After a Donald Trump-appointed federal judge struck down a nationwide mask requirement, many of the country’s largest airlines, including American, Southwest, Delta, and United, said they would stop requiring masks on flights. The Tomi Lahrens of the world are rejoicing (despite hundreds of people still dying every day from the coronavirus). But surprisingly, Donald Trump Jr. has vowed to continue wearing a mask when he’s in public — although not for the reason you think. Unless you think it’s for a selfish, “I’m so famous” reason, then you’re right.
In response to a poll that found that 56 percent of Americans favor requiring people on public transportation to wear masks, a glassy-eyed Trump Jr. tweeted, “Must be a lib poll. I’ve flown out of Miami & Cleveland in the last 2 days and about 90% of people are massless. I’m sitting in an airport now and I can see 60+ people and can count 5 masks including me but I’m wearing one for anonymity not bc I think a small cloth does anything.”
Later, Trump Jr. replied to a tweet that claimed, “The best part of lifting the mask mandate is that you can now tell with 100% certainty exactly how many libs are on your flight.” He wrote, “99.99% I’ll keep wearing one so I can stay under the radar.”
As the replies point out, “Your not wearing a mask for anonymity, your wearing it in case someone would approach u and do something to you, your a coward should anyone tell u off!!!!!” If Trump Jr. is so concerned with being recognized, why is he flying commercial? And when has a Trump ever wanted to be “under the radar”? How convenient.
Must be a lib poll. I’ve flown out of Miami & Cleveland in the last 2 days and about 90% of people are massless. I’m sitting in an airport now and I can see 60+ people and can count 5 masks including me but I’m wearing one for anonymity not bc I think a small cloth does anything https://t.co/IqmQi6XmIg
While most of Kanye West’s new music these days is locked behind his Stem Player, a couple of streaming-friendly Ye tracks surfaced today via Pusha T’s new album, It’s Almost Dry: He features on “Dreamin Of The Past” and “Rock N Roll.”
In a line from “Dreamin Of The Past,” West references the biblical birth of Jesus Christ before seemingly reflecting on his status as a divorced parent, saying, “Born in the manger, the son of a stranger / When daddy’s not home, the family’s in danger.”
Then, on “Rock N Roll,” Ye appears to address apparent issues he and Kim Kardashian have had co-parenting their children in recent months, saying, “Finally tired of comin’ and goin’, make up your mind / I ain’t come to pick up the kids to pick a fight.”
In January, West claimed he was blocked from visiting his kids at Kardashian’s because Pete Davidson was there. The next month, he said Kardashian didn’t allow him to bring their kids to a basketball game. In March, Kardashian asked West to leave the topic alone in the public eye, commenting on an Instagram post of his, “Please stop with this narrative, you were just here this morning picking up the kids for school.”
“Rock N Roll,” by the way, is the song both West and Kid Cudi appear on. A few days ago, Cudi tweeted of the track, “I did this song a year ago when I was still cool w Kanye. I am not cool w that man. He’s not my friend and I only cleared the song for Pusha cuz thats my guy. This is the last song u will hear me on w Kanye.”
Listen to “Dreamin Of The Past” and “Rock N Roll” above.
It’s been a few months since The Weeknd dropped his sixth album Dawn FM, and since then the project is still one of this year’s best releases. He’s promoted the project with a few videos and he’s set to bring Dawn FM and other songs from his discography to different corners of the United States and Canada through his After Hours Til Dawn Tour with Doja Cat. Fresh off his performance as a headliner at last weekend’s Coachella Festival, The Weeknd teams up with Kaytranada for a new remix to one of the most popular songs fromDawn FM.
Kaytranada, known for his groovy and spirited production, breathes new life into The Weeknd’s “Out Of Time” with a new take. Through his remix, Kaytranada speeds up the tempo on the track, which originally arrived as a lovelorn and slow-paced effort, thus granting listeners a new record to dance to. The remix arrives after The Weeknd teamed up with Jim Carrey and Squid Game star Jung Ho-yeon in his video for “Out Of Time.”
