My first experience of Jerrod Carmichael, probably at least a decade ago now, was watching him captivate a small, not particularly great audience I’d just bombed in while doing virtually none of the things you’d normally expect a comic working an audience to do. He didn’t shout, he wasn’t animated, he didn’t ask them tons of questions to create “energy” or “participation”; he was just an odd, sort of cerebral guy in a hoodie leaning against the back wall of the stage sharing a series of goofy, semi-surreal thoughts. He created a quiet kind of “anti-stage presence” that didn’t feel like shtick.
Carmichael’s directorial debut, On The Count Of Three, premiering at Sundance this week, is a lot like my memory of watching him perform: thoughtful, surprising, surreal, depressive in an oddly optimistic way, and above all a unique vibe that’s not easy to forget. Whereas every actor seems to make their directing debut with some unbearably bleak festival slog (“it’s about a family struggling to come to grips with personal tragedy”), On The Count Of Three takes ironic juxtapositions to their most absurd degree, in an 84-minute film about suicidal best friends that somehow seems breezy.
With a script by Ari Katcher and Ryan Welch (alums of Ramy and The Carmichael Show), Carmichael plays Val, opposite the underrated and suddenly ubiquitous Christopher Abbot as Kevin, two best friends who have made a suicide pact of sorts. If that sounds bleak, well, it sort of is, but it’s also liberating. Val and Kevin can live this day like it’s their last day on Earth, because it is. On The Count Of Three becomes a sort of dystopian road trip buddy movie, the whole thing living in that brief, unique window where tragedy becomes opportunity.
The gag is that Val, in coming to depression later in life, is being a suicide poseur. I don’t want to spoil much more of it than that, and I probably don’t need to. You’ve seen a road movie before; the main characters go on quests and meet people from their pasts and present (Tiffany Haddish, JB Smoove, Henry Winkler). Having seen one or two other movies recently with very similar structures (shooting in a pandemic may dictate this kind of episodic structure), what separates On The Count Of Three from the others is that the people they meet never seem like opportunities for “funny cameos.” In fact, it seems like the script took pains to imagine the least funny issues they could — depression, suicide, domestic violence — and tried to fit them all into a movie that’s funny without being expressly comedic. That it allows situations to play out naturally, in a more character-driven fashion, rather than as transparent excuses for jokes, is probably why it’s actually able to find the humor.
The ending may not land as hard as the film was building it up to, but it’s an enjoyable, singularly off-beat ride with some of the best use of Papa Roach since Silicon Valley. I’m trying and failing to remember a scene this year that has made me laugh as hard as Jerrod Carmichael trying to commit suicide in the bathroom of a mulch factory while Travis Tritt’s “It’s A Great Day To Be Alive” blares over the sound system. On The Count Of Three is the rare enjoyable suicide movie because at its heart, it understands that while depression and suicidal ideation are very sad, they’re also kind of corny.
‘On The Count Of Three’ debuted at Sundance this week.Vince Mancini is onTwitter. You can access his archive of reviewshere.
With the trial of R. Kelly set for September 2021, one of his associates has tapped out, according to law digest Courthouse News. Richard Arline Jr., a longtime friend of Kelly’s, pled guilty to charges of bribery today, admitting that he offered one of Kelly’s alleged victims money to drop a claim against him. Arline was was of three men indicted last August on charges of extorting or intimidating victims of Kelly’s alleged sex ring. Arline entered his plea via video conference.
One of the victims, a woman who was 17 at the time Arline tried to pay her off to prevent her from coming forward with her sexual relationship with Kelly, recorded phone calls last May and June between herself and Arline. On the tapes, Arline is heard proposing to send the woman $500,000 in exchange for her ceasing cooperation with the authorities, with the woman rejecting his proposal and demanding $1 million within 24 hours. In one call, Arline requests the woman destroy evidence including iPads and video that could be used against Kelly.
