Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

‘Pawternity leave’ is a real thing and a few companies are leading the way

Getting a new puppy or kitten can be life altering in the best way, but those first few days can be a doozy. Trying to get a new animal acclimated to your home and schedule isn’t always easy and if you have other pets, it can make it downright impossible to do without taking some time off to monitor everyone. That’s where the concept of pawternity leave is helpful. You may be thinking pawternity leave sounds made up, but it’s actually a real thing for some companies.


It’s totally true. Several companies offer some form of pawternity or furternity leave for employees to welcome and acclimate new pets into their home. The range of time varies from 10 hours of paid leave to up to two weeks. MParticle, a company that offers two weeks of leave, has one stipulation on those two weeks. You must be adopting a shelter pet to qualify. Some companies even offer paid pet bereavement time. After all, these little furry guys are members of the family, so when we inevitably have to say goodbye, being able to take a day or so without guilt is important.

Pets can help with things like anxiety and depression, and some can be trained as service animals to help people live safely in the world around them. If someone adopts an animal from a shelter, they’re helping to clear out some of the overpopulated shelters to make room for other animals in need. Employers trying to be more in tune with what their employees need and providing some sort of leave when adding a new pet or during the time of pet loss is a wonderful step in the right direction for so many reasons.

Which companies are providing this unique benefit? There are a few. For example, Rover and Mars Petcare provide employees with 10 hours of leave and up to a week off for a new pet, plus the added perk of bringing the pet to the office after the 10 hours is up. MParticle pays for up to two weeks’ leave if the employee adopts from a shelter. BrewDog, a Scottish beer company, offers a week of leave. Collective Measures, a marketing company in Minneapolis, and Zogics, an industrial cleaning supply company, also offer pawternity leave, while Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants of San Francisco, The African Garden, VMware, Maxwell Health, Trupanion and Drugmart.com all allow for some form of pet bereavement leave.

Though these companies are in the minority with their pet leave policies, we can only hope that more companies will join in the future to allow an easier transition for new pet parents.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

The American Rescue Dog Show has a ‘Best Underbite’ category and we’re in love

Most of us are familiar with the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show—perhaps through the 2000 Christopher Guest mockumentary “Best in Show,” if nothing else. The competition has been around for 143 years, celebrating canine pedigree and showcasing the best of various breeds. Dogs compete in the categories of Sporting, Hound, Working, Terrier, Toy, Non-Sporting, and Herding, and then one lucky pooch ultimately gets named Best in Show.

That’s all well and good if you’re into that kind of thing, but what about the mutts and misfits? What about the doggos who may be the best human companions but don’t have the shiniest coats or the greatest agility? Where’s the celebration of them?

Enter the American Rescue Dog Show.


The American Rescue Dog Show celebrates the average adopted doggo. The show is hosted by Joe Tessitore and Rob Riggle, who totally lean into the heartfelt campiness of the idea. The three judges for 2022—Paula Abdul, Leslie Jordan and Yvette Nicole Brown—have all had rescue dogs of their own.

The delightful categories include Best in Ears, Best in Snoring, Best in Wrinkles and Best in Belly Rubs. There’s even a Best in Underbite category.

Check out these cuties:

The show’s creator and executive producer, Michael Levitt, has two rescue dogs himself, Trooper and Nelson, who serve as mascots for his production company. According to ABC7, Levitt once took an entire year off from producing to help dogs find homes.

“As a rescuer, I’m saving one dog at a time, which is amazing,” he told ABC7, “but as a producer, I knew I could do so much more to have an impact on a national level. That’s really how ‘The American Rescue Dog Show’ came about.”

And the show puts its money where its underbite is. Dogs who win any of the seven “Best in” categories win $10,000 for their local animal welfare group. The ultimate winner, named “Best in Rescue” gets an additional $100,000 to donate.

The show is perfect family television watching, and Levitt hopes that it will inspire more people to consider rescuing pets instead of getting them from breeders. Animal shelters across the country have pets waiting for people to offer them a welcoming home, and seeing how lovable these doggos are makes it hard to resist.

