchup between the two squads, a Celtics win. And both have been very, very good in the Bubble, with Boston going 5-2 in the games they’ve played and the duo combining to average 42 points and 12.5 rebounds per game while connecting on 41.5 percent of their threes.

The lineup the Sixers will likely rely on the most without Simmons — Shake Milton, Richardson, Tobias Harris, Horford, and Embiid — doesn’t really have someone who is a no-brainer option to check Tatum and has generally struggled defensively, as it’s in the ninth percentile of points per 100 possessions allowed, per Cleaning the Glass. Philly can play the Matisse Thybulle card, which it certainly will in spots, but that’s a huge ask for a rookie over a seven-game series.

The Sixers will throw everything they have at these two. There’s a chance it does not matter if they keep up the play we’ve seen during the Bubble, even if Philly has given them fits at times this year.

Philadelphia 76ers: Can they survive the Joel Embiid-less minutes?

When the Sixers poached Al Horford from the Celtics this past offseason (which, of course, means 13.5 months ago), part of the logic was that they needed someone to stem the tide when Embiid wasn’t on the floor. That’s been up-and-down during the regular season — unsurprisingly, they’re better when he plays — but this will be especially gigantic during the playoffs. Think of last year’s Game 7 against the Toronto Raptors, when Philadelphia outscored Toronto by 10 points in the 45:12 that Embiid played but lost because they were outscored by 12 in the 2:48 he sat.

Embiid has to be the best player on the floor against Boston if the Sixers are going to stand a chance, something that is magnified by Simmons’ absence. He has it in him to do that, although he’s been all over the place against the Celtics this year. Embiid was magnificent in the team’s win in Beantown, ok during their win in Philly, and absolutely putrid in their loss in their most recent matchup.

Having said this, Embiid needs breaks, as would any human of his size who plays basketball. This means that there will be a whole lot of minutes where the Sixers roll out lineups without either of their two All-Stars, which have been up-and-down all season. Brett Brown will have to do a ton of tinkering to figure out exactly which one works best on a given evening, but it is reasonable to expect that the team will need its big-money offseason signings to come up huge while Embiid catches his breath.

Philadelphia is in a weird spot where they’ve played 73 games this season but no one can totally articulate exactly what they are as a basketball team, ostensibly because somewhere in the NBA’s bylaws, it is explicitly stated that the Sixers need to be the most bizarre team in basketball on an annual basis. But we can say with some reasonable amount of certainty that two things are true: 1. Embiid is going to be at the center of everything they do and, 2. They have a chance to beat the Celtics if they can stay afloat when that’s not the case.

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They nailed a gorgeous duet of the gospel classic but not before some even more amazing bloopers

Joseph Clarke and Bri’Anna Harper made viral waves this spring when they shared an incredible at-home rendition of “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” on Instagram. Clarke frequently shares his gorgeous voice on social media frequently, belting out gospel tunes and covering classics. Harper is only 12, but her vocals are seriously something else. She’s been referred to as a “singing prodigy” and when you hear her, you’ll see why.

Both singers have had moments in the spotlight on America’s Got Talent and The Ellen Show, and currently have something special in the works with Disney. But there’s something so endearing in these home video performances, with just the two of them singing together—and their blooper reel is impossible not to smile at.

First, check out their viral version of the Marvin Gaye favorite:


How much joy and talent is there in this video? Seriously impressive.

But the mistake videos Clarke shared more recently make their performance even sweeter. Goodness, if only we could all sound this fabulous when we mess up. (There are four blooper videos to scroll through here.)

You can follow these two individually on Instagram (Clarke here and Harper here) to see more of their amazing performances, both together and individually. Definitely two rising stars to watch as they continue to shine.

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Cardi B And Megan Thee Stallion Share Excited Reactions To ‘WAP’ Debuting At No. 1

In unsurprising news, “WAP,” the world dominating single from Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart this morning. Also unsurprisingly, Cardi and Megan are pretty excited about it.

Cardi shared a video reacting to the news this morning, writing on Instagram, “Number f*ckin one !!!!!NUMBER 1 !!!My 4th number 1 on @billboard hot 100….I’m just so thankful I want to hug the LORD !! Thank you soo much @theestallion .I don’t even know how to thank you ,I wish I can give you a big ass hug !!! Thank you to my fans Megan fans,Thank you the world for listening .Im just soooo thankful I can’t even type it .Imma get like a bad b*tch and tell ya later.Love ya WAAAAAAAPP.”