In a short statement, Arline admitted, “I knew what I did was wrong, and I’m sorry.” He’s set to be sentenced in June. While there’s no mandatory minimum for federal bribery, the maximum sentence is 15 years. The two other men charged alongside him, Kelly’s manager Donnell Russell and Michael Williams, were charged with posting nude photographs of one victim to Facebook and YouTube and setting a rental SUV on fire after sending threats to other victims.
The 2020 NFL Draft featured a wide receiver class that has the potential to be historically good. No one is a better example of this than Cincinnati Bengals pass catcher Tee Higgins. Following a productive collegiate career at Clemson, Higgins declared for the Draft, and while a big-bodied receiver with sure hands and the ability to run crisp routes would normally hear his name called pretty quickly compared to the rest of his class, Higgins went with the first pick of the second round, the seventh receiver to go in the Draft.
He managed to have a better rookie year than most of the names called ahead of him. Higgins reeled in 67 balls for 908 yards and five touchdowns for the Bengals this season, leading his team in yards and touchdowns and sitting second only to Tyler Boyd in receptions. The future looks bright in Cincinnati with Heisman winner Joe Burrow under center, and it’s not hard to imagine a scenario where Higgins turns into his favorite target.
On Wednesday, Uproxx Sports caught up with Higgins to discuss the Super Bowl, his rookie year, The Office, and more.
What are you most looking forward to on Sunday?
I think I have the Chiefs winning.
Really? Why the Chiefs?
I mean, Pat and this offense has been hot. They’re lethal right now. And you got guys like Tyreek, you got guys like Mecole, Sammy, Le’Veon, Clyde. They’re deep, and the way they attack, the way their offense … they’ve been unstoppable this season.
I’m glad you said that because I want to ask you about the pass catchers in this game. As a receiver, it has to be fun knowing you’re going to be tuning in to watch guys on both teams who are almost guaranteed to make something happen, right?
Yeah, yeah.
Of the number of guys, who do you like watching the most and why?
I like watching all these guys, but the guy I watch the most is definitely Mike Evans. He’s a big guy like me, and I really see how he goes about and how he plays his game and the way he attacks the ball in the air. So, that’s one guy that I’m really excited to watch.
You just had a fantastic rookie season, I know you just kind of touched on this, but what can you take from a guy like Mike and apply it to your game going forward?
The way he comes off press against the DB, the way he attacks the ball, runs his routes versus certain coverages and stuff like that.
Let’s talk about your rookie year, where were you happy with how you performed and what do you plan on focusing on this offseason?
I was happy with how I performed this season. My physical side of the game is one thing I’m definitely focused on this offseason.
You got to spend this year around one of the best to do it in A.J. Green, what was the biggest thing you learned being around someone like him every day?
Just how he goes about his self everyday. How he takes it so serious, how he takes care of his body. There’s things that I learned and things that I’ll definitely use during my career in the NFL.
You’re a fascinating guy because you, over the last two years, caught passes from two of the best quarterbacks I’ve ever seen in Trevor [Lawrence] and Joe. Where are the areas, on and off the field, where they’re the most similar?
I’d say on the field, they’re both really focused, really take their game to the next level. Off the field, they’re both locked in when they’re watching film on the opponent. So I feel like those are the two areas where they really can compare.
What do you have going on with Panini?
I’m here doing a Panini event. They’ve been treating me well, these guys are unbelievable and just being able to see my face on a card has been a dream come true.
I know you’re new to the NFL, but you’ve played a ton of football over the years. Is there one moment from your career you want to be on a trading card?
My first 100-yard game, it was against the Colts. That definitely would be a big moment.
You keep the ball from that game or anything like that?
I actually didn’t keep that ball, but my first touchdown against the Eagles, I kept that ball.
Two final questions: I know you can really hoop, and I know you were the Mr. Tennessee basketball runner-up back in the day. Have you played with the rest of the Bengals and are you the best basketball player on the team?
I haven’t played with them yet because of COVID protocols, but I’m really looking forward to it. As of now, I think I am the best player on the team.
Last one, you asked for Netflix recommendations on Twitter recently and made clear that you don’t like The Office. I’m also not someone who’s big into The Office, why are you not a big fan of it?
