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Chance The Rapper And Jeremih Are Finally Releasing Their Christmas Album To Streaming

For the last four years, the only place you could listen to Chance The Rapper and Jeremih‘s Christmas album, Merry Christmas Lil’ Mama, was on SoundCloud. While that isn’t too much of a problem for fans who like to listen to music on their computers, it did make it hard to add the songs to playlists or take them on-the-go. However, that soon changes as the two Chicago institutions have announced the ultimate gift for fans: Merry Christmas Lil’ Mama is coming to all streaming services — Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal — this Friday, December 11. Chance made the announcement in an excited tweet complete with an elaborate trailer:

The collaborative mixtape was initially released on December 22, 2016, with a Re-Wrapped reissue arriving a year later. Eschewing traditional covers or Christmas carols, the two Chicagoans instead opted to craft nine original songs — then ten more on the reissue — celebrating the season with bouncy raps and cheerful melodies. The tape features appearances from other Chicago artists such as Hannibal Buress, King Louie, Noname, and Valee. The duo released the music video for one song, “Are U Live,” last week after holding onto its Cole Bennett-directed video for nearly three years.

Merry Christmas Lil Mama hits streaming services for the first time this Friday, 12/11.

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Trump Bizarrely Cheered The Rise In COVID Cases And Spread More Wild Lies About His Election Loss In A Completely Off-The-Rails ‘Vaccine Summit’

After Donald Trump announced a “vaccine summit” for Tuesday, the event turned out to be anything but as the president spent most of the time falsely claiming that he won the presidential election instead of staying focused on the vastly more critical issue of getting a coronavirus vaccine to the American public. Although, when Trump did address the increasing pandemic, it was to oddly cheer the growing number of infection rates, which for the record, is not a good thing. More Americans getting COVID is bad. Very bad. Via The Daily Beast:

“I hear we’re close to 15 percent. I’m hearing that, and that’s terrific,” Trump said of the percentage of Americans who have contracted COVID-19.

He appeared to be referencing the increased likelihood that a rising infection rate would bring the country closer to so-called herd immunity, which would effectively stop the virus from spreading because there would be no potential carriers to which it could go.

As The Daily Beast notes, medical experts have repeatedly warned that achieving herd immunity would require at least 70% of Americans to be infected with COVID-19. Considering the country is only just now nearing a 15% infection that has already left over 284,000 people dead, reaching herd immunity would result in a catastrophic death toll of well over a million.

Unfortunately, herd immunity wasn’t the only conspiracy theory that Trump spread during the summit. When asked about why the incoming Biden Administration wasn’t being included in the vaccine distribution plans, Trump claimed that actually he won before pleading for the Supreme Court to overturn the election results.

“We were rewarded with a victory,” Trump said via Mediaite. “Now let’s see whether or not somebody has the courage, whether it’s a legislator or legislatures or whether it’s a justice of the Supreme Court or a number of justices of the Supreme Court. Let’s see if they have the courage to do what everybody in this country knows is right.”

(Via The Daily Beast, Mediaite)

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Emily Blunt Has A ‘Really Promising’ Update On The ‘Edge Of Tomorrow’ Sequel With Tom Cruise

It may have been a box office disappointment (even though it made over $370 million worldwide) with a terrible title, but Edge of Tomorrow is a super fun movie. It’s easily Tom Cruise’s finest non-Mission: Impossible starring role this decade, and it’s one of Emily Blunt’s best performances, too. (I’d say it’s her best, but that’s obviously The Devil Wears Prada.) There’s been talk of a sequel to Edge, which was later retitled to Live Die Repeat, since it was released, but scheduling has been difficult, with Cruise hanging out on speeding trains and Blunt cruising the jungle with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

But the A Quiet Place Part II star offered a “promising” update on the script.