In a follow-up post, she shared a bunch of screenshots that explain all the accolades and wrote, “Breaking pop records! HIP HOP DID THAT !! I’m sooo f*ckin happy .Im so proud of us !Yooo God is sooooo big .I did NOT see this coming I wasn’t even expecting all this yooo.Wap Wap Wap!!!!! Thank you @theestallion !!!GETTING DRUNKYYY EARLY !!!!”

Megan shared a reaction of her own, writing on Instagram, “Me and cardi just got off the phone screaming [crying emojis] FIRST FEMALE RAP COLLABORATION IN HISTORY TO DEBUT AT NUMBER 1 [crying emojis[ God is so great [praying emoji] THANK YALL !!! @iamcardib thank you for all your words of encouragement, thank you for all the laughs, & thank you for having me on the record [heart emojis] #WAP”

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

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Taylor Swift Reveals All The Easter Eggs Hidden In Her ‘Cardigan’ Video

Taylor Swift previously noted of her new album Folklore, “One thing I did purposely on this album was put the Easter eggs in the lyrics, more than just the videos.” Don’t look past the videos, though, because there are Easter eggs in there, too: Today, Swift has shared a video that breaks down the Easter Eggs hidden in her “Cardigan” visual.

The clip comes as part of Vevo’s “Footnotes” series, which shows the original video framed by text that constantly updates with information about the artist, song, and video. These notes offer some interesting trivia, like how a photo of Swift’s grandfather makes an appearance, how there’s a hidden “13” (Swift’s favorite number) in the video, and how Swift included a painting she made during the first week of quarantine in the clip.

It also breaks down the meaning of scenes, like how the forest parts represent optimism and growth while the ocean scene is more about fear and helplessness. The clip also notes some of the COVID-19-related precautions that were taking while making the video, including special camera equipment, Taylor and the video’s editor working together separately from each other to edit the video in real time, and how the piano keys were cleaned with UV lights and wipes between every take.

Watch the video above and revisit our Folklore review here.

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George Miller Has Addressed The Possibility Of Furiosa Becoming A Tyrant After ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’

When George Miller announced that the highly anticipated follow-up to Mad Max: Fury Road would be a prequel that stars a younger version of the breakout character Furiosa, fans were left scratching their heads when they learned this new Furiosa would not be played by Charlize Theron whose performance is easily one of the biggest pop culture phenomenons of the 2010s.

However, in a new interview with Josh Horowitz after this year’s virtual New York Comic-Con, Miller opened up about his thought process for what would happen after the events of Fury Road, and it may explain why the visionary director is going the prequel route for next installment. According to Miller, Furiosa only had two possible outcomes if you follow the traditional Joseph Campbell story structure. She could create a utopia in the aftermath of the first film, which Miller basically says would be pretty boring and also unlikely. He sees Furiosa taking a darker turn. Via The Hollywood Reporter:

“Campbell said that the usual story is that today’s hero becomes tomorrow’s tyrant. The hero is the agent of change. They basically relinquish self-interest in order for some common good,” said Miller. “[Campbell] basically says … you love what you’ve built, or saved, too much. You become holdfast. You become the orthodoxy. You develop the dogma and basically then you have to protect it. That tends to be the rhythm of these things.”

Before all hope is lost and it seems like Miller has written off the future of his beloved character, he does posit that she is “too smart to fall into that trap.” But if a sequel where Furiosa battles against forces pushing her to become a tyrant sounds pretty awesome and a natural progression for a next film, you’re not alone in that train of thought. Theron recently voiced her disappointment that she was being bumped out of the franchise for a younger take.

“It’s a tough one to swallow,” she admitted to THR at beginning of July. “I really love that character, and I’m so grateful that I had a small part in creating her. She will forever be someone I think of and reflect on fondly. Obviously, I would love to see that story continue, and if he feels like he has to go about it this way, then I trust him in that manner.”

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

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The Trailer For Netflix’s ‘Chef’s Table: BBQ’ Takes Us Deep Into A World Of Smoke And Fire

Hot on the heels of this summer’s Street Food: Latin America on Netflix, the Chef’s Table team is back to their flagship franchise with the latest iteration of the epic, visually arresting, and Emmy nominated Chef’s Table. The new series, Chef’s Table: BBQ, is taking us deep into the wild world of BBQ to highlight just how universal cooking food over an open flame really is.