On a more recent note, The Weeknd caused some eyebrows to raise when he played an apology voicemail at Coachella, which many people believed was from his ex Bella Hadid. As for Kaytranada, the new remix comes after he teamed up with IDK for their record, “Taco.”
You can listen to Kaytranada’s remix of “Out Of Time” above.
IDK is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
There’s no stopping Blxst’s hustle. The West Coast crooner made a big splash in 2020 with his debut project No Love Lost, and since then, he’s done nothing but provide great music to his growing fan base. The following year, he reconnected with frequent collaborator Bino Rideaux for their second joint project Sixtape 2, which came after he secured a spot in the 2021 XXL Freshman Class. Blxst’s streak of sharp releases continues with the arrival of his second solo project Before You Go. In addition to sharing the new body of work, he also drops off a brand new visual with it.
Blxst lays off a new video for “Every Good Girl.” The track arrives as an ode to a new romance where he deems himself and his lover as the ideal companions for each other. The video captures Blxst and his new girl enjoying some intimate moments together as they go for a drive by the water and take videos together.
Before You Go arrives with 13 songs and appearances from Arin Ray, Rick Ross, Grandmaster Vic, and Zacari who contributed to the project’s second single, “Sometimes.”
You can watch the video for “Every Good Girl” above.
Before You Go is out now via Red Bull Records and Evgle. You can stream it here.
(SPOILERS for this week’s Atlanta will be found below.)
Following last week’s chaos in Budapest, the cast and crew of Atlanta are onto the next city as Paper Boi continues his European tour. This week, we don’t know the exact city that the group is in, but if one thing’s for sure, the awkward yet funny adventures that Earn, Paper Boi, Darius, Vanessa, and company find themselves in are still in full effect.
In this week’s episode, which is titled “White Fashion,” Atlanta tackles appropriation and the flaws in social justice reform. Darius experiences the former when he meets a woman (who’s taken an interest in Nigerian cuisine) while Paper Boi deals with the latter when he’s called to help a white fashion company apologize for their offensive errors.
Here are some of the biggest questions we had after season three’s sixth episode.
The ‘Little Mix-Up’ Is A Bit More Than A ‘Little Mix-Up,’ Would You Say?
This week’s episode of Atlanta kicks off with a white fashion designer apologizing for their company’s “little mix-up” during a meeting with Earn and Paper Boi. This “little mix-up” is the “Central Park” No. 5 jersey that was shown in the opening scene as the designer worked out final designs, which he says were inspired by New York’s Central Park. However, the designer failed to notice that the jersey inadvertently referenced the 2012 film Central Park 5. The movie examined the 1989 case of five teenagers who were wrongfully convicted of raping a woman, and as a result, the group spent 6-13 years in prison before a serial rapist confessed to the crime. To add insult to injury, the jersey was promoted with an image that featured a white woman wearing it as she laid beside a group of Black people. With that being said, there’s nothing “little” about this “mix-up,” but it’s another example of the questions decisions that fashion brands make (see: Gucci, H&M, and Burberry).
They Can’t Be This Oblivious To Their Appropriation And Wrongdoings, Right?
By the end of “White Fashion,” you can’t help but be a bit baffled that white people are this oblivious to their appropriation and wrongdoings. So much so that calling them oblivious may be cutting them unnecessary slack for their actions. There’s the white designer’s “Central Park” No. 5 jersey and Sharon’s decision to buy out the property of the Nigerian restaurant, shut it down, and then start her own Nigerian cuisine food truck despite having no knowledge or experience in crafting Nigerian food. We also have the fashion company’s decision to take Paper Boi’s “Reinvest In Your Hood” idea and, as he puts it, “all lives matter” it into something far removed from his original idea. These incidents are detailed with a comedic touch, but as the saying goes, “behind every joke there is some truth,” and the truth here is just as baffling as it is frustrating.
FX/Sophoe Muteveilan
Wouldn’t It Be Easier To Fund An Idea Rather Than Steal It And (Unsuccessfully) Emulate It?