“It’s really promising and really, really cool. I just don’t know when everything’s going to sort of align,” Blunt told the Hollywood Reporter. “Between all of our schedules, it would just have to be the right time. But there is something in the works, for sure, that’s a great idea. A great idea.” Now that’s some good news.

Mission: Impossible has many sequels (which keep getting better). Top Gun is getting a sequel (it was supposed to be out by now). Even Jack Reacher got a sequel. Why not Edge of Tomorrow? If only for its working title, Live Die Repeat and Repeat. That’s the kind of bold choice that Now You See Me 2 refused to make, and suffered for it. I would also accept Edge of 2morrow.

(Via the Hollywood Reporter)

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PSG And Istanbul Basaksehir Walked Off After An Official Allegedly Called An Istanbul Coach A Racist Slur

Group H of the Champions League featured a pair of matches on Tuesday, a highly-anticipated tilt between Red Bull Leipzig and Manchester United, and a match between Paris Saint-Germain and Istanbul Basakeshir that seemed like a formality for the French side. But due to an incident in the second match, it became the center of the football world, as players from both teams walked off the pitch due to a racist incident between the fourth official and a member of Istanbul’s staff.

According to reports out of France, the official used a racist term while addressing Istanbul assistant Pierre Webo, who is Black, and addressed the official upon getting a red card. It also led to a confrontation between the official and Istanbul striker Demba Ba, who is also Black and questioned the verbiage used by the official.

Istanbul players were unhappy with the incident, which led to them walking off the pitch. In a show of solidarity, players for PSG — whose star player, Neymar, has alleged being on the receiving end of these sorts of racist remarks in the past — did the same.

Istanbul tweeted out a statement in staunch opposition to racism in football.

The match, per reports, is slated to resume at 4 p.m. EST, with the fourth official being moved off of the pitch.

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A racist threatened him for his Black Santa decoration. His neighbors responded beautifully.

Three years ago, Chris Kennedy and his family moved to the Lakewood neighborhood of North Little Rock, Arkansas. Every holiday season he has placed a seven-foot-tall Black Santa Claus on his lawn alongside his other decorations.

Kennedy believes the Black Santa Claus decoration is empowering for his five-year-old daughter.

“Our thing is about representation for our daughter, seeing herself in everything and knowing that she can do whatever she wants to do and she’s not going to be limited by her color,” he told Good Morning America. “The Black Santa is something I wanted my daughter growing up seeing.”


“She doesn’t even question seeing a white Santa Claus, because we’ve always told her that’s what he looks like in other people’s houses,” Kennedy added. “For other people, Santa is a representation of them.”

However, this year the Black Santa Claus would come to represent more than Kennedy ever intended.

On November 23, he received a letter in the mail from an angry racist demanding he remove the Black Santa Claus from his lawn. The letter claimed to be from Santa Claus and his homeowners’ association.

via Chris Kennedy / Facebook

“Please remove your negro Santa Claus yard decoration,” the letter reads. “You should try not to deceive children into believing that I am negro. I am a caucasian (white man, to you) and have been for the past 600 years. Your being jealous of my race is no excuse for your dishonesty. Besides that, you are making yourself the laughing stock of the neighborhood. Obviously, your values are not that of the Lakewood area and maybe you should move to a neighborhood out east with the rest of your racist kind.”

The letter was accompanied by a photo of Santa Claus making a thumbs-down gesture.

via Chris Kennedy / Facebook

Kennedy was obviously incensed by the letter and so he read it on Facebook Live. He then contacted the local police department and post office to see if they could track down the racist.

Within a few hours, Kennedy was surprised to receive messages of support on Facebook from people he had never met.

A week later, the family began noticing Black Santa decorations around his neighborhood.

“I just started seeing them pop up in the neighborhood,” he said. “The bright side of everything was the neighbors’ response.”

via Chris Kennedy / Facebook

via Chris Kennedy / Facebook

Since the incident, the Kennedy’s have received Black Santa Claus gifts and countless messages of support. When people asked how they can help, he told them to donate to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Arkansas. The nonprofit offers housing to the families of sick children.