The show aired on ABC at the end of May but can currently be found on Hulu.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

Relax, it’s probably not dementia. Watch this poignant video that explains the difference.

If you’re anything like most overwhelmed adults, you may sometimes find yourself forgetting why you walked into a room. Perhaps you’ve wondered if it’s an early sign of dementia. You let the thought flow while knowing you’re likely too young … but what about early onset dementia, you might think to yourself? If you’ve had this thought more than once, watch this video as it ought to put your mind at ease. Teepa Snow from Positive Approach to Care (PAC) demonstrates the difference between normal forgetfulness and dementia (a general term for a variety of conditions, one of which is Alzheimer’s disease).

In the video, Snow sits in a chair and thinks out loud that she would like to make a cup of coffee but on her way to do so, her phone rings. The conversation involves several details and by the time she hangs up, she’s forgotten why she was standing up in the first place. It’s an occurrence that probably happens multiple times a day in most households. You start to do something and get distracted by a pet, child or phone call, then completely forget what you were going to do in the first place. The feeling is frustrating, but sometimes it turns into concern, especially if it happens multiple times a week.

Snow effectively demonstrates how dementia differs from forgetfulness and the contrast is mind-blowing. When Snow sits back in the chair to set the stage for the dementia example, the audience appears shocked by the notable difference. She gets up to make coffee, answers the phone then begins rambling about someone stealing her drinking glasses before tucking it away safely in the freezer. Yes, the freezer.

The stark contrast between average forgetfulness and dementia is so effectively displayed that it should ease the minds of many overworked and overly stressed people.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

A Fox News Correspondent Split His Pants After Getting ‘Too Low’ While Dancing Onstage With Flo Rida

Florida might be a swing state, but the rapper Flo Rida (whose song, “My House,” was in heavy rotation at Marco Rubio‘s 2016 primary rallies) sure caused some swinging that didn’t end well for the pants of a certain Fox News on-air personality. That wasn’t host Steve Doocy, who handled the below situation just fine. This turned out to be a Fox and Friends dance-fest with Flo Rida, and a bunch of conservative TV personalities getting “Low” onstage might be too much.

Below (after the 15-second mark), you can see correspondent Todd Piro onstage and actually read his lips the moment after he realizes his pants were history.

At least he’s having a really good time! To Piro’s credit, he showed off his pants’ battle scars onstage, and then he took to Instagram: “I ripped my pants when I got too low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low.” Mediaite fills in the blanks about how (in the moment) Piro gamely acknowledged the split as well while announcing to the live audience, “I got too low with Flo Rida.”

Naturally, Steve Doocy kept things together just fine while participating in similarly aerobic movies while onstage. Sometimes, morning TV can be truly strange. Also: Your move, Brian Kilmeade.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

Burna Boy Details The Vibrant Life Of A Superstar Through His Eyes In The Video For ‘Vanilla’

Burna Boy took another step forward in his quest toward worldwide dominance with the release of his sixth album Love, Damini. The project arrived on Friday with 19 songs and contributions from acts all around the globe. They include American acts Kehlani, Blxst, and Khalid, Colombia’s J Balvin, British artists J Hus and Ed Sheeran, fellow Nigerian Victony, Jamaican singer Popcaan, and more. The project seems to be received well a few days after its release, but to keep up the promotion, Burna returns with a new treat in the form of a new video for “Vanilla.’

The record is a warm release that is placed toward the end of Love, Damini. In the new visual, Burna delivers a vibrant and exciting look at his superstar life through his own eyes thanks to the use of Ray-Ban Stories sunglasses. Throughout the video, we’re introduced to dancers, instrumentalists, chess players, a group of Burna fans, and more.

The video for “Vanilla” arrives after Burna dropped a romantic “For My Hand” visual with Ed Sheeran. It joins previously released videos “Kilometre” and the summer hit “Last Last.”