The new, shortened iteration of the series will tell the stories of four different barbecue legends over four episodes while deep-diving into all of the juicy and smokey secrets of the craft. Of course, the heightened sense of style and deeply personal storytelling remain in sharp focus on the screen.

The series will open in Texas with a true legend, Tootsie Tomanetz — an 85-year-old grandma who controls her pits with her senses and doesn’t need a thermometer to tell her when it’s time to cook. Next, the show will travel to Australia and immerse us in the world of chef Lennox Hastie, who returned home to cook with fire after a stint at Spain’s Extebarri (a place considered by many to be the best restaurant in the world). Next, the show will travel to South Carolina to get into whole-hog barbecuing with James Beard-winning pitmaster Rodney Scott. Finally, Rosalia Chay Chuc closes out the new slate of episodes by highlighting millennia-old Mayan barbecue techniques, which have turned her small town of Yaxunah into a culinary destination for chefs (and foodies) from all over the globe.

We have to admit, the trailer alone is filling us with a strong desire to hop on a plane again to taste all these foods for ourselves. Of course, that’s not possible just yet, so for now we’re just going to have to live vicariously through Chef’s Table: BBQ for a bittersweet reminder of the civilizations-long tradition of communing over the coals to savor delicious food.

Chef’s Table: BBQ” premieres on Wednesday, September 2nd, 2020 on Netflix.

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George R.R. Martin Is Currently Living A ‘Very Boring Life’ In Exile To Finish ‘The Winds Of Winter’

George R.R. Martin hasn’t been imprisoned for not finishing The Winds of Winter, but he is living in a prison of his own making. On his Not a Blog (“current mood: contemplative”), the A Song of Ice and Fire author shared that he’s “back in Westeros again, once more moving ahead with WINDS OF WINTER” and detailed his writing process. Decades ago, he would work in his home office, but as his fame grew, he bought the house across the street from where he lived and used that as his retreat; Martin also went from one assistant to five assistants, whom he calls his “minions.”

Martin is currently self-exiled in a cabin in the mountains, where he lives a “very boring” life. “Truth be told, I hardly can be said to have a life. I have one assistant with me at all times. The assistants do two-week shifts, and have to stay in quarantine at home before starting a shift,” he wrote, leaving out whether the minions get paid in bananas:

Everyone morning I wake up and go straight to the computer, where my minion brings me coffee (I am utterly useless and incoherent without my morning coffee) and juice, and sometimes a light breakfast. Then I start to write. Sometimes I stay at it until dark. Other days I break off in late afternoon to answer emails or return urgent phone calls. My assistant brings me food and drink from time to time. When I finally break off for the day, usually around sunset, there’s dinner. Then we watch television or screen a movie. The wi-fi sucks up on the mountain, though, so the choices are limited. Some nights I read… I sleep. The next day, I wake up, and do the same. The next day, the next day, the next day.

Since March, when the world went into lockdown due to COVID-19, Martin has gone “weeks and months” without “[leaving] the cabin, or see another human being except whoever is on duty that week. I lose track of what day it is, what week it is, what month it is. The time seems to [go] by very fast.”

Not every writer has written Game of Thrones, but every writer can relate with the writer of Game of Thrones. Especially the “not other human beings and losing track of time and living a boring life of sad isolation” thing. Good luck, George!

(Via Not a Blog)

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The Biggest X-Factors For The Raptors-Nets First Round Series

The NBA Playoffs are, finally, upon us. After a four-month hiatus and eight seeding round games, the postseason tips off Monday with a quadruple header of first round games everyday for at least a week.

The second game of the afternoon in the Disney Bubble is the opener between the Toronto Raptors and Brooklyn Nets, a pair of teams that played extremely well in the seeding round, which was no surprise for the Raptors but a shocking turn of events for a shorthanded Nets squad. Brooklyn went 5-3 in the Bubble to maintain the 7-seed, but now draw arguably the hottest team in the league in Toronto, which boasts the best defense from the seeding round by a significant margin.

We know the stars that will be shouldering a significant load for the two teams, but as always in the playoffs, it’s incumbent on role players to step up and lend support for teams to make a deep postseason run. Here, we’ll highlight the potential X-factors in this series that could make a difference in how competitive this first round series is.