So far, the donations have covered over 200 nights of housing.

The homeowners’ association has denied any connection with the letter and is proudly displaying a Black Santa Claus at its headquarters that was donated by a resident.

“To try to falsely blame us and say that those are our views was pretty upsetting,” Evan Blake, director of the homeowner’s association, said of the racist letter. “We support Chris completely and everyone else in Lakewood too and [adding a Black Santa Claus to the holiday display] is just something else we can do to show our support.”

Kennedy is still upset about the letter but has been encouraged by the reaction his family has received after the incident.

“I’m not happy that it happened, but I’m happy that the conversations are being had,” added Kennedy.

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It’s long past time for teachers to be compensated for the work they actually do

When people talk about teacher salaries, they often talk about teacher schedules—or what they think are their work schedules. Depending on where you live, school hours might go from 8:00 to 2:30. And teachers are usually contracted for around 180 days a year. With a 6 or 7 hour work day and summers and holiday breaks off, aren’t teachers making decent money for the hours they work?

Umm, no.

The assumption some people make is that teachers only work their contracted hours, but that’s simply not true for most teachers. One teacher broke down the extra hours she puts in beyond her contract and estimated that she actually works 42 hours a week, and actually works 250 days per year. That’s a pretty normal, full-time job, for which she only gets paid part-time wages. Scholastic reported that a survey of 10,000 teachers found that most work 10 to 11 hour work days, with those who advise extracurricular activities clocking even more than that.

Salaries for teachers vary a lot by state, but according to Business Insider, in the majority of school districts starting salaries for a new teacher is less than $40,000 a year. In 300 districts, it’s less than $30,000. If we consider that teachers do work full-time hours, that’s less than the proposed $15 per hour we’ve seen proposed as a minimum wage.


My brother currently works as an art teacher. I’ve seen his pandemic hybrid school schedule—in addition to photos of him up planning at 1:30 am—and it’s absolutely bananas. Having been a teacher myself, I’m familiar with the amount of work teachers put in beyond school hours—and not just in terms of time, but in emotional labor.

Teaching itself—as in instructing students on how to write essays, how to do algebra, how to analyze history—is somewhat of a challenge with dozens of unique students, but that’s not really the hard part of teaching. The hard part is caring about those dozens of students on a personal level, advocating for them in a system of standardization and testing that doesn’t acknowledge their unique gifts, dealing with parents who take out their parenting frustrations on the school, and feeling like society doesn’t value your work even though you know it’s vitally important.

And the real kicker is that the system would suffer greatly if teachers only worked the hours they are paid to work and only used the resources they are provided. We’ve created a culture in which teachers are expected to work sacrificially, which is ridiculous. Teachers are skilled professionals. They deserve to be paid as if their time, knowledge, skills and experience are exceptionally valuable because they are.

Of course, there are plenty of jobs where people work beyond their expected work hours. But such jobs usually come with bonus incentives or high-paying salaries or some other perks that make up for it. It’s like teachers are expected to see the rewarding nature of working with kids as enough—but that expectation doesn’t account for the fact that working with kids is as stressful as it is rewarding.

Sometimes it feels like we as a society take advantage of the fact that teachers care so much. Generally speaking, people who go into teaching do it for the right reasons—to help kids learn and grow. It’s a job that requires an emotional investment in order to do it well. We know that good teachers are going to be good teachers whether we pay them well or not. They’re going to put in the hours and make the sacrifices regardless, and our system exploits that dedication in so many ways.

I’ve worked in a lot of different jobs, and teaching in a public school was by far the most challenging work I’ve done. I loved it, but it was hard. I know a man who worked as a garbage collector and in sawmills and the logging industry for 30 years before he became a high school math teacher. He says teaching is the hardest job he’s ever had. Long hours, 6 to 7 days a week. Rewarding and meaningful work, of course, but definitely not easy.