You can watch the video for “Vanilla” above.

Love, Damini is out now via Atlantic Records. You can stream it here.

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

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

Craft Beer Experts Reveal The Best Dry-Hopped Beers To Drink Right Now

If you’ve paid attention to the beer world over the past decade you’ve probably come across the term “dry-hopped” fairly often. Especially if you’re not a fan of overly bitter beers (specifically IPAs) but enjoy the dank, floral flavor of hops. This is the sweet spot where dry-hopped beers thrive.

While most hopping takes place in the brewing kettle, dry-hopping occurs late in the brewing process — typically in the fermentation tanks themselves. The technique introduces aromas and flavor notes without adding any more bitterness into the equation. It’s how brewers craft epic hop-bomb beers that still manage not to pucker your mouth with over-the-top bitterness.

Those bold, hoppy beers are well-suited for any time of year but shine during the warmer months. But with so many breweries dropping dry-hopped beers, it can be difficult to wade through them all. That’s why we asked some pros for help — asking a team of our favorite craft beer experts and brewers to name the best dry-hopped beers to drink right now. You might be surprised to find that not all of their picks are IPAs!

Bell’s Two-Hearted Ale

Bell’s Two-Hearted Ale
Bell

Eric Boice, senior head brewer at Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant in Atlanta

ABV: 7.1%

Average Price: $7.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

Not to be that guy, but I’m going to be that guy. Bell’s Two Hearted Ale is the pinnacle of American IPAs. It boasts huge grapefruit and pine flavors that are on full display in this centennial dry-hopped ale. There’s a reason it’s always listed as one of the best dry-hopped beers.

Off Color Apex Predator Saison

Off Color Apex Predator Saison
Off Color

Mike Jacobs, pub brewery innovation manager at Goose Island Brewhouse in Chicago

ABV: 6.5%

Average Price: $9.50 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

Apex Predator by Off Color. Although a Saison, Apex Predator has everything I look for in a good IPA. The Saison yeast gives it a juicy ripe pineapple aroma that pairs nicely with the lemon zest of the dry hop. It finishes dry with just enough funkiness to remind you it’s a Saison.

Societe The Pupil IPA

Societe The Pupil IPA
Societe

Jeremy Marshall, brewmaster at Lagunitas Brewing in Petaluma, California

ABV: 7.5%

Average Price: $13.99 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

I hate that I sound so overly West Coast and/or Cali-centric, but this is where I live and in the times of COVID, I haven’t had the pleasures of sampling all the country’s other fine beers to cover. Therefore, I must say Societe’s The Pupil is really one of the best dry-hopped IPAs out there. It’s the perfect balance of resin, spice, tropical fruits, and dank. It’s got the old school hops in there used judiciously against a few newer school hops — a dying art amongst brewers that now so quickly and easily go straight to auto-tuning their beers with Citra and Mosaic, etc.

Calusa Zote IPA

Calusa Zote IPA
Calusa

Dan Esperon, owner and brewer at Crazy Dingo Brewing Co in Fort Myers, Florida

ABV: 7.5%

Average Price: $16.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

Zote IPA brewed by Calusa Brewing. Juicy, dank, always a good choice. Great IPA with clean and pure tropical aromas and flavor. It’s a great use of dry-hopping to add extra dimension, aroma, and flavor. Try it if you ever get a chance.

Epidemic Ales Patient Zero DIPA

Epidemic Ales Patient Zero DIPA
Epidemic Ales

Eric Espinoza, bartender at Signia by Hilton in San Jose, California

ABV: 8.4%

Average Price: $16.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

Epidemic Ales Patient Zero DIPA. This one is a meal in a can. It’s a complex dry-hopped DIPA that’s super dank and full of juicy grapefruit. Despite the bigness, it’s somehow refreshing and makes me want to grab a second for dessert.