Toronto Raptors: OG Anunoby

At this point, the Raptors have a Big Three of sorts that we expect to play at a high level in Pascal Siakam, Kyle Lowry, and Fred VanVleet. They have solid veteran presences in the middle in Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka that you have faith in playing their role and giving the Raptors what they need. Against this Nets team, there’s probably not be a need for anyone else to go crazy for them to get a win and do so comfortably, but this is more about the prospects of the Raptors making a deep run.

OG Anunoby had a few big moments in the Bubble, flashing a tighter handle and the ability to put the ball on the floor to make the Toronto offense even more dynamic when defenses focus on their stars. He’s been nursing a knee injury that has him listed as day-to-day, but getting him some more playoff minutes and his confidence up will be important in this series. Anunoby missed last year’s championship run after an emergency apendectomy, but he now is a key member of the rotation and is a big part of what makes the Raptors elite defense sustainable for 48 minutes. As the playoffs wear on, the Raptors will need him as they potentially face the tremendous wing depth of the Celtics in the conference semis and the Bucks in the conference finals.

The question for the Raptors entering the Bubble was whether they could improve upon their pedestrian halfcourt offensive numbers and Anunoby hitting shots and being able to put the ball on the floor gives them an added dynamic teams aren’t preparing for. His defensive impact is critical to the success of this team, but what he gives them on offense could be part of what elevates them to championship contenders.

Brooklyn Nets: Garrett Temple

The Nets need everyone to step up in this series to have a chance, to be clear. Caris LeVert has been spectacular and Jarrett Allen will have his hands full battling the Raptors frontcourt. Joe Harris has to be a big-time scorer to alleviate some of that pressure on LeVert, and the bench has to continue to play above their heads. Temple has been pretty consistent in the Bubble in terms of stepping into a major role on this shorthanded squad and giving them key production. He’s tasked with being a secondary creator behind LeVert and has had some big scoring nights in Orlando. That has to continue for Brooklyn to have any kind of chance against this Raptors defense that will center their focus on slowing LeVert. That will potentially leave Temple with opportunities on that end, and it’ll be hugely important for their chances of making this a competitive series for him to continue shooting well from the perimeter and creating opportunities for his teammates off the bounce.

Honorable mention in this category goes to Timothe Luwawu-Cabbarot, who has had some huge games off the bench in the Bubble, Tyler Johnson, and Rodions Kurucs, who has to provide a lot of help inside to Allen. It’s an uphill climb for Brooklyn in this series, but then again, so has the entire Bubble experience and they’ve acquitted themselves very well thus far.

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Watch Melania Refuse To Hold Donald Trump’s Hand In A New Cringeworthy Clip

Another embarrassing Trump video is making the rounds today, which makes it just like every other day of late, it seems. Anyway, Trump was joined by his wife, Melania, on a trip to New York to visit his brother Robert in the hospital (sadly, Robert Trump succumbed to an undisclosed illness and passed away Saturday). When the First Couple made their return to D.C. the press caught footage of Trump awkwardly trying to get Melania to hold his hand as they stepped off of Air Force One, a move she clearly rebuffed.

In the clip, you can clearly see Trump reaching for his wife’s hand — even appearing to pinch her at one point — as their son Barron walks behind them. Melania seems to be focused on getting down the stairs, holding onto the railing with one hand, while fending off her husband’s grabs with the other.

Now, it seems fairly windy so it’s quite possible that Mrs. Trump was simply using her free hand to hold down her dress and her husband just wasn’t taking the hint. But this isn’t the first time Melania has appeared to diss President Trump in public, so of course some had things to say about the whole thing.

Knowing how obsessed Trump is with public appearances, you know this has to dig at him just a bit. Maybe Melania snubbed him on purpose, or maybe she’s seen how unsteady he was walking down a ramp and wanted to make sure if he took a tumble, she wouldn’t go down with him? We’ll likely never know.

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Serious Beer Experts Name Their Favorite Lagers For Late-Summer

The (very hot!) late-summer season is upon us and fall is knocking at the door. Making this the perfect time for a lager. The general lightness of the style makes them wonderfully refreshing, while the central European vibes remind us of coming Oktoberfest bacchanalia.

Just like with IPAs, there isn’t “one” lager. It’s a varied and nuanced category — dark, light, sessionable, hoppy, malty, fruity, earthy, smoked… — and requires some persistence and expertise to fully understand. To offer the necessary insight, we reached out to 13 undeniable beer experts to find out which lagers they’re drinking right now. Their picks dance across the style. Yes, this list is very German and Czech heavy because, well, that’s where the best lagers are typically made. Still, we like the variations at play below.