It’s time to stop expecting the work itself to be the reward and acknowledge that teachers deserve not just decent but competitive incomes. Teachers shouldn’t have to be saints or martyrs—they deserve to have their work recognized with salaries that reflect their real value. I haven’t taught in a classroom in more than two decades, so I have no skin in the game myself in saying that I think teachers should be paid bucketloads of money. Not just the average for their education and skill level, but beyond it.

In paying teachers extremely well, we would retain more good teachers who leave the job for financial reasons and we would recruit more top people to the profession. We would show as a society that we truly value education and see it as the best investment in the future. And we would all be the better for it.

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Fans Are Rushing To Scoop Up A Pair Of Post Malone’s New Crocs

One way to track a musician’s success is through their brand deals. Many rappers, like Travis Scott and Tyler The Creator, choose to collaborate with shoe companies like Nike and Converse. But Post Malone has taken a different route, instead opting to continue his partnership with Crocs.

Despite being a divisive style, Malone’s fans were in a frenzy to get their hands on a pair of his Crocs. The shoes were released Tuesday and instantly began trending on Twitter as interested customers waited in long online queues trying to score a pair.

Along with debuting a line of shoes, Malone has been up to a lot in 2020. On top of being the top-charting artists for a second year in a row, Malone got into the wine market with his own brand of rosé, dropped a collection of sunglasses in collaboration with Arnette, and even started his own celebrity beer pong league.

Speaking to Uproxx in a recent interview, Malone said he’s surprised that his music charted so well in 2020 despite not releasing an album this year. “I can’t believe this many people still want to hear my sh*tty songs,” he said. “It’s crazy with all the talented artists and all the massive records out over the past year or so. For me to have a song on the charts that long is just unbelievable.”

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Saquon Barkley Wants The Giants To ‘Continue To Buy In’ And ‘Finish The Season Off Strong’

It’s been a tough year for Saquon Barkley. The jewel of the New York Giants’ backfield suffered a torn ACL in his right knee during the team’s second game of the season, and as a result, his third year in the league came to an end after 19 carries, six receptions, and no touchdowns. To make matters worse, New York got off to a wretched start to the season, beginning 0-5 and falling all the way to 1-7.

Things have been looking up lately for both team and player. The Giants are now 5-7 after ripping off four wins in a row, most recently a victory against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, and sit in first place in the NFC East. Barkley, meanwhile, has been happy with how things have been going with his rehab, and while his preference is to be on the field, he’s gotten a sense of pride out of watching his team turn things around, thanks in large part to a good ground game spearheaded by Wayne Gallman. Off the field, Barkley teamed up with Gillette to design a limited-edition razor as part of its Every Day Is Gameday initiative. In conjunction the razor, which fans can win via a drawing, Gillette is giving $26,000 to Covenant House New Jersey, a charity that helps at-risk youth that Barkley has worked with in the past.

Uproxx Sports caught up with Barkley this week to discuss the razor, the Giants’ season, his former college quarterback taking the field for the Baltimore Ravens last week, and more.

What was your conversation with Trace McSorley like at the end of last week?

[laughs] It’s crazy, before the game happened, I sent a Snapchat to all my boys and was like, “I’ve got a feeling Trace is gonna get in, and when he gets in, he’s gonna be a rat, he’s gonna win the game.” Unfortunately, he didn’t get that drive. Ben Roethlisberger did an amazing throw to James Washington, and we never got to see that two-minute drive that we all wanted to see, but I was happy for him, man. I was proud of him, excited that he was able to experience some actual live play. He’s a heck of a player, he works his tail off, so for him to get out there on live TV and be able to throw his first touchdown pass was definitely a dope experience to be able to see.

How’re you feeling? It’s been two and a half months, how’s rehab going and where are you in the whole process?

Rehab’s going really well, surgery went really well. I’m just coming in every single day trying to attack the day, get better every single day, and try to prepare myself for whenever I’m able to come back.