I mean think about it! Would you steal a luxury car that you have no idea how to operate? Probably not, because when you steal something, which we strongly advise against doing, you should have some sort of getaway plan in place to make sure you’re successful. It would make a lot more sense to pay someone who’s experienced in operating the vehicle to get the job done. This same applies to Sharon and her Nigerian food trunk. Shutting down the owner’s restaurant, which offered authentic Nigerian cuisine, in order to serve her own Great Value version of it, which will ultimately prove to be a failure sooner than later, makes little sense. The creations that Black people make are taught by family and/or inspired by our experiences in this twisted world. Without either of those, emulating these creations will lack the authenticity it truly needs to be successful. There are other ways, many of which are more beneficial, to support these causes.
Why Is A Finesse Needed For Social Reforms?
Paper Boi learns a few lessons when he joins the social justice cohort in this week’s episode. Despite everything that the world has shown him in terms of their treatment of Black people, he still approaches the reform with the thought that white people will make changes and take a step towards making a more equal world once Black people explicitly tell them what needs to be done. So when his idea to “reinvest the hood” is taken and turned into something completely different than what he imagined, his anger is very understandable. However, Khalil, a fellow member of the social justice cohort, notes that as good as Paper Boi’s idea was, it was no monetary benefit to the company which caused them to alter it. We’d love to think that white people will sacrifice their power, control, and influence, for a more equal world, but the direct or indirect question more times than not is “what’s in it for us?” And thus, enter: the finesse.
Is Earn Too Worrisome Or Is Vanessa Too Nonchalant?
Aside from Darius and Paper Boi’s dealings during the show, Earn has a few moments of his own during the episode, one of which sees him reconnect with Vanessa. They run into each other at a hotel, and after Earn helps fend off a white woman’s loud, obnoxious, and maybe true accusations of robbery against Vanessa, they head off to their hotel room to end the night. It’s here that Vanessa says Earn is too worrisome, which he denies. Earn’s worries, especially when it comes to Vanessa’s whereabouts as they share a child, are completely valid, but there is a bit of truth to Vanessa’s words. A relaxed and carefree moment or two would probably serve Earn well, but managing an artist and their tour overseas leaves little room for that. One could also say that Vanessa is too nonchalant as she sees no issue with aimlessly wandering who knows where in Europe without communicating with Earn. Long story short, two truths can exist when it comes to this question.
The Nuggets came into Game 3 in Denver with their backs against the wall after getting blitzed by the Warriors in the first two games in San Francisco.
However, it was the Warriors who started strong, led once again by their young budding star, Jordan Poole, jumping out to an early seven point advantage that forced Denver to work from behind as they tried to secure their first win of the series.
Denver would claw their way back into the game, first with the help of Nikola Jokic and then with a strong bench effort, as DeMarcus Cousins bullied the Warriors small-ball lineups in the paint.
Golden State would use a late 15-4 second quarter run to push the lead to 10 at halftime, punctuated by a Stephen Curry and-1 bucket just before the buzzer to take solid control at the break.
Denver would rally in a big way in the third quarter, storming out to a five-point lead as Jokic got to work on his way to a 37-point, 18-rebound night.
Jokic continued to assert himself in what became a back-and-forth affair in the fourth quarter, giving Denver a two-point advantage late with a driving scoop shot.
The story of the game was Poole continuing his spectacular play in the series, scoring 27 points and while his three-point shooting is typically the headliner, it was his finishing at the rim that helped the Warriors take control of the game late, as he took advantage of a huge Andrew Wiggins offensive rebound while up 1 to push the lead to three.
Despite a terrific game, Jokic couldn’t muster quite enough in the closing minutes, with the game getting effectively sealed on a steal by Draymond Green with the Nuggets trailing by five and under a minute to play.
