It was a beautiful day for afternoon baseball in Wrigley Field, and for seven innings, the fans in attendance witnessed a pitcher attempting to make history. Chicago Cubs starter Drew Smyly was perfect through seven against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and thanks to the Cubs’ bats coming to life and giving him a 13-0 lead entering the eighth inning, all eyes were on whether or not Smyly could throw the 24th perfect game in Major League history.
Up to the plate to lead off the top of the eighth was David Peralta, who came in as a defensive substitution in the previous half inning. Smyly had him looking at the first pitch for a strike, and then, Peralta meekly swung at a pitch outside of the zone on the second pitch of the at-bat. It was a soft liner down the third base line, and Smyly or his catcher, Yan Gomes, had a chance to get to it and try to make a play.
The issue: the communication between the two was just a bit off, so while Smyly got their first, Gomes got there about a quarter second later. He tried to get out of the way, but instead, he just jumped on Smyly’s back, which let Peralta get to first.
It’s an unfortunate twist for Smyly, who got two outs in the inning before his day ended. Major League Baseball has not seen a perfect game since 2012.
John Mulaney will return with his third Netflix special, titled Baby J, next week, though it will be a different type of comedy show than his fans are used to. Mulaney last took the stage in 2018’s Kid Gorgeous, and since then he has gone through a drug relapse, a stint in rehab, a breakup, and (on the upside of things) he also welcomed a baby with Olivia Munn. So there is a lot riding on this upcoming show.
While speaking with Theo Von on This Past Weekend,Mulaney admitted that the latest special is a lot more personal than his past stand-up shows. The comedian managed to attract a very wholesome reputation (you may recall when he wrote an entire sketch about Subway churros) before his time in rehab, and he even admitted that he tried to bring up his struggle with addiction in the past, but didn’t feel like his fans would want to hear it. He explained, “Of course, the guy who seems like he has it all together has the problem,” Mulaney said of his “good guy” persona. “Because that’s just, like, how life works.” This is the same man who wrote a bizarre musical for children, so bringing up his drug use might have been a little jarring for viewers.
Now, Mulaney is embracing that side of himself. It is his special, after all. “This special I’ve got coming out is about everything from intervention through rehab and after,” the comedian, who used to be extremely private, explained. “So at the moment, or in the past two years, I haven’t wondered what I’m gonna talk about on stage. But now having shot this thing and, you know, and I’m really, really happy with it and it’s longer than my other specials and I’m thrilled that it’s longer. This was the time to do this chunk of material.”
Even though Mulaney is excited about his next phase, he doesn’t know where his material will come from in the future. “Now I don’t remember how to do comedy.” He can always go the “cool dad” route by making fun of his toddler on stage. That always lands!
Donald Trump‘s latest attack on Ron DeSantis has apparently left conservative commentator Ben Shapiro stunned at the former president’s choice of tactics. While appearing on the Full Send podcast, Trump reportedly trashed DeSantis for his COVID response, which is an odd approach to take given most MAGA supporters were actually against mitigation measures like masking, lockdowns, and even the vaccine.
“I’m putting out the Covid numbers, he didn’t do well on Covid. He had more deaths than almost every country in Florida. I hate to say it cause Florida’s my state, but he did not do well,” Trump said. “It’s really, it’s very interesting, I don’t wanna knock anybody, but the thing he did well on was public relations, because the numbers weren’t what they pretended to be.”
Shapiro immediately mounted a defense of DeSantis. “That is a lie,” The Daily Wire founder said via Mediaite. “The numbers are exactly what he said they were.”
Shapiro then accused Trump of attacking the Florida governor from the left before questioning where Trump now stands on COVID policies and whether it’s in line with Republican voters.
“Presumably this means that he would’ve been in favor of lockdowns because Ron DeSantis was not in favor of lockdowns,” Shapiro said. “Presumably this would be mean that he would be in favor of vax mandates because Ron DeSantis was not in favor of vax mandates. Presumably this would mean that Trump is in favor of mask mandates cause DeSantis was not in favor of mask mandates.”
However, despite questioning whether Trump will uphold “conservative values,” Shapiro ended the segment by noting he would still vote the former president.
Mythic Quest stunned fans with its decision to give actor F. Murray Abraham the boot over a year ago but recently the world learned more about the behind-the-scenes drama that led to Abraham’s ousting.
According to a recent Rolling Stone report, The White Lotus star was fired from the Apple TV+ series after two sexual misconduct allegations. After the first complaint, producers warned Abraham to stay away from some of the show’s actresses. The second complaint of alleged misconduct was brought to creator Rob McElhenney, who then had the actor written out of the upcoming season. Though none of the cast or crew have elaborated further on Abraham’s behavior and the uncomfortable environment it created on set, the Oscar winner has now come forward to issue an apology for his action.
In a statement released to People, Entertainment Weekly, and a few other outlets, Abraham offered an apology and claimed that his offending behavior involved off-color humor and not anything more than that.
“This is a sincere and deeply felt apology. Though never my intention to offend anyone, I told jokes, nothing more, that upset some of my colleagues and as a result, lost a great job with wonderful people. I have grown in my understanding from this experience, and I hope they will forgive me.”
Murray bounced back from the firing with a role on season two of HBO’s The White Lotus where he played Bert Di Grasso, a problematic vacationing patriarch whose sexist attitudes caused conflict within his own family. Murray, along with the rest of the cast, received a SAG award earlier this year for his work on the show.