I’m interested in, kinda going off of what you’re doing with Gillette, what your gameday routine is right now? Have you kept things from your normal gameday routine? Are you keeping notes and communicating with guys after? “Lucky” jersey or anything like that?

No, I would say nothing really changed for me. The only thing that’s changed is I’m not physically there, instead of waking up in the morning, getting my mind ready to go play a game, I’m waking up in the morning trying to do whatever I can do at home, get some rehab in, getting ready to turn the game on and cheer my guys on.

Adrian Peterson said he has reached out to you about this injury. What have your conversations been like with him and what’s the best bit of advice he’s given you as a guy who knows about bouncing back from this and performing at a high level?

He said something to me along the lines that God gives his toughest challenges to his toughest warriors. That’s something that stuck with me, everything happens for a reason, and there’s not much I can do about it. It happened. So now, the only thing I can do is try to make the best out of it and try to come back stronger and better from it. And to have a guy like AP reach out, not only AP, but a lot of people reached out to show love and support, definitely means a lot to me.

I think it’s easy for any team that started 0-5, 1-7 to just take that final punch and fold, but I look and see a bunch of one-score losses in there. What was the message from the coaches, in the locker room, when the team was losing but you’re possession in either direction away from being 5-3, 6-2, instead of where the team was?

Exactly. And that’s something that we knew. We’re right there, we’re right there, we’re in all those games and we couldn’t find a way to win those games, and that’s something that we were able to do the last couple of weeks. That was the message, we have what we have. We have it in this locker room. We have the talent, we have the team, we have the right mentality. We just gotta continue to work and it’s gonna start showing up, and it’s starting to show up. So we gotta finish the season off strong and continue to have that same mentality, continue to buy in, continue to believe in each other.

And now, the team has just ripped off four in a row, and three are those one-possession wins, including this week against Seattle. Has anything changed, in your eyes, or is a matter of, listen, some breaks we weren’t getting the first eight games of the season are going our way?

Yeah, that’s how football works. Sometimes the ball just goes your way. Sometimes it doesn’t. And these last couple weeks, it’s been going that way. You gotta give credit to the offensive line and to the running backs, especially Wayne. The run game’s stepping up big. When you get the run game going, you can be able to control the game. And then our defense is also playing at a high level.

You gotta give a shoutout to all the coaches in all three phases of the ball, especially coach Judge for instilling that confidence in this team, and for us to be able to go out there and continue to win.

The team has been running the ball really well, and they’ve really found something lately. How much of getting into a groove running the ball is stuff like what you’re scheming out, and how much is just getting into a rhythm that carries from one week to the next?

A lot of it is just getting into that rhythm. The gameplan doesn’t really change, the scheme doesn’t really change, you’re not doing anything crazy for weeks and weeks. It’s all about having confidence, and you can see the confidence grow in the run game, from the offensive line all the way to Wayne, how he’s hitting the holes and he’s making people miss, and how the offensive line is controlling the line of scrimmage. That’s something that, no matter what, that’s always gonna be important in football. No matter how, if it’s a passing league or if it’s this or that, it always starts up front, it always starts with the offensive line establishing the line of scrimmage.

That’s something that they’ve been doing and Wayne’s doing a great job of hitting the holes. Coach Garrett’s done a great job of dialing up the calls for us and we’ve been able to find ways to win games, starting with the run game and with everyone else stepping up big and making big plays when needed.

And then on Wayne, he was a wonderful, wonderful college player, and he’s always had flashes in the NFL, but it’s been more consistently lately, now has his career highs in yards and touchdowns. Is it just lately he has found a groove that has led to him having success, or has he been doing anything particularly special?