Hopefully, these 13 selections — from people who truly live and breathe beer — will inspire you to seek some of these tasty drafts out for yourself.

Schönramer Pils — Mark Dredge, author of A Brief History of Lager

Style: German Pilsner
Brewery: Private Landbrauerei Schönram, Petting, Germany
ABV: 5.4%

The Beer:

My favorite lager?!

This is a tough one to answer, but I’ve come to crave a couple of key characteristics in a great lager, or specifically a great Pilsner: A clean clarity of flavor (often from filtration) which helps emphasize the hop bitterness and the beautiful richness added by a decoction mash — which gives a little extra fullness and malt flavor.

A lot of classic German lagers have those qualities, but I haven’t tasted any better than Schönramer Pils.

Tasting Notes:

Schönramer Pils has a brilliant golden color. It’s got snappy natural carbonation from its long lagering time. There’s some light toasty grain which gives it some weight in the middle, and a bracing, racy, grapefruit-like bitterness which really hangs around and demands you go back for more. It’s perfect.

Right now, I hate the use of ‘crispy’ to describe almost every lager, especially anything unfiltered or in the Helles style (they are more chewy than crispy!), but this is one of the few beers which you can legitimately call ‘crisp’ (but please, not ‘crispy’ and it’s certainly not a ‘crispy boi’).

Neder Schwarze Anna — Andreas Krennmair, award-winning home brewer and author of Vienna Lager

Style: Schwarzbier
Brewery: Brauerei Neder, Forchheim, Germany
ABV: 5.2%

The Beer:

This beer was love at first sip for me.

Neder — a local brewery located in Forchheim in Upper Franconia — calls this beer a “Schwarzbier.” When I first tried it, it tasted like so much more. It tasted slightly roasty, malty, with notes of chocolate and coffee, and most unexpectedly, it was a refreshing and thirst-quenching beer. Schwarzbier really doesn’t describe it — it’s much closer to a Czech tmavý or a robust stout. If you’ve ever had the dark lager at U Fleků brewery in Prague, this is the Franconian version of it. It’s equally a warming beer in winter as it is a refreshing beer at Forchheim’s annual Annafest beer festival in the summer. It’s also a great beer to pair with a dessert, like vanilla ice cream or a chocolate brownie (or both).

Tasting Notes:

Very dark with just a few dark red specks of light shining through. It pours with a white-ish head. On the nose, you’ll find chocolate and coffee. On the palate, it’s full-bodied with strong notes of chocolate, coffee, and dark malt, without ever being sweet. It’s balanced with a medium hop bitterness. It finishes dry with the malty notes lingering on.

Jack’s Abby House Lager — Bella (One Hoppy Lady), certified Cicerone

Style: Helles
Brewery: Jack’s Abby Brewing, Framington, MA
ABV: 5.2%

The Beer:

When I think about lagers, I think about Jack’s Abby in Framingham, Massachusetts. My go-to lager is their House Lager. It has a traditional German taste that I love.

I keep this one stocked in my beer fridge. It’s a no-brainer to bring to picnics or barbecues because this is a beer that everyone can enjoy.

Tasting Notes:

It’s very flavorful but still refreshing. It’s highly carbonated, which results in a great, full, and foamy head. It’s crisp but has the right amount of bready, malty sweetness. The body that makes it easy to drink on its own, while still standing up to foods I’d typically eat in the summer, like shellfish or grilled pork. To me, it’s just a perfect example of a balanced, easy-drinking beer. You can tell that a lot of thought went into it.

Russian River Brewery STS Pils — Garrett Oliver, brewmaster Brooklyn Brewery and founder of the Michael Jackson Foundation for Brewing & Distilling

Style: Czech Pilsner
Brewery: Russian River Brewing Company, Santa Rosa, CA
ABV: 5.3%

The Beer:

When it comes to imported lagers, I’m a big fan of Augustiner, out of Munich, which is among my favorites. And more obscure ones, like Andechs. I think the best pilsner in the United States, or one of them anyway, is being made by the great Russian River Brewery in California, and that’s STS Pils.

Tasting Notes:

If you’ve never had it, is just a real firecracker. It’s just absolutely beautiful.