The Nuggets simply have not had the firepower outside of Jokic to keep up with the balanced attack of the Warriors, and Game 3 was just the latest example of that in what became a 118-113 Warriors win. Curry and Thompson each had 26 points to join with Poole’s 27, as that triumvirate creates significant problems for the Nuggets’ perimeter defenders. On the other side, Aaron Gordon picked up his play with an 18-point night, but the guard play continues to be an issue, as Monte Morris and Will Barton combined for 23 points on 24 shots, which simply isn’t efficient enough shooting around Jokic.
The series, now at 3-0 in favor of the Warriors, is effectively over, and it just remains to be seen if the Nuggets will be able to get a game off of Golden State. Their best chance to do so figures to be Game 4 at home, because it’s hard to see them having much success when the Warriors get back to Chase Center.
Future and Travis Scott are currently putting the finishing touches on their upcoming albums. Future has already revealed that his ninth album, the follow-up to his 2020 effort High Off Life, will arrive on April 29 with features from Drake, Kanye West, Gunna, and more. He’s yet to reveal the title for the project, but it’s almost guaranteed that it will drop before the month ends. As for Travis, he’s working on his upcoming fourth album, tentatively titled Utopia, and thanks to some billboards that appeared in California, it appears that the project will arrive sooner than later.
With that being said, Future and Travis both took a moment from their respective projects to assist producer Southside on his latest single, “Hold That Heat.” The track is a gloomy effort that features lengthy verses from Future and Travis while the former handles the song’s hook. “Hold That Heat” also arrives with an eerie music video that captures Travis rapping beside an alligator while Future resorts to a red room to fire off his bars.
The trio’s song arrives after Travis performed and DJ’d at a Coachella afterparty despite being dropped from its initial lineup. As for Future, he’s a few days removed from gifting his old high school with a fully upgraded weight room.
You can listen to “Hold That Heat” in the video above.
What exactly does “small batch” mean when it comes to bourbon then? Well, sort of nothing. There’s no law or hard and fast rule that makes a bourbon a small batch expression. What it does mean is that a “smaller” number of barrels were used for an expression than a standard “straight” whiskey. But even then, there’s no specific number of barrels that makes that moniker true. Some small batch bourbons are made with six or 12 barrels, others are made with 400 barrels. Regular old Jack Daniel’s usually comes from around 350 barrels per batch and no one calls that small batch.
Brasstacks, this is a marketing term with, again, no rule adding any consistency whatsoever.
All of that said, there are some great bourbons out there that are also marketed as “small batch” bourbons. To help find them, we’re listing all 21 Double Gold winning small batch bourbons from this year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition (you can see all the bottles here). We’ve added our own tasting notes where we could but pulled notes from the bottlers, blenders, and distillers where we had gaps.
Let’s dive in and see what’s winning awards out there in small batch bourbon.
Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months
This is Elijah Craig’s entry-point bottle. The mash is corn-focused, with more malted barley than rye (12 percent and ten percent respectively). Originally, this was branded as a 12-year-old whiskey. The brand decided to move away from that labeling and started blending younger whiskeys — six to eight-year-old barrels — for this expression while saving the 12-year-old barrels for their Barrel Proof release.
Tasting Notes:
Classic bourbon notes greet you with a clear focus on vanilla, caramel, oak, orchard fruit, and a touch of fresh mint on the nose. The palate holds onto those flavors while adding in mild Christmas spices with a touch of oak and tobacco. The end is short, simple, and will leave you with a warm Kentucky hug.
Bottom Line:
This is a simple and classic bourbon. There are no frills but it delivers a decent flavor profile. In the end, this really is a cocktail base more than anything else.
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. The new bottling also comes with a new proof of 90, bumping this up from the previous version.
Tasting Notes:
This is soft on the nose with a hint of vanilla next to new leather, cornmeal, and a touch of orchard fruit. The taste is all caramel apples, buttered cornbread, mild cherry, and a hint of eggnog spice. The end is sweet to the point of a honey candy with a touch more of that apple but fades really quickly.
Bottom Line:
I really dig this as a cocktail base but also pour it over some rocks from time to time. It’s a great workhorse whiskey like that. It has real depth without anything that’s going to challenge your palate.