He’s always been special, he’s always been a talented back, that’s something that we’ve all seen. But it’s confidence, man. His confidence is growing, he’s able to get into that groove, he’s able to establish a rhythm for himself. He don’t gotta go out there and try to force anything. He’s been playing extremely well, and I don’t mean to say it like a big brother or anything like that when I say I’m proud of him. I’m just happy for him, all the hard work that I know that he’s put in is starting to show.

What do you have going on with Gillette?

I got a razor, I never thought I’d have my own razor, but I got a razor with an amazing design, the design fits me, my personality, how I am as a person. We’re giving away a limited edition to help give back, and Gillette is doing an amazing job. Any time you can partner with a company that has the same views as you of giving back, it definitely means a lot, and for them to be donating $26,000 to Covenant House New Jersey is amazing to me, because it’s an organization that I’ve been working with and something I’m passionate about.

I would urge fans to visit GillettexSaquon.com for a chance to win, and Gillette will donate an additional dollar to Covenant House New Jersey, up to $26,000.

Part of this is the Every Day Is Gameday initiative, how do you take that mentality into your everyday life? Into fashion and style and grooming, but also football and your rehab and business ventures and everything else Saquon Barkley does?

You gotta make it count, you gotta make everything count, especially when it comes to football, especially when it comes to everyday life. I wanna have that mentality, to try and improve and get better in every single thing that I do, strive to be the best and strive for greatness. You have to have that approach, every day is gameday.

Final two questions are about our alma mater. First, it’s kind of funny how Penn State’s followed the Giants’ path this year — they lost a couple of really close games, but they’ve been finding wins lately. What’s your read on the season so far?

Yeah, obviously the season didn’t go the way we would like, but you gotta finish it strong, and I know that’s something that coach Franklin is telling those guys. A little adversity, they’re a young team, a lot of players come back, especially the running back core, proud of those guys. You can see that they’re growing every single week and starting to get a groove for themselves, too. But I love my alma mater no matter what, win, loss, or draw, and we’re gonna find a way to get things back on the right track.

Last one: You have a bye week and it just happens to be the weekend that Penn State’s hosting Ohio State for the White Out. What are the three spots, if you can make it with some teammates, you’re definitely bring them to?

The Field, I love the Field Burger. The Lion’s Den, go visit my guy Chris. I feel like the stadium’s the easy answer, obviously the stadium is something that they’ve gotta see. But then … I would say the Creamery, right? I gotta say the Creamery, right?

You have to say the Creamery.

I have to say the Creamery.

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Taylor Swift’s Cat-Heavy Holiday Card Is Wild And Perfectly On-Brand

It’s December now, and part of what comes with that is a torrent of holiday cards arriving in the mail. Celebrities are just like us, and one of the biggest of them all, Taylor Swift, sends out holiday cards as well. Now we’ve gotten a look at what hers looks like this year, and it’s both totally wild and not completely unexpected.

Journalist Kyle Meredith — who interviewed Swift earlier this year and has one of the best music podcasts you should be listening to — shared a photo today of the card he got from Swift. The front features a trio of cats, and one is donning a Santa hat, another is wearing a scarf, and the third has a party hat on and a drink in front of them, and it’s all in Folklore-style black and white. As for the inside, it reads, “Wishing you a season of moments so wonderful, they become folklore. Love, Taylor Swift and everyone at 13 Management.”

Meredith wrote when sharing the photos, “Getting a holiday card from @taylorswift13 is a great way to start the season. And cats in Santa hats make it even better.”

Meanwhile, Swift just discussed her decision to drop her first on-record F-bomb on Folklore, saying it felt “f*cking fantastic” to do so.

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The Most Underrated Winter Beers, According To Bartenders

It doesn’t matter where you live in the United States, signs of winter are everywhere. The weather has gone from chilly to cold, the days are uncomfortably short, and the holidays are upon us.

It’s a great time to crack open a “winter” beer. Or three.