At this point, we’ve tried just about every soda flavor out there. We ranked colas, juicy and sweet cherry sodas, miscellaneous fruit sodas, from orange to strawberry to lemon-lime, and complex root beers. We’ve even hit up mineral waters and seltzers! If it’s fizzy, it’s safe to say that we’ve tried it — which brings us to our last and final big blind soda taste test (for now!)…
Ginger Beer. Not ginger ale, we’re talking about just the good stuff. If you’re not aware of the difference, you’re missing out. Ginger ale is fine — it’s carbonated water, a lot of sugar, and some ginger flavoring (usually artificial). We’re not dunking on it, but ginger beer is another world entirely. The flavor is bolder, spicier, and more crafted. It can turn your Moscow Mule from a sweet and sugary mess to something complex and biting. Despite its name, it’s non-alcoholic, but the good stuff is still brewed. Meaning there’s a level of skill behind a good ginger beer which makes taste-testing it a whole lot of fun.
So we picked up all the ginger beers we could find and put them to the blind taste test in search of the very best brew. Let’s drink!
PART I — Methodology
For this blind taste test, I collected every bottle and can of ginger beer from Trader Joe’s, Bev Mo, and Total Wine I could find.
Here is our tasting class:
Barritt’s Ginger Beer
Betty Buzz Ginger Beer
Bundaberg Ginger Beer
Cock ’n Bull Ginger Beer
Devil’s Foot Ginger Beer
Devil’s Foot Ginger Beer Fuego
Devil’s Foot Ginger Beer Ghost
Fever Tree Blood Orange Ginger Beer
Fever Tree Ginger Beer
Goslings Ginger Beer
Reeds Extra Ginger Beer
Stoli Ginger Beer
Trader Joe’s Ginger Beer
Q Mixers Ginger Beer
I had a glass of each poured for me out of sight and made note of each one’s flavors. Ginger beer has a lot of variation, due to each brand’s preparation process — so each glass was markedly different.
A Small Caveat…
Keep this in mind — some ginger beers are meant to be mixed but not all of these ginger beers fall into that category. That probably means that the sweeter stuff is going to rank better, but pay special attention to our bottom line during the ranking portion of this article to get the clearest picture of what each bottle offers.
Here are the initial tasting notes.
Part 1: The Tasting
Taste 1:
Dane Rivera
An initial cane sugar sweetness hits the palate with a floral ginger flavor and a strong spice that attacks the back of the throat. It’s a bit dry, but very enjoyable and bold tasting with a refreshing fizzy body.
Taste 2:
Dane Rivera
The ginger is very fragrant on the nose, this one comes across as a lot sweeter than Taste 1. I’m tasting a bit of agave, cardamon, and warm earthy notes. The finish is light and crisp.
Taste 3:
Dane Rivera
After the first two, this one tastes incredibly tame in terms of sweetness. It has a very fragrant ginger scent on the nose and the flavor is rich and spicy. It tastes noticeably natural but doesn’t move into any other flavor but ginger. That can be a good or bad thing depending on what you’re looking for.
Taste 4:
Dane Rivera
Pungent and sour on the nose. That sourness translates to the flavor, it is almost wince-inducing. At the finish is a bit of cinnamon but not enough to cover up that horrible sour note. This is the bottom of the bottom.
Taste 5:
Dane Rivera
Not sweet at all, but that’s not a bad thing. I’m tasting floral notes, a twist of lime, and a body dominated by ginger. The finish is a bit bitter.
Taste 6:
Dane Rivera
Bright and lemony. If I didn’t know this was a ginger beer taste test, I don’t know that I’d clock this as ginger beer. This is a slight ginger flavor at the backend, but this mostly tastes like some sort of lemonade gone wrong.
Taste 7:
Dane Rivera
Very dark and distinct. There is a nice richness to this that I really enjoy. The dominant notes here are ginger and brown sugar with a woody finish.
Taste 8:
Dane Rivera
Very very fizzy. It almost has a Coca-Cola-like bite. Sweet and gingery with a hint of cinnamon and a light body.
Taste 9:
Dane Rivera
Very blunt on the nose, it almost smells like chili peppers. One whiff of this stuff made me sneeze. Is that a good thing? Not sure. It’s very spicy, but not in the way ginger is normally spicy — this is legit spicy like a pepper.
It has that earthy dry flavor that chili peppers have, I don’t think it tastes great on its own but it can really work in a cocktail. I think that must be what it’s for.
Taste 10:
Dane Rivera
Light and bright ginger notes with a juicy finish. It tastes almost like some sort of grapefruit juice but with that subtle ginger bite lurking at the finish.
Taste 11:
Dane Rivera
Very natural ginger flavor. It’s not sweet at all. Great flavor though, it tastes like someone juiced a ginger root into a vat of club soda.
Taste 12:
Dane Rivera
Dark and juicy, it creates a wet sensation on the palate. I’m tasting a hint of cardamom with a spicy finish that lingers on the tongue.
Taste 13:
Dane Rivera
Very spicy and fragrant. It ends with a sort of citrusy sour lemon and lime finish. I think this must be what Taste 4 was going for, but it actually works here.
Taste 14:
Dane Rivera
Very rich. The flavor evolves, hitting you first with ginger notes before settling into a brown sugar finish with a hint of clove. This one is almost malty, with a nice balance between sweetness and spice. I guess we saved the best for last because this is my favorite by a significant amount.
Goslings is one of the only brands of ginger beer that touts awards it has won (Gold Medal at the BTI International Review of Spirits and 91 points at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge) but I found it to be easily the worst of the bunch. There is simply too much