This brand from Luxco is still sourced juice though they did start distilling their own in 2018. This bottle is a seven-year-old blend of barrels with a bourbon mash bill of 78 percent corn, 12 percent malted barley, and ten percent rye, which just so happens to be Heaven Hill’s bourbon mash bill. These barrels are blended down and left as-is at cask strength for bottling.
Tasting Notes:
This is a pretty classic bourbon from nose to finish with a strong sense of rich caramel, pancakes with plenty of vanilla, sweet oak, wet brown sugar, and a whiff of cherry tobacco. The palate leans into the woody brown spices as a dark cherry vibe sweetens the mid-palate. The end circles back to that sweet oak and spicy cherry tobacco on a short finish.
Bottom Line:
This is good, classic, and strong bourbon. For me, those higher ABVs scream “cocktails” but this does work as a sipper with plenty of ice to calm down that high proof.
Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon is a blend of four whiskeys. The blend is split evenly between the high and low ryes with a focus on “slight spice” and “rich fruit” yeasts. The whiskey is then blended, cut with soft Kentucky water, and bottled.
Tasting Notes:
Soft and sweet orchard woods (think apple and cherry) greet you alongside hints of dusty brown spices and ripe red berries. Hints of caramel lead back to the berries and an almost vine-y earthiness next to a bit more of those spices. The end is velvety and lasting. The fruit really is what you’re left with, sort of like a blackberry jam that’s been steeped with cinnamon sticks at the very end.
Bottom Line:
This is another great cocktail bourbon. It’s a big step up from the standard Four Roses but doesn’t quite hit the easy-sipping mark.
This expression uses six of Four Rose’s ten whiskeys in their small-batching process. The idea is to blend both high and low-rye bourbons with yeast strains that highlight “delicate fruit,” “slight spice,” and “herbal notes.” The whiskeys tend to spend at least six years in the barrel before blending and proofing with just a touch of Kentucky’s soft limestone water.
Tasting Notes:
Raspberry and cloves mix with old oak on the nose and boy, does it draw you in. The palate amps up the dark berry sweetness with a bit of tartness, as a stone fruit vibe comes into play. The spice heightens and leans more Christmas spice with a focus on nutmeg. Finally, a wisp of fresh mint arrives to counterpoint the whole sip as the oak, vanilla, fruit, and spice all slowly fade out.
Bottom Line:
This, on the other hand, is a nice sipping bourbon. I tend to pour it over a rock or two but it rules in a neat Glencairn too. All of that said, this makes a mean Manhattan too.
A.D. Laws out in Colorado is renowned for its award-winning four-grain bourbons. The juice is made from 60 percent corn, 20 percent heirloom wheat, ten percent heirloom rye, and ten percent heirloom malted barley. That hot juice is then aged for over six years before it’s batched and cut down to 100 proof per bonded whiskey laws.
Tasting Notes:
This feels more crafty on the nose with a balance between bitter black tea that’s been cut with a summery and floral honey as touches of cinnamon and orange pop in the background. The orange and spice thickens and leans into an orange pound cake with a buttery and spicy streusel crumble as that black tea bitterness circles back to cut through all that butter, spice, and orange. The end leans into the spice with more of a cinnamon candy vibe that leads towards a final dusting of dark cocoa.
Bottom Line:
This is a nice outlier on the list. It’s a great entry point for Laws’ wider selection while also being a nice, summery sipper over some rocks or in a bright cocktail.
This is sourced from Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee bourbons (though that’s likely to change since Heaven Hill bought the brand). The hand-selected barrels are sent to New York where they’re blended in small batches of no more than five barrels, proofed with New York limestone mine water, and bottled. What you’re paying for here is the exactness of a whiskey blender finding great barrels and knowing how to marry them to make something bigger and better.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a raw pancake batter note on the nose next to mulled red wine with plenty of spice and orange next to a vanilla pudding and light mint waxiness. The taste has a mix of marzipan next to dark chocolate and real, almost woody maple syrup. The finish adds some cherry to that dark chocolate and layers in woody birch water on the end.