First, what exactly is a winter beer? Traditionally, bocks and winter warmers (with high ABVs) make up a majority of “winter beers.” But we can also throw porters, stouts, Christmas beers, and pretty much anything filled with pumpkin or pumpkin pie spices (cloves, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, cinnamon) in the mix. Compared to summer and fall beers, they’re usually darker, bolder, stronger, and more flavorful.

To find the winter beers that don’t get enough shine, we went to the experts for help. We asked some of our favorite bartenders to tell us their picks for the most underrated winter beers for December 2020.

Southern Tier Old Man Winter

Erin Gowdy, bartender at Paul’s Landing in St. Petersburg, Florida

Southern Tier just came out with their Old Man Winter beer, so it’s currently lesser known than many other seasonal beers. It has great winter flavors like subtle smoky malts, dark chocolate, and just a hint of bitterness — like the old man himself.

Flying Dog Family Drama

Seth Falvo, bartender at The Hotel Zamora in St. Pete Beach, Florida

It’s easy to see how a pilsner can get lost in the mix during the winter – the summertime staple can feel out of place among barrel-aged stouts and Christmas ales. Perhaps that’s why Flying Dog’s Family Drama Imperial Pilsner doesn’t get nearly enough love, especially as a winter beer. As with any great pilsner, the sweet maltiness and hop spiciness are perfectly balanced, and this one has plenty of baking spice throughout the finish as well.

Despite how smooth and drinkable this beer is, it packs quite a punch at 8.4% ABV, which is a plus if your uncle decides to start talking politics during holiday gatherings.

Six Point Bengali IPA

Yasin Orhun Akinci, manager at Orient Express Bar in New York City

Not quite a winter beer, but Six Point Bengali IPA should be something all the IPA and beer drinkers try. Very well balanced, hoppy but not irritating.

Who says you can’t enjoy an IPA in the winter?

Notch Brewing Cerne Pivo

Fatima Kuras, general manager at 15 East @ Tocqueville in New York City

Notch Brewing Cerne Pivo is very underrated. It’s a small brewery in Massachusetts. Made in the style of black session lagers from the Czech Republic, it’s low in alcohol but high in flavor.

Anderson Valley Winter Solstice

Hayden Miller, head bartender at Bodega Taqueria y Tequila in Miami

Anderson Valley Winter Solstice is a creamy and delicious option for a winter warmer ale. Go try one for a toffee and spice delight.

Anchor Christmas Ale

Stefan Huebner, co-owner and head mixologist at Dot Dot Dot in Charlotte, North Carolina

Anchor Christmas Ale. They’ve been making this beer since the 1970s. They were the first to release a holiday beer in America since Prohibition. Every year, it’s a little different, but they consistently deliver with big coffee and cappuccino flavors.

In a culture of “what’s new,” these guys have been doing it forever and they do it the right way.

Shiner Holiday Cheer

Robert Gleim, managing partner of Bamboo Willie’s Beachside Bar in Pensacola, Florida

Shiner Holiday Cheer is my go-to. It’s just an all-around fun holiday beer. They do it right with pecans and peaches. It’s underrated in that it does not have great distribution in small markets.

Lift Bridge Fireside Flannel

Bryce Moltzan, assistant restaurant manager at FireLake Grill House and Cocktail Bar in Bloomington, Minnesota

Fireside Flannel brown ale by Lift Bridge Brewery. Brown ales overall are underappreciated with all the craft focus on IPAs and now sours. Lift Bridge does a really good job and makes a great brown ale that’s easy to dink. It has notes of roasted hazelnuts, coffee, and a light chocolate finish.

Writer’s Picks:

Boulevard Snow & Tell

This oak-aged Scotch ale is big, bold, and full of roasted malts, sweet vanilla, and seasonal spices. It’s the perfect warmer for a cold winter night.

Hopworks Abominable Winter Ale

This might be the perfect winter beer. One sip with its subtle resinous hops, sticky toffee, and rich malts, and you won’t want to drink anything else. It’s high ABVs will warm you up until the final spring thaw.