Pilsner Urquell — Latiesha Cook, certified Cicerone and president of Beer Kulture

Style: Czech Pilsner
Brewery: Plzeňský Prazdroj, Plzeň, Czech Republic
ABV: 4.4%

The Beer:

Always duplicated but never replicated, one of my all-time favorite lagers is Pilsner Urquell. I can drink this every day!

Tasting Notes:

Its got a beautiful amber hue. The smell is like grandma’s fresh-baked bread meets floral hops and spices. The first sip is glorious as the malt speaks to you. But the swallow is where the magic happens, the hops and spices crescendo into the most pleasing experience.

Knoblach Schammelsdorfer Lagerbier — Joe Stange, co-author CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide To Belgium and managing editor Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine

Style: Kellerbier
Brewery: Brauerei Hans Knoblach, Litzendorf-Schammelsdorf, Germany
ABV: 5.3%

The Beer:

A lot of the beer I’m really missing in this accursed year without travel is Franconian kellerbier, and one of my favorites from that region is Knoblach Schammelsdorfer Lagerbier. The reason I love it is that it’s fucking bitter.

Tasting Notes:

A lot of the other country lagers you find in the region are more akin to softer, sweeter, unfiltered helles or amber lager. I enjoy a lot of those too, but my favorites tend to have a nice, firm bite, and Knoblach has the firmest, with a not-quite-harsh, earthy bitterness. It’s balanced with the residual sweetness from the malt. It can be hard to stop drinking it, especially in warm weather while quaffing from a stein krug under the chestnuts. Bring on the obazda.

Mahr’s Bräu Ungespundet Naturtrüb (aU) — Matthew Curtis, founder/editor in chief of Pellicle Magazine

Style: Kellerbier
Brewery: Mahr’s Bräu, Bamberg, Germany
ABV: 5.2%

The Beer:

I love lager. Picking a favorite was a far more complex task than I anticipated. A first, my thoughts drifted to the robust and bitter svetlý ležák of the Czech Republic, beers such as the muscular Zlata 12º from Pivovar Kutná Hora (located just to the east of Prague). Then I thought of modern iterations from the U.S., like the precisely snappy and refreshing Pilsner from Zwei Brewing in Fort Collins, Colorado. Even my home country got a look in with modern British lagers such as Keller Pils from Bristol’s Lost and Grounded, deftly holding their own on a global stage.

But, after much deliberation, I realized the answer came from Germany. Of course, it did. But I’m not thinking of the subtle, nuanced Helles of Munich. The beer that I thought of is Ungespundet Naturtrüb — aU for short — from Bamberg’s Mahr’s Bräu.

Tasting Notes:

I prefer something a little maltier, something with a push of sweetness that perfectly balances the spice and pepper of noble hops, a quality inherent to the lagers of the Franconia region and this is it. This is a lager that is centered and whole. Ultimately, aU is as delicious as it is thirst-quenching.

Augustiner Bräu Dunkel — Natalya Watson, Beer Sommelier, author, and podcaster

Style: Munich Dunkel
Brewery: Augustiner-Bräu, Munich, Germany
ABV: 5.6%

The Beer:

This was a tough choice, but I decided to go for a lager style that I think deserves a little more love: the Munich Dunkel. One of the things I love most about this style is that while it’s incredibly full of flavor (think richly bready and chocolatey), it’s still incredibly refreshing thanks to its clean lager character.

Tasting Notes:

My favorite descriptor for the aroma of this style is ‘toasted bread crusts.’ It’s so specific and totally spot on. Take a sip and you’ll pick up on all of the style’s rich, bready flavor, and maybe even a hint of chocolate. Then there’s just enough bitterness in the balance that keeps the beer malty, but not sweet. If you haven’t tried a dark lager yet, I’d definitely recommend giving this beer a go!

Bierstadt Lagerhaus Helles– Alyssa Thrope, head brewer Jagged Mountain Craft Brewery

Style: Helles
Brewery: Bierstadt Lagerhaus, Denver, CO
ABV: 5.5%

The Beer:

It’s pretty common for brewers to prefer drinking good, clean lagers on the regular. I’ve drunk my fair share after brew days whether it’s hot or cold outside. Living in Denver has the perks of having access to some of the most talented brewers in our country and one of my favorites is Ashleigh Carter over at Bierstadt Lagerhaus.