After being arrested for his clear and heavily photographed participation in the attack on the U.S. Capitol building, Jacob Angeli Chansley (a.k.a. the “QAnon Shaman“) has reportedly lost over 20 pounds while refusing to eat the food at a Washington, D.C. prison because it’s not organic. His lawyer claims Chansley hasn’t eaten for a week and filed an emergency motion in federal court on Wednesday demanding that Chansley be served only organic food in accordance with his “religious beliefs” or be immediately released. Via The Hill:
“Based on Mr. Jacob Chansley’s shamanic belief system and way of life, non-organic food, which contains unnatural chemicals, would act as an ‘object intrusion’ onto his body and cause serious illness if he were to eat it,” attorney Albert Watkins wrote.
Watkins told the court that he has had no success persuading D.C. corrections officials to provide his client with organic food.
If this story sounds familiar, it’s because Chansley made a similar demand for organic food when he was first arrested in his home state of Arizona less than a week after the Capitol riot. A judge ultimately granted his request and ordered the state to conform to the QAnon Shaman’s diet. Since then, Chansley has been transferred to the Washington, D.C. facility, where he’s getting exactly what he wants again.
On Wednesday afternoon, a federal judge has reportedly ordered that D.C. facility must serve Chansley food that is labeled “USDA organic.” According to Vice, the judge was convinced by Chansley’s lawyer claims that his client’s “shamanistic belief system” is a sincere religion. So, he’s 2-0 on this request.
Does Bliss take place in some quasi-futuristic alternate dimension or in the contemporary world? This is the central question of the film, if not for ourselves. Coming to Amazon Prime February 5th from writer-director Mike Cahill, Bliss stars Owen Wilson and Salma Hayek as a couple who have either discovered the portal to a telekinetic utopia or are circling an increasingly hallucinogenic drain. It’s an exquisite mindfuck that manages to synthesize every fantasy of Elon Musk-style techno futurism into a story about… well, if I told you exactly what it was about, it might spoil the ending.
We open on Greg, played by Owen Wilson, who works at an odd little firm called Technical Difficulties, which feels straight out of Her or a Charlie Kaufman script, where dutiful workers spend all day answering phones and saying variations on the same script: “I’m sorry to hear you’re having technical difficulties…”
We meet him just as he’s clearly about to be fired, on account of he’s been spending his days staring out the window, making detailed drawings of the dream house he sees in his recurrent fantasies instead of answering the phone and apologizing to strangers. He gets a temporary reprieve and heads to a bar across the street where he meets Isabel (Salma Hayek), who seems to be telekinetic. “My powers don’t work on you; you’re a real person,” she tells Greg in surprise, while dimming lights with her fingers and moving other patrons around like chess pieces on a touch screen.
We spend basically the entirety of the rest of the movie living in Greg’s red pill/blue pill moment, on whether to believe that there is some utopian future from whence Isabel came and that this dingy, polluted, graffiti-covered late-capitalist jungle world where Greg’s children still live is just a simulation, or whether it’s the utopia itself that’s a figment of his mind.
The beauty of Bliss isn’t so much the answer to this question, but the way Cahill manages to weave in basically every Silicon Valley vision of glorious future. Automation, asteroid mining, and gene replacement basically end suffering as we know it, and reality, the shitty one, actually might be a simulation, just like Elon says. Of course! Finally an answer to why a just God would allow such suffering and why my back always hurts.
Bliss‘s “cool future world” feels like an obvious parody of tech utopianism, but strange doings are also afoot in shitty dystopia. Things appear and disappear, Greg’s co-workers seem both predatory and cult-like, and their business model is something out of Kafka or Catch 22. They compete with workers in India and China to be the best at reading rote corporate apologies.
Greg’s competing visions of reality are reflections of how we see our own. Are good times just a few tweaks away, or are we on a fast-track to total entropy? It wouldn’t be so easy for Greg to believe that there’s a “real” world out there somewhere in which smart people have solved things like pollution, homelessness, and mass inequality if his regular world didn’t seem so capricious and shitty.