Bottom Line:
This is really damn nice, especially as a sipper on a rock or two. It definitely lives up to the hype.
Not a whole lot is known about this tiny brand. The juice is from Indiana (MGP), for now, and has a 75 percent corn mash bill (with 21 percent rye and four percent malted barley). Beyond that, we know that this is around four to five years old before it’s blended, proofed, and bottled.
This sounds very standard. Still, there are a lot of four/five-year-old MGP barrels out there and they tend to be pretty damn good. All of that said, I can’t see going out of my way to track this one down.
Barrell’s batches tend to be some of the most anticipated drops of the year. Batch 030 — which dropped in September 2021 — is comprised of bourbons from Tennessee, Indiana, Kentucky, and Wyoming. The barrels are a blend of five, six, nine, ten, eleven, and 15-year-old barrels that were blended in Kentucky. The blend was then bottled as-is with no cutting or fussing.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a buttery note that draws you in on the nose as fresh apple cider, mint, and Almond Joy counterpoint black potting soil, a hint of raw pumpkin, and an echo of sesame seed candies. The palate has an oatmeal raisin cookie vibe with vanilla ice cream just touched with espresso and dark chocolate next to green tea, more mint, and peach pie. The sweetness of the mid-palate gives way to a savory herbal feeling next to honeycombs, marzipan, orange oils, and rum-soaked tobacco leaves in a wet cedar box.
Bottom Line:
This is excellent and unique. There’s nothing quite like it and I dig that. Just make sure to add a few drops of water to really let this one bloom in the glass while you dig into the depths of the nose and palate.
This tiny distillery is attached to a restaurant in Peoria, Illinois. The juice is a crafty bourbon made with a mash bill of 66 percent corn, 27 percent rye, and seven percent malted barley. That distillate rests for around four to five years before it’s proofed down and bottled.
This whiskey is from singer/songwriter Tyler Boone and is made by Striped Pig Distillery in Charleston, South Carolina. There isn’t a whole lot known besides it’s a mash bill of 75 percent. corn, 21 percent rye, and four percent malted barley. The whiskey then spends up to five years in oak before it’s bottled at very high proof.
“Nose: The aroma a pleasantly sweet with caramel corn, cloves, a bit of pepper, and vanilla. Flavor: Caramel is the opening act on the palate with warm butter, cinnamon, smokiness, and a dash of apple. Finish: The finish has a burst of cinnamon and rancio.”
Bottom Line:
This is another “If I’m in x-place, I’ll look it up.” Beyond that, this sounds like pretty standard stuff with a high ABV, making it feel more like a cocktail/mixing bourbon at this price point.
Branch & Barrel Distilling out in Colorado is making this juice in the suburbs of Denver. The whiskey is made from a unique mash bill of 80 percent corn and 20 percent malted barley. It’s then aged for about four years before it’s proofed with that Rocky Mountain water and bottled.
Thie whiskey in this bottle is all about craft distilling. The juice is made of 68% corn, 27% rye, and five percent specialty roasted barley malts. All of the grains are locally and sustainably sourced. The whiskey spends a few years in the barrel before it’s “double-barreled” into hand-smoked Michigan northern oak barrels for a final rest. It’s then barely proofed down to 100 proof.
I’m very intrigued by this whiskey. Smoked barrels are going to be a big thing in the coming years in bourbon (yes, I’m calling it now) and this feels ahead of the curve on that front.
This expression from Illinois’ FEW Spirits marks the 125th anniversary of the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897. The juice is made from 70 percent corn, 20 percent rye, and ten percent malted barley. That whiskey spends four years resting before it’s proofed down to 100 proof and bottled as-is.
Tasting Notes:
The nose opens with a sense of vanilla cream pie with an extra thick vanilla pudding next to dry cedar bark with a touch of white moss, a touch of black licorice, and a hint of barrel smoke. The palate leans into cherry bark with a light cherry tobacco spiciness that melds with the vanilla pudding, a pan of fresh sticky buns with plenty of cinnamon and walnuts, and a hint of black pepper and more of that dry cedar bark. The finish has a bit of an oatmeal cookie vibe that leads back to the spicy cherry tobacco and white moss.