Tasting Notes:

She continuously pumps out some of the best clear, refreshing lagers. Every time I go I like to order two beers at once: her Helles and Slow Pour Pilsner. By the time I finish the Helles, the slow poured and clean as hell Pilsner is waiting for me. Both hit the exact right notes you’re looking for in the style and keep me coming back.

Threes Brewing Vilet Pilsner — Cory Smith, beer writer and photographer

Style: German Pilsner
Brewery: Threes Brewing, Brooklyn, NY
ABV: 5.2%

The Beer:

How the hell do you choose just one lager?

I’m not entirely sure, but the folks at Uproxx have thrust this impossible task upon me, so here goes… So many deserve a shout out. Downing an ice-cold Rothaus Pils at Gold Star Beer Counter in Brooklyn was a favorite. A sunset and cans of Suarez Family Brewery’s Palatine Pils is a choice way to spend an afternoon, speaking from experience. I once drank tank Pilsner Urquell in Prague. That memory hasn’t left my brain a full two years later. Since I can only pick one, I’m going with a staple from my days in Brooklyn.

Threes was brewing Vliet before the recent uptick in lager interest began. When Vliet first arrived as a regular ol’ Pilsner in the land of IPA, it was kind of out of step — or way ahead of the curve. They kept brewing it, kept dialing it in until it reached its current state, which is damn near perfect.

Tasting Notes:

Vliet is clean, lightly herbaceous, subtly hopped, and infinitely crushable. It’s sweet and earthy in equal measure to keep things interesting. It’s glowingly golden and crystalline in the glass. This is a beer that disappears far too quickly.

Creative Creature Brewing TP for my Acai Bowl Pastry Lager — Ray (CraftBeerRay), professional beer reviewer

Style: Honey Lager
Brewery: Creative Creature Brewing, El Cajon, CA
ABV: 7%

The Beer:

One of my favorite Lagers has to be “TP for my acai bowl with acai, acerola cherry, raspberry and honey” by Creative Creature Brewing out of El Cajon, California in San Diego. Most of the craft lagers I usually drink are pretty standard, but this beer is totally different.

Tasting Notes:

The consistency of it is a little thinker due to all the fruits in there and it’s also on the sweeter side so it’s technically labeled as a “Pastry Sour Honey Lager.” In my opinion, this is one of the most unique lagers I’ve ever had. Props to the team at Creative Creature!

The Shop Beer Co. Bonsai Daniel-San — Tara Tea, professional beer reviewer

Style: Japanese Rice Lager
Brewery: The Shop Beer Co., Tempe, AZ
ABV: 5.1%

The Beer:

I want to go with Helton Brewing’s Pilsner. It’s crisp, made only with Saaz hops, and has that distinctive spice to it you expect in a pilsner. The label art for it is killer too, probably my favorite of Arizona beer labels (not that that makes it a better pils, but it adds to it!). But if I were to pick a lager-lager and not a pilsner, then it would be The Shop’s Bonsai Daniel-San, a Japanese Rice Lager.

Tasting Notes:

Not many people do Japanese rice lagers, and that’s a shame. This one is super light and crisp. It has a mild hop flavor with some sweetness and a dry finish. This one is delicious and hits the spot perfectly when it’s typical Phoenix-triple-digits weather. It’s so refreshing.

WRITER’S PICK: Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Märzen — Zach Johnston, Deputy Editor UPROXX Life, podcaster One More Road For The Beer

Style: Rauchbier
Brewery: Brauerei Schlenkerla, Bamberg, Germany
ABV: 5.4%

The Beer:

I love a good smoked beer and there really isn’t any better than Schlenkerla’s Rauchbeer Märzen. It’s the sort of dark beer that might speak (for some) more to a firepit in the late fall or early spring or a smoker pit on a rainy night to some. To me, this is a year-rounder that is meant to be enjoyed under the chestnuts in a well-shaded beer garden on a hot summer’s day or next to smoker while you wait for the brisket to hit just the right spot of tender and juicy. This is also the ultimate campfire beer that keeps things light while still packing in the flavor.

Tasting Notes:

The locally smoked malts of Bamberg (they use beech for smoking) imbue this beer with a sense of a campfire used to smoke bacon while pulling in an echo of bitter hopiness. The malts then veer towards the lightly smoky and fatty ends of a well-used smoker. There’s a very mild toffee sweetness underneath the smoke. The sip stays light because it’s a lager and not a stout or darker ale, meaning you can drink a lot of this beer while you’re outside or inside.