Cahill is so effective at blurring the lines and making both “realities” feel equally plausible that it’s hard not to feel your own reality attenuating as you watch it. Owen Wilson and Salma Hayek, something of an odd couple on paper, are also perfectly cast. Who better than Owen Wilson to play a guy who’s alternately disheveled and sort of losing it; and contented by his worry-free life of endless leisure? Who better than Salma Hayek to play a woman who is either Owen Wilson’s tragic pseudo-homeless siren, or his ground-breaking co-guinea pig in building a glorious future? Certainly, Isabel is intended as Greg’s Eve, but at this point Bible symbolism is the least interesting part of any decent story.
In the end, it all turns out to be a grand metaphor. It’s an elegant one, and it makes perfect sense (sorry to play coy, I’m trying not to ruin it for you), but maybe that’s the problem. I’m sure I’d be furious with a non-ending, but the way Bliss wraps up in a neat little bow also doesn’t feel quite right for a movie that messes with your own sense of reality. Sometimes a metaphor turns out to be more interesting than the thing it was attempting to explain. That might be the best kind.
‘Bliss’ is available on Amazon Prime February 5th. Vince Mancini is onTwitter. You can access his archive of reviewshere.
Welcome to SNX DLX! This week we’ve hit a bit of a lull, as the big sneaker brands hold back for their special Valentine’s Day weekend drops next week. But if pink and red colorways aren’t your thing, you’ll find plenty this week that will satiate your appetite for sneakers.
This week, Adidas delivers two collaborative collections, and Nike drops some great colorways of the Air Jordan 5 and high top Dunk — the latter via a hyped-up collaboration with AMBUSH. Adidas is also dropping a pretty sick Setsubun inspired ZX pack that is definitely worth your time but just missed out on nabbing that top-five spot on our list.
On the apparel end, we’ve got new drops from TOMBOGO, Rip N Repair, and a Brain Dead x NTS linkup that should have you all geared up for the late winter/ early spring season. Let’s dive in!
Adidas AriZona Iced Tea Superstar Pack
Adidas
AriZona — yes, the iced tea brand — is building up quite the roster of dope sneakers with Adidas. Joining the Continental 80, Yung-1, and Vulc silhouettes, AriZona is now taking a crack at the Superstar, bringing their iconic can designs to this classic Adidas shoe.
The full pack consists of four colorways, including the beloved cherry-blossom design from their Honey Green Tea.
The Adidas ARIZONA Superstars are set to drop on February 4th for a retail price of $100. Pick up a pair at Adidas.
AdidasAdidasAdidas
AMBUSH x Nike Dunk High Cosmic Fuchsia
Nike
If you don’t already have Japanese streetwear label AMBUSH on your radar, remedy that immediately. Dropping in a fresh Fuchsia colorway, this Dunk High designed by AMBUSH founder Yoon Ahn reimagines the shape of the classic basketball silhouette and adds some depth to the upper’s paneling and swoosh. The results are a design that feels like it’s jumping out of us — this Dunk’s got movement!
Truly next level design work here, easily an early highlight of the year.
The AMBUSH x Nike Dunk High Cosmic Fuchsia is set to drop on February 4th for a retail price of $180. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.
NikeNike
Pharrell x Adidas NMD Hu Cream
Adidas
Admittedly, Pharrell doesn’t get a lot of love from us here at SNX. There is often something Dr. Seussian about his sneaker designs — and not in a good way — but this Cream iteration of the NMD Hu is just speaking to us right now for whatever reason. This design is just so damn clean, with a knitted ribbed upper on a BOOST midsole with tasteful pink and blue accents.
The Pharrell x Adidas NMD Hu Cream is set to drop on February 5th for a retail price of $220. Pick up a pair via the Adidas CONFIRMED app or at Billionaire Boys Club.
Adidas
New Balance 237
New Balance
New Balance always looks their best when they’re kept simple. The 237 is a solid, ‘70s runner design, it doesn’t get much simpler than that, but NB went ahead and added some flash with a color-block colorway of red, green, blue, white, and tan, using primary colors to do all the heavy lifting with this design.