Bottom Line:
This punches way above its weight class. It’s complex, unique, and very drinkable, even neat. It’s also a killer Manhattan or old fashioned base thanks to those ABVs.
This brand new bourbon from Heaven Hill celebrates the five brothers who started the distillery back in 1935. The bottle was released to celebrate the brand-new visitor’s center at Heaven Hill and is largely only available there. The juice in this bottle is a blend of five bourbons of varying ages between five and nine years old made with Heaven Hill’s mash bill of 78 percent corn, 12 percent malted barley, and ten percent rye.
Tasting Notes:
This draws you in with maple syrup, apple tobacco, resinous pine, and a touch of unpopped popcorn kernels on the nose. The palate is pecan-loaded waffles smothered in butter and syrup with vanilla ice cream, light brown spiciness, and maple-infused sweet tobacco on the end.
Bottom Line:
I really liked this last year. It wasn’t mind-blowing but it got the job done as a great end-of-the-day pour over some rocks.
This Tennessee whiskey is made in a tiny distillery in the Smoky Mountains. The whiskey is made from a mash bill of 99 percent corn and one percent malted barley, making it the biggest outlier on this list. That juice is aged for about four years before it’s proofed down and bottled.
“It [King’s Bourbon] features bourbon’s signature smoky tobacco and vanilla notes, but with hints of sweet raisin, fig, and date.”
Bottom Line:
That super high-corn mash bill is enough to grab any whiskey drinker’s attention. Though, that does sound like this would be on the sweeter side of the bourbon spectrum. Still, it sounds like it’s worth giving a shot.
Not a whole lot is known about this whiskey from New Orleans. The distillery claims “three generations” of whiskey-making tradition but little else about the actual process or what’s in the bottle.
“Strong notes of vanilla, oak, and caramel. Pleasant, very smooth notes enjoyed neat or on the rocks. Very soft to the palate and tends to be very mellow and soft.”
Bottom Line:
Sure, this sounds fine. The lack of information about this whiskey though is a little off-putting. Distillers hiding everything in 2022 feels unnecessary.
This new-ish whiskey from Penelope really helps solidify the brand as a powerhouse in blending. The whiskey in the bottle is a blend of three bourbon mash bills (one is 21 percent rye, another 90 percent corn, and a 45 percent wheated bourbon — all from MGP), which create a four-grain (corn, wheat, rye, and barley) bourbon. Beyond that, this is about masterfully blending of four to five-year-old barrels into something bigger than the individual parts.
Tasting Notes:
You get a sense of dry cornmeal on the nose next to apple crumble, plenty of wintry spice, a hint of mulled wine, wet brown sugar, and a thin layer of wet yet sweet cedar. A hint of brandy-soaked cherries arrives on the palate with a dusting of dark chocolate powder next to more apple pie filling, spice, and buttery crust alongside a sweet, toffee-heavy mid-palate. The end arrives with a dry wicker vibe, cherry tobacco chewiness, and a hint of that dark chocolate.
Bottom Line:
These tend to be stellar one-offs. They’re great for a neat pour after a long day or mixing into a simple whiskey cocktail. You can’t go wrong here.
Still Austin Cask Strength Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Still Austin is getting a lot of love for their very crafty (and fruity) bourbon, The Musician. This is that — but as cask strength and released as a limited offering. The juice in the bottle is a local, grain-to-glass operation that utilizes the best grains and water Texas has to offer.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, cedar greets you and forms a foundation for choco-cherry candies with a hint of dried mint. The taste moves into a blackberry feel with rich vanilla cream and plenty of cinnamon. The end takes on a warmth that feels more like a dried chili pepper than alcohol heat.
Bottom Line:
This is nice and fruity, which isn’t my thing per se. It’s fine but I always find it a little one-note with all those berries.
First off, this has a great name and logo. Secondly, the juice is made from a mash bill of 75 percent corn, 21 percent rye, and four percent malted barley at 117 proof (like Boone’s above) so we know this is MGP distillate, and that usually means high-quality booze.
“This is a complex whiskey that reveals a potpourri of baking spice – cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice – all wrapped around dark fruits of fig, date, and plum. The finish is dominated by spice and charred oak, finishing quite clean.”
Bottom Line:
I want this for the pup on the label. That aside, I’m confident the whiskey is tasty given that it’s classic MGP whiskey.
Uncle Nearest Uncle Nearest Master Blend Edition (Up to Five Years)
While Uncle Nearest is distilling their own juice these days, this is still the work of Master Blender Victoria Eady Butler with carefully sourced Tennessee whiskey barrels. In this case, Eady Bulter hand-selected the best-of-the-best from their inventory to create the perfect whiskey to exemplify the brand and Tennesee whiskey traditions.
Tasting Notes:
This draws you in with a piping hot fresh batch of cinnamon rolls with plenty of white sauce frosting, cinnamon and brown sugar filling, a touch of nutmeg, pecans, firewood bark, and a hint of pipe tobacco. The palate delivers on the bigger notes of the nose with pecan shells, cinnamon sticks dipped in cherry syrup, wet corn husks, old leather gloves that have worked in dirt and firewood, and mild yet spiced cherry tobacco. That mild cherry sweetness drives the mid-palate toward a hint of maple syrup that leans woody as firewood piles in black dirt rounding out the finish with an echo more of that peppery tobacco.
Bottom Line:
This is likely to win best in class, it’s that good. Price aside, you should 100 percent taste this if you see it around at your local whiskey bar.
Daniel Caesar has been rather quiet since he released his sophomore album Case Study 01 in 2019. His highlights in the almost here years since that project arrived include “Peaches,” Justin Bieber’s No. 1 track which he and Giveon guest featured on, “Love Again” with Brandy,” and a remix of “Cyanide” with Koffee. Caesar’s time to himself might have been a choice to stay out of the mix following his controversial comments about YesJulz, but his fans still stuck beside him as his debut album Freudian went Platinum this year while his best-selling single, “Get You” with Kali Uchis, went 4X Platinum.
Nonetheless, it seems Daniel Caesar is ready to take steps towards his third album after almost three years. That signal comes with the release of “Please Do Not Lean” which features Badbadnotgood. The track is a tender release that Caesar steers with his soft vocals as he admits to his unstable ways with his significant other. Caesar knows his partner seeks someone to depend on, and it’s for that reason he requests that they don’t lean on him.
His new track arrives after he and Justin Bieber delivered performances of “Peaches” at this year’s Coachella Festival and Grammy Awards. Prior to that, he collaborated with Omar Apollo for “Invincible” and FKA Twigs for “Careless.”
You can listen to “Please Do Not Lean” in the video above.
The Kid Laroi saw his career reach new heights after he released a third deluxe reissue of his debut mixtape F*ck Love. The release was highlighted by “Stay,” his collaboration with Justin Bieber, which went on to spend multiple weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard singles chart. While that song is still very much enjoying the height of its success, Laroi is ready to start the latest chapter of his career with the impending release of his debut album Kids Are Growing Up and he kicks it off with his new single, “Thousand Miles.”
The track arrives with a music video that watches Laroi battle against himself to successfully win at love. Self-sabotage arrives as one of Laroi’s alter egos and it goes to great lengths to ruin his chances with a new girl. It ties him to a car and drives him for miles, drops a piano on his head, electrocutes him, and more, all of which take place in the song’s comedic video. Unfortunately, his destructive ways prove to be superior in the end.
“Thousand Miles” arrives after Laroi went to great lengths to promote the song, even tricking some into thinking that he was at odds with his former manager Scooter Braun. It came after Laroi posted a TikTok which insinuated that Braun was his “last mistake.” However, just a day later, Braun showed text messages between him and Laroi that proved the TikTok was nothing more than a well-planned prank.
You can listen to “Thousand Miles” in the video above.
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Jokic takes the lead for Denver 