Weldwerks DDH Juicy Bits

Weldwerks DDH Juicy Bits
Weldwerks

Courtney Servaes, owner of Servaes Brewing Company in Shawnee, Kansas

ABV: 6.7%

Average Price: $18.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

Most people don’t realize this, but I didn’t fall in love with IPAs until I had been drinking craft beer for several years. Now, IPAs are my go-to beer style whenever I am at a brewery. One of the first IPAs I ever fell in love with is WeldWerk’s Brewing Co.’s DDH Juicy Bits. With juicy notes of Mosaic, Citra and El Dorado hops, it is such an approachable IPA to drink all year long – but especially during the summer months.

Tilted Barn Libby Blonde Ale

Tilted Barn Libby Blonde Ale
Tilted Barn

Justin Tisdale, head brewer at Rejects Brewing Co. in Middletown, Rhode Island

ABV: 5%

Average Price: Limited Availability

Why This Beer?

The market tends to be fairly flooded in dry-hopped IPAs as of the last few years, so I’m admittedly a little jaded and burned out on the hazier side of things. That being said, my buddy Luke over at Tilted Barn in Exeter Rhode Island is cranking out some amazing stuff. Literally, last night while fishing, he treated me to a new dry-hopped blonde they released with a boatload of Bravo hops. Something a little unconventional for the style, that I admittedly never imagined would work well, but somehow, they did it.

Loads of fresh berry and melon flavor without the typical palette killing hop burn are associated with most examples that share that amount of hops.

Other Half DDH Broccoli

Other Half DDH Broccoli
Other Half

Nancy Lopetegui, taproom general manager at Wynwood Brewing in Miami

ABV: 7.9%

Average Price: $24.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

DDH Broccoli by Other Half Brewing. For being double-dry-hopped, this beer has a light creaminess mouthfeel and a beautiful color. It gets its memorable flavor from the addition of Cascade, Hallertau Blanc, Mosaic, and Simcoe hops as well as Mosaic Lupulin powder, oats, and wheat. Perfect for summer.

Rising Tide Mountainside IPA

Rising Tide Mountainside IPA
Rising Tide

Mike Kelly, senior brewer at Harpoon Brewery in Boston

ABV: 6%

Average Price: Limited Availability

Why This Beer?

Rising Tide Mountainside is a heavily dry-hopped IPA that packs a huge hop aroma and flavor of bright citrus and tropical fruits. The exotic aroma paired with the pillowy soft mouthfeel makes this IPA worth seeking out.

Fort Hill Fresh Pick IPA

Fort Hill Fresh Pick IPA
Fort Hill

Dan Lipke, head brewer at Clown Shoes Beer in Boston

ABV: 7%

Average Price: $8.99 for a six-pack

Why This Beer?

Fort Hill Brewery’s Fresh Pick is a great dry-hopped IPA with a delicious mix of tropical and piney flavors. Easy drinking for 7% ABV it’s plenty hoppy without being overdone. Lighter malts, a good balance of hop flavors, and a refreshing bitterness at the finish make it a local favorite.

Civil Society Fresh IPA

Civil Society Fresh IPA
Civil Society

Marshall Hendrickson, co-founder and head of operations at Veza Sur Brewing Co. in Miami

ABV: 6.2%

Average Price: $16.99 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans

Why This Beer?

Civil Society Fresh is my go-to. Fresh is packed with all of the amazing citrus fruit flavors for IPA lovers. Even before your first sip, the aroma hits you hard with full grapefruit, lemon, and lime aromas. This beer is truly one of my favorites, so delicious.

Green Cheek Swimmin’ In The Tropics IPA

Green Cheek Swimmin’ In The Tropics IPA
Green Cheek

Adam Hall, brand manager at Boulevard Brewing in Kansas City

ABV: 10.2%

Average Price: Limited Availability

Why This Beer?

Green Cheek Beer Co. Swimmin’ In the Tropics (DDH Hazy TIPA). If I had unlimited time and funds, I would spend it all at Green Cheek Beer Co. in Orange County to learn more about the process behind this equatorial delight. Based on the recipe of another one of their beers, they employ the use of freeze-dried skins of Sauvignon Blanc grapes. Bursting with tropical fruit on the nose and delivering on that aromatic promise with triple doses of kiwi, pineapple, and muscat grape.

Using innovative techniques and ingredients, Green Cheek has put a spin on a style that I continue to skip over, and I’m incredibly happy that I didn’t pass on this one.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

Jamie Foxx And Snoop Dogg Team Up To Fight Vampires In Netflix’s ‘Day Shift’ Trailer (Really)

Have you ever heard of a movie concept so absurd that it actually makes a lot of sense? Greta Gerwig creating various incarnations of Barbie in her upcoming Barbie movie is one that seemed so bizarre and now has everyone on the edge of their seat waiting for more over-the-top set pictures. Sometimes, a movie being weird is part of the fun, like Jamie Foxx, Dave Franco, and Snoop Dogg teaming up to fight vampires. It just works.

This is the case for Day Shift, the upcoming Netflix movie. Foxx stars as a normal dad who makes ends meet by killing vampires and selling their teeth for money. You know, standard stuff. The movie also stars Dave Franco as his spooked assistant and, of course, Snoop Dogg wearing a cowboy hat. And yes! There is a Twilight reference in the trailer. Here is the official synopsis:

Jamie Foxx stars as a hard working blue collar dad who just wants to provide a good life for his quick-witted daughter, but his mundane San Fernando Valley pool cleaning job is a front for his real source of income, hunting and killing vampires as part of an international Union of vampire hunters.

The movie comes from the producer of John Wick, so you know there will be some great action in between vampire puns and one-liners. Can we hope for a Keanu Reeves cameo? One can dream.

Day Shift hits Netflix on August 12th. Check out the trailer above.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

Sourced And Unsourced Bourbon Whiskeys Face-Off In This Blind Test

It wasn’t that long ago that a lot of people considered “sourced” bourbon inferior. That was mostly due to huge distilleries having to sell off stock to bottlers to stay afloat. But those days are decades behind us. Sourced bourbon whiskey is everywhere on the shelves these days. It’s also among some of the most respected, sought-after, and awarded whiskey available anywhere.

But how does a great sourced bourbon stand up to an old-school unsourced bourbon? That’s what I’m here to answer today.

For this blind tasting, I’m pitting four very good sourced bourbons — in this case, a bourbon that’s made from finished barrels of whiskey by a non-distiller producer — against four very good standard bourbons put out by a distillery under one of their own brands. I purposefully kept this tasting very narrow. All eight bourbons are award-winning and highly respected. Moreover, all eight fall in the sweet spot price-wise between $50 and $70 (one bottle is $89). They aren’t cheap but these aren’t the crazy expensive bottles either. These are the bottles that sit at your eye-line as your walk through the liquor store, and will actually be next to each other on that shelf.

Our lineup today is:

  • Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit
  • Redemption High-Rye Bourbon (sourced)
  • Pursuit United (sourced)
  • Kentucky Peerless Small Batch Bourbon
  • Nashville Barrel Company Single Barrel Bourbon (sourced)
  • High West American Prairie Bourbon (sourced)
  • Knob Creek 12
  • Four Roses Single Barrel

Let’s dive in and see if the sourced stuff can stand up to the old-school distillery releases.

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months

Part 1: The Tasting

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Taste 1

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

This is damn near perfect on the nose, with a mix of subtle vanilla next to Christmas spices, soft cedar, and dark leathery fruit with a hint of tartness. The palate leans into the darkness of the fruit while old oak staves mix with lush marzipan, a hint of orange oils, and old boot leather. The finish leans into a warm winter spice with a hint of mulled wine and candied almonds. A layer of vanilla and cinnamon-spiced chewing tobacco comes in very late with a twinge of cherry wood.

Well, this is going to be hard to beat…

Taste 2

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

Tart berries and vanilla cookies lead to soft winter spices and a touch of orange zest on the nose. Dark chocolate and dark cherry open the palate toward a dusting of black pepper, clove nibs, and a bit more of that orange zest. But it’s brighter. The end is old and leathery with a lemon pepper vibe that eventually fades into that chocolate-cherry feel.

This was pretty nice overall. It didn’t jump out at me. Still, very solid all around.

Taste 3

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

Sour red wine with woody spices mix with fresh honey and a good dose of minced meat pie with plenty of cinnamon and white sugar. The palate takes on a chocolate vibe with a layer of honey cake next to a layer of dry tobacco and cedar. There’s a hint of orange dark chocolate near the end that leads back to the holiday spiciness with a warming edge that ends up a little thin on the back end.

This was nice but felt a little one-note — that note being “it’s Christmas!” — compared to the last two.

Taste 4

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

Blackberry pie dances with old glove leather, buttery toffee, expensive vanilla beans, and wet, almost sticky tobacco leaves on the nose. The palate leans into the butteriness and spicy tobacco has dry ropes of cedar bark leading to a bitter and oily espresso bean. The end goes deeper with a vanilla pipe tobacco which leads back to that blackberry pie filling with a hint of pie crust and white sugar frosting before the dry cedar kicks back in late.

This is a great pour. I can’t imagine this won’t be in the top three.

Taste 5

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

Salted kettle corn, cotton candy with a hint of cherry, salted caramel, worn leather, orange oils … this nose runs deep. The palate leans sharp winter spices with plenty of cinnamon, clove, ginger, and allspice with a hint of sassafras and anise before a creamy nutmeg and eggnog arrive to smooth things out. The end has a hint of Almond Joy next to dry sweetgrass with more of that buttery salted caramel before dry cedar and leather lead to a dark berry tobacco vibe.

This is another contender!

Taste 6

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

Caramel apples, fresh leather, vanilla pudding, and a touch of buttered popcorn open this one up. The taste is very nougat, counterpointed by creamed corn with a buttermilk biscuit in the background with a little honey. The finish smooths out with some vanilla next to dry cedar and some more of that caramel apple vibe.

This was pretty nice with a short but solid flavor profile.

Taste 7

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

Rum-soaked cherries and dark chocolate lead the way with winter spices and sourdough doughnuts supporting on the nose. There’s a touch of mint that leads to an old dark cherry profile that’s part sweet and juicy and part tart and dry before a fatty streusel takes over with plenty of spice and brown sugar. The mid-palate narrows that spice toward cinnamon and a dried chili feel while the dark chocolate circles back around. The cherry sweetens with a woody vibe at the very end as this one slowly fades out.

This is a hell of a cherry bomb. A delicious, delicious cherry bomb.

Taste 8

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

Tasting Notes:

Woody maple syrup and cinnamon sticks lead to a hint of pear candy with a vanilla underbelly on the nose. The palate lets the pear shine as the spices lean into woody barks and berries next to dates and plums with a butteriness. A spicy tobacco chewiness leads the mid-palate toward a soft fruitiness and a hint of plum pudding at the end with a slight nuttiness and green herb.

This was another solid whiskey.

Part 2: The Ranking

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

8. Pursuit United (Sourced) — Taste 3

Pursuit United
Pursuit United

ABV: 54%

Average Price: $65

The Whiskey:

This whiskey is a vatted from 40 total barrels from three different states. While the team at Pursuit United doesn’t release the Tennessee distillery name, we know the juices from Kentucky and New York are from Bardstown Bourbon Company and Finger Lakes Distilling, respectively. Once those barrels are vatted, they’re slightly touched with water before bottling.

Bottom Line:

I usually dig this! That said, on this lineup, it just didn’t quite hit the same. That’s easy to square as this is a blended bourbon. It’s not quite as succinct as the rest of the whiskeys on this list (single barrels, etc.), and that’s not this whiskey’s fault at all.

7. Redemption High-Rye Bourbon (Sourced) — Taste 2

Redemption High Rye Bourbon
Redemption

ABV: 52.5%

Average Price: $50

The Whiskey:

These bottles are the masterwork of chef-turned-master-blender David Carpenter. The juice is hand-selected MGP single barrels that provide a classic bourbon base that then leans a little softer on the palate.

Bottom Line:

This was complex and very tasty. Again, this just didn’t quite stand up today to the other heavy-hitting bourbons on the list. That all said, this is a pretty easy pour that feels like it would be great in a cocktail.

6. High West American Prairie Bourbon (Sourced) — Taste 6

High West

ABV: 46%

Average Price: $60

The Whiskey:

American Prairie is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after sourced whiskeys. The whiskey in the bottle is a blend of two to 13-year-old barrels rendered from high-rye, low-rye, and undisclosed source mash bills, from undisclosed sources. The release supports the American Prairie Reserve by highlighting the project and supporting it financially.

Bottom Line:

This was where things get interesting. I liked this but it feels a little short today for not having the same insane depth as the next few whiskeys on this list. Otherwise, this is a pretty easy sipper, especially on a rock or two.

5. Four Roses Single Barrel (Unsourced) — Taste 8

Four Roses

ABV: 50%

Average Price: $50

The Whiskey:

Four Rose’s standard single barrel expression is an interesting one. This is their “number one” recipe, meaning it’s a high-rye (35%) mash bill that’s fermented with a yeast that highlights “delicate fruit.” The juice is then bottled at 100 proof, meaning you’re getting a good sense of that single barrel in every bottle.

Bottom Line:

This has a really nice pear note to it with a hint of savory green herbs. I like that. Today, it helped this bottle stand out but not above. This felt like the perfect middle-of-the-road whiskey for this tasting. Everything that comes next is a certified killer. Everything that came before really depends on what mood you’re in or the profile you’re looking for.

4. Knob Creek 12 (Unsourced) — Taste 7

Beam Suntory

ABV: 50%

Average Price: $67

The Whiskey:

This is the classic Beam whiskey. The juice is left alone in the Beam warehouses in Clermont, Kentucky, for 12 long years. The barrels are chosen according to a specific taste and mingled to create this aged expression with a drop or two of that soft Kentucky limestone water.

Bottom Line:

While this was a cherry bomb!, it still had some serious depth and was not a “one-note” whiskey by any stretch. It’s also one of the easier whiskeys to drink in general thanks to that lush cherry profile. Still, it falls a little lower today because it might be hard to get past that big cherry note for some.

3. Nashville Barrel Company Single Barrel Bourbon (Sourced) — Taste 5

Nashville Barrel Co. Bourbon
Nashville Barrel Co.

ABV: Varies

Average Price: $90

The Whiskey:

Nashville Barrel Co. is sourcing incredible barrels (a lot from MGP) and bottling them as-is without any cutting, filtering, or fussing — they let the whiskey speak for itself and it’s kind of magical. This expression tends to be five to eight-year-old barrels that will vary slightly in the flavor profile while always leaning into bold and distinct flavors.

Bottom Line:

I’ve had a lot of these single barrels from NBC, and not one has been bad. They’re almost always above average. Had this had a single rock in it, it might have hit number one today since it was a little hot compared to the rest of the list. That aside, this juice is fire.

2. Kentucky Peerless Small Batch Bourbon (Unsourced) — Taste 4

Kentucky Peerless Distilling Company

ABV: 54.65%

Average Price: $70

The Whiskey:

Kentucky Peerless Distilling takes its time for a true grain-to-glass experience. Their Small Batch Bourbon is crafted with a fairly low-rye mash bill and fermented with a sweet mash as opposed to a sour mash (that means they use 100% new grains, water, and yeast with each new batch instead of holding some of the mash over to start the next one like a sourdough starter). The barrels are then hand-selected for their taste and bottled completely un-messed with.

Bottom Line:

This was the boldest whiskey on the list. That said, the heat of the proof never overpowered the depth of the flavor profile. This was nuanced, enjoyable, and memorable. It was balanced but didn’t have quite the same subtleness as the next entry.

1. Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit (Unsourced) — Taste 1

Wild Turkey

ABV: 50.5%

Average Price: $60

The Whiskey:

Jimmy and Eddie Russell (Wild Turkey’s father-son team) hand-selects eight to nine-year-old barrels from their warehouses for each barrel’s individual taste and quality. Those barrels are then cut down ever-so-slightly to 101 proof and bottled as-is with no other fussing.

Bottom Line:

This was just perfection today. It’s balanced and deep while still being 100% approachable, bright, and almost refreshing. This was a great pour neat. A little water and those would have exploded into something spectacular.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

Sourced/Unsourced Bourbon Blind
Zach Johnston

So, the sourced juice didn’t quite hit the heights of the distillery-made-and-released product today. That said, they weren’t really that far off. Not a single one of these bourbons was bad. They were all some level of good to great.

Nashville Barrel Company easily walked into the top three without a single question. As for the other three “sourced” whiskeys, they all have their place. Still, if there’s a Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit on the shelf right next to any of these (sourced or not), I’m buying that without hesitation.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

A Fake Cricket League In India Conned Russian Bettors For Weeks Before Getting Shut Down By Police

While not a sport that’s caught on in North America, cricket is one of the world’s biggest sports and draws tremendous action on international betting markets, with so much interest that people can apparently be easily conned into betting on fake games.

This week a fake “Indian Premier Cricket League,” pretending to mimic the real IPL, got broken up after weeks of conning Russian bettors into wagering on fake matches played on a farm and broadcast online with laborers dressing up as fake players. The game broadcasts featured just one camera angle tight on the pitch, never showing a wide angle of the “stadium” they were playing in, using fake crowd noise, so when the ball got hit off screen, a fake referee would make up calls based on what bettors had bet on to make them the most money.

The video of the broadcast is particularly hilarious.

Per the BBC, they managed to pull this off for weeks, taking bets online on a site they set up, despite the actual IPL having long since finished its actual season before police stepped in.

The conmen managed to reach the quarter-finals stage of their so-called “Indian Premier Cricket League” before police stopped play.

Russian gamblers placed bets on a Telegram channel set up by the gang, who then alerted the fake umpire using walkie-talkies, police inspector Bhavesh Rathod told reporters.

The fake umpire would then “signal the bowler and batsman to hit a six, four or get out”, Mr Rathod said.

Four people were arrested and the fake league was shut down, with the take being approximately $4,000 (which is 300,000 rupees) for the scam before they got caught.

Categories
News Trending Viral Worldwide

Tobe Nwigwe Has A Reason To Flex In His ‘Been Broke’ Video With 2 Chainz, Chamillionaire, And Fat

Alief, Texas rapper Tobe Nwigwe‘s videos are always elaborate, self-directed affairs but he really pulls out all the stops in his new video for “Been Broke,” which also features Atlanta trap captain 2 Chainz, Houston hard hitter Chamillionaire, and, as always, Tobe’s wife, Fat. As he does in many of his videos, Tobe highlights his Nigerian heritage, his family’s close bond, and unique aesthetic sensibilities. This time, though, he goes all-in on flexing his wealth too, contrasting his current circumstances with the song’s all-too-relatable chorus.

The video opens with a reference to the tradition of a newly wedded couple being showered with cash as he and Fat embrace on the lawn of a massive mansion, surrounded by aunties in their big hats, the usual Tobe dance team, and a squadron of muscle cars doing laps around the circular driveway. Of course, there’s the requisite shot of Tobe, Fat, and their babies, then 2 Chainz and Chamillionaire both tell their own rags-to-riches stories from various spots on the grounds. Chainz’s verse makes nifty use of an international wordplay motif, while Chamillionaire brags about escaping one-hit-wonder status. And, as usual, the whole cast is decked out in mint green styles designed by Tobe himself.

Watch Tobe Nwigwe’s Facebook-exclusive “Been Broke” video featuring 2 Chainz and Chamillionaire below.