It’s fun without being too out there. We love it!
The New Balance 237 is set to drop on February 6th for a retail price of $85. Pick up a pair at the New Balance webstore.
New Balance
Air Jordan 5 Anthracite
Nike
This moody iteration of the AJ 5 features reflective material across the tongue and quarter panel and sports a mixed suede, leather, textile, and translucent upper. The look has a deeply industrial vibe to it, this is definitely the most post-apocalyptic a pair of Jordans has ever looked.
The Air Jordan 5 Anthracite is set to drop on February 6th for a retail price of $190. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app or select Nike retailers like Foot Locker.
Nike
Rip N Repair Exotic Imports Collection
Los Angeles label Rip N Repair has just dropped Delivery 1 of their SS21 collection, dubbed “Exotic Imports.” The collection features street racing-inspired streetwear essentials including heavyweight hoodies, t-shirts, long sleeves, and crewnecks with race car graphics. Highlights of the collection include the Kim’s Autobody graphic which is shared amongst the t-shirts, crewnecks, and long sleeves.
The Rip N Repair Exotic Imports Collection is out now. Shop the collection at the Rip N Repair webstore.
TOMBOGO Comfort Zone
TOMBOGO
If you’re still deep into cozy winter vibes, you’re going to want to scoop up TOMBOGO’s latest collection. Dubbed Comfort Zone, this collection has all the fleece you could ever want, on jackets, pants, bucket hats, pants that turn into cargo shorts, you name it!
Comfort Zone takes 2020’s quarantine as a direct inspiration with this collection of ultra-cozy fits, which look ideal for winter mornings at the campground. When someone makes a movie about the pandemic, the most fashionable characters will be rocking TOMBOGO.
TOMBOGO’s Comfort Zone collection is out now at the TOMBOGO webstore.
TombogoTombogo
NTS x Brain Dead Collection
Brain Dead
NTS and Brain Dead are linking up for yet another capsule collection, this time consisting of spring streetwear essentials like pants, hoodies, long-sleeves, and t-shirts. The fits are clean and simple here, utilizing Brain Dead and NTS branding via minimalist graphics and understated colorways.
The Collection also features a translucent grey Nalgene with dual branding, which is pretty dope. That bottle plus some TOMBOGO fleece and we just put together your next winter cabin fit.
Gucci Mane has always had an ear for talent, from shepherding the early careers of Atlanta trap fixtures like Waka Flocka Flame and OJ Da Juiceman to lending his co-sign to some of hip-hop’s biggest talents, including 2 Chainz, Migos, Mulatto, and Nicki Minaj. He bet big on this ability last year, signing a new label deal with Atlantic Records to launch The New 1017, a label venture providing a home for his new signees, Foogiano, Ola Runt, and Pooh Shiesty.
The latter is ready now to strike out on his own after several star turns on the group’s debut compilation, So Icy Summer, putting out a video for “Guard Up” last month teasing more to come. Today, he shared the tracklist for his debut mixtape, Shiesty Season, as well as a new song, “Neighbors” featuring Big30. The Memphis native offers up his take on the trap rap staples of choppers, racks, and work, boasting that he keeps his gun closer than a neighbor and threatening anyone “talking gangster on the net.”
Appearing on Zane Lowe’s Apple Music Radio show to premiere the new song, Shiesty notified fans what to expect from the debut. “You getting big Shiest on this mixtape,” he said. “I’m touching on all categories. Expect me getting versatile. It’s lit. You can expect some big features, shooting a video to every song on there. We’re going all the way up.” Of signing to Gucci’s label, he mused, “He put me on game about everything, tighten me up on every category. He got my work done. He got me being able to record done…showed me a couple things. He just go. He done been through everything, so he know.”
Listen to “Neighbors” above.
Shiesty Season is out this Friday, 2/5 via Atlantic Records. Get it here.
Pooh Shiesty is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
The Kansas City Chiefs will not depart for Tampa until Saturday, opting to remain at home to prepare during Super Bowl week given the lack of on-site demands due to COVID-19 protocols.
The Chiefs already knew they’d be without the services of star left tackle Eric Fischer for the Super Bowl after he suffered an Achilles injury in the AFC title game, but two more players, receiver DeMarcus Robinson and backup center Daniel Kilgore, are in the league’s health and safety protocols currently due to contact tracing stemming from a barber the team brought in who tested positive.
The #Chiefs have placed C Daniel Kilgore and WR Demarcus Robinson on the COVID-19 reserve list, but neither player is a positive case, source said. If they keep testing negative, both should play in the Super Bowl.
A barber’s positive COVID test has sidelined two #Chiefs players from practice leading up to Super Bowl LV — and other players who were waiting in line for haircuts Sunday ended up with a close shave. https://t.co/hnR56PEZMm
The barber had apparently tested negative for five straight days but an inconclusive test from a close contact required a day of test to be cleared. For some reason, he was allowed to get one and a half cuts in before that test came back, with a positive result, and he was pulled while cutting Kilgore’s hair, as the Chiefs very well dodged a major incident with 20 players, including Patrick Mahomes, scheduled to get a cut from him that day.
Chiefs’ C Daniel Kilgore was mid haircut when the barber was notified that he was Covid positive. Kilgore and the barber both were wearing masks. Kilgore has to stay home this week, but has tested negative and can return Saturday, fly with the team and play Sunday, per source. https://t.co/oWfjJX1qIr
It is a reminder that negative tests do not automatically mean a person will stay negative, and one would’ve thought we would have learned by now that you at least need to wait for that day’s test to come back, no matter what previous tests have shown, before you let someone into the facility. For now, Robinson and Kilgore have been testing negative and should that continue all week, they would be able to play. That will hopefully continue to happen and, of lesser importance but still, to him, probably important, hopefully Kilgore has been able to get that half of a haircut fixed. He at least has a good sense of humor about the situation.
Eel River/Patagonia/Fremont/Allagash/istock/Uproxx
Over the past decade, the word “organic” has become the single most powerful identifier in the entire food and beverage universe. While words like “natural” and “healthy” are murky and therefore susceptible to greenwashing, “organic” actually comes with USDA certification. Meaning that if you see it on a label, you know that the ingredients used were grown without chemically/artificially derived pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers (there’s a whole host of other standards, too).
While the organic food movement is more than a decade old (much older in certain parts of the country), the drinks sector is just getting in on the movement. Right now, organic beer and spirits are both booming — with more entries popping up on grocery store shelves and the big brands racing to create organic beverage production facilities around the nation.
Allagash collaborated with GrandyOats to brew this organic Belgian-style ale. It was made using organic oats, buckwheat, base malt, hops, and GrandyOats organic granola.
Tasting Notes:
This Belgian-style ale has a great banana-like yeast flavor that reminds us of a good Saison. It’s effervescent, sweet, and has a nice hoppy, floral backbone.
Bottom Line:
The folks at Allagash know beer. If they’re looking for a unique take on the organic beer, fans of the Maine brewery should grab a few cans of this offering.
Few breweries make organic beers better than Peak Organic. One of the brand’s best brews is Super Fresh. This dry-hopped pilsner lives up to its name with fresh, thirst-quenching, ripe citrus flavors.
Tasting Notes:
This beer is big, bold, and filled with flavor. What begins as a light, refreshing pilsner is ramped up with the addition of citrus and piney dry hops. It’s juicy, sweet, and filled with tropical fruit notes.
Bottom Line:
Peak Organic has been making organic beers for years and you honestly can’t go wrong with anything they put out. If you want a beer bursting with fresh, citrus flavor, this is a winner.
Belgian beer fans know all about Saison Dupont. If you’re looking for an organic alternative, we suggest Dupont Foret Organic Saison. This 100% certified organic beer is made using hops, barley, and filtered well water before being bottle conditioned.
Tasting Notes:
When it comes to Belgian Saisons, this offering from Dupont should be at the top of the list. It’s fresh, bright, dry, and filled with notes of yeast, cloves, and bananas, with just a hint of peppery spice.
Bottom Line:
If you’re looking for a change of pace from your usual organic IPAs and pale ales, grab a bottle of this exceptional offering from Dupont.
In the beer community, Fremont is a big name. It’s known for its high-quality brews and Cowiche Canyon is no exception. This IPA was brewed with organic malts and Citra and Simcoe hops, giving it a nice malt backbone with a zesty, floral finish.
Tasting Notes:
This well-balanced beer starts with a nice, rich, malt presence that is tempered with fresh, citrusy, resinous, floral hops. It’s vibrant, sweet, and highly crushable.
Bottom Line:
Proving that there’s much more to Fremont than barrel-aged beers, Cowiche Canyon is bright, flavorful, and filled with citrus and tropical fruit flavors.
This highly coveted beer is a blend of different aged lambics. These lambics range in ages from one to three years. They’re aged in oak casks before being blended together to make Cantillon Gueuze.
Tasting Notes:
This isn’t a beer for everyone. It takes an advanced palate to embrace the dry, subtle fresh berry, and acidic flavors that are featured here. The taste also ends with a nice kick of wood.
Bottom Line:
Buy more than one bottle of Cantillon Gueuze. Crack one open and enjoy it now and put the other one in your cellar for extra bottle conditioning.
Anyone who spends time hiking or camping knows all about outdoor brand Patagonia. You might not know the company has an offshoot called Patagonia Provisions. It collaborated with Hopworks to create Long Root Ale made with organic barley, yeast, and hops. It also contains kernza grain (widely known as intermediate wheatgrass).
Tasting Notes:
This complex, fresh, thirst-quenching brew is full of piney, resinous hop notes, along with grapefruit, tangerine, and lime flavors. It all ends in a final kick of lemon and rye-reminiscent spice, thanks to the Kernza.
Bottom Line:
What better way to show your love for nature and the outdoors than to drink a beer brewed by one of the most well-known outdoor brands in the world? If you’re a Patagonia lover, this is a must-try.
Hill Farmstead Flora
Hill Farmstead
ABV: 5
Average Price: $33
The Beer:
This is the barrel-aged version of Hill Farmstead’s popular Florence. Made with Farmstead ale yeast, organic malted barley, and organic Vermont wheat. During production, this wheat ale is matured with the brewery’s proprietary microflora.
Tasting Notes:
This unique, barrel-aged wheat ale begins with flavors reminiscent of sparkling white wine but moves into notes of citrus zest, oak, sweet vanilla, and a nice, crisp, tart finish.
Bottom Line:
Good luck finding a bottle of this offering. If you do, you’ll likely have to pay a crazy amount of money. Your best bet to get this or one of the brewery’s other offerings is to take a trip to Vermont for a post-pandemic visit.
This is a German beer with USDA certification. Made in the 19th-century style, Pinkus Organic Ur-Pilsner is made using only organic hops and malts. It’s a simple production process in the traditional manner.
Tasting Notes:
This light, pale pilsner is crisp, dry, and extremely well-balanced. It’s full of fresh hops and rich malts. A highly drinkable, smooth, refreshing pilsner.
Bottom Line:
When you taste the clean, crisp flavor of Pinkus Organic Ur-Pilsner, you won’t want to go back to your mass-produced, chemically enhanced pilsners and lagers.
Getting away from the lighter beers on this list, this stout is perfect for the winter months. This organic chocolate stout is made with water from an ancient well, organic malted barley, cane sugar, yeast, hops, coca extract, and carbon dioxide.
Tasting Notes:
This classic, chocolate-filled stout begins with hints of creamy milk chocolate, roasted malts, bitter dark chocolate, and a subtle kick of sweet vanilla. Other flavors prevalent include buttery caramel and toasted marshmallows.
Bottom Line:
This is the perfect, rich, dessert-like organic warmer to enjoy during the chilly winter months. Pair it with some vanilla ice cream and you have the makings of a world-class ice cream float.
Eel River was America’s first-ever certified organic brewery. Its award-winning Organic IPA is made with organic malted barley and organic hops sourced from the Pacific Northwest.
Tasting Notes:
This IPA is a great combination of sweet and bitter. It starts with a nice, caramel malt flavor that melds into clean, crisp citrus, and piney hops.
Bottom Line:
This pick is light, refreshing, and perfect for people who usually turn away from overly bitter IPAs.
Fine Acre is Allagash’s first year-round organic brew. It also leans heavily on Maine-grown ingredients — spelt, oats, and Cascade hops — and follows the brand’s long-term commitment to local sourcing practices.
Tasting Notes:
This is a session beer in the truest sense — light flavors with a little maltiness upfront and the slightest dry-ish finish thanks to the hops. On the palate, you get a tiny bit of orange-sweet citrus, but most of all this just tastes like beer.
That’s actually a good thing — very clarified and classic “beer flavors” with organic ingredients and sustainable practices.
Bottom Line:
If you like classic Bud or Miller and want better sourcing and practicing, this is your beer.
Modern Family: All Seasons (Peacock and Hulu) — The enormously popular series that ran for eleven seasons left the airwaves in 2020 will now be available for streaming in its entirety. In addition, Peacock is adding curated collections, bonus content and more goodies to create a “fan experience,” This show has more Emmys than anyone could possibly count, so perhaps that exercise can be part of the bonus content? Do it.
Firefly Lane (Netflix series) — Katherine Heigl returns to TV with Sarah Chalke as co-star, as the duo portrays two women over three-to-four decades of best friendship. Expect laughs and sentimentality, all based upon the New York Times bestselling book of the same name, and a brunette Heigl.
Tacoma FD: Season 2 (HBO) — The Broken Lizard comedy troupe returns with this hit TruTV comedy series about a true mess of a firefighting group with outlandish exploits that rival that of Reno 911 and Super Troopers.
Riverdale (CW, 8:00pm) — The gang’s staring down Graduation Day and wondering what will come after, and Archie doesn’t even know if he’ll be walking the stage with his classmates.
Nancy Drew (CW, 8:00pm) — Tiffany’s corpse is being moved for a private autopsy, which sends Nancy on an extra risky mission.
Resident Alien (SyFy, 10:30pm) — Alan Tudyk (Firefly, Rogue One) is an alien. Alan plays Harry, an alien who crash-landed on Earth, who’s beginning his first week at the clinic to explore human emotion, which confuses the heck out of him. The show’s based upon the Dark Horse comic of the same name.
C.B. Strike (HBO, 10:00pm) — This series is adapted from the novels of Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling) and follows a London-based private detective who investigates the most complex cases with the help of his military training. This week, Robin’s truth hits near home, but both Robin and Strike suspect an accomplice after the pinpoint a prime suspect.
The Late Show With Stephen Colbert — Salma Hayek, Mark Harris
Jimmy Kimmel Live! — Magic Johnson, Jenny Slate, Ashnikko
The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon — Kelly Ripa, M. Night Shyamalan, Fireboy DML
The Late Late Show With James Corden — Kal Penn, Josh Groban.
Late Night With Seth Meyers — Amy Schumer, Thomas Middleditch, Matt Cameron
In case you missed these recent picks:
The Little Things (HBO Max film) — Three Oscar winners headline a film that’s mostly landing on streaming (there are few limited theaters in the mix), so thank goodness for the Internet during pandemic times. The movie stars Denzel Washington and Rami Malek as police officers hunting a 1990s-era serial killer in Los Angeles. (Yep, Denzel is playing a cop again! You can’t hate on that.) Their prime suspect is portrayed by Jared Leto, and this is a tale of overarching obsession and secrets that are best left uncovered.
Penguin Bloom (Netflix film) — Naomi Watts (Samantha) and Andrew Lincoln (Cameron) star in this story about a family who holidays in Thailand when tragedy strikes. Sam falls off a rooftop and ends up paralyzed, which sends her lifelong outdoorswoman status flailing. She falls into a depression that makes her question her whole identity, and when her children bring home wounded baby bird (that they call “Penguin”), the process of healing and hope begins for both bird and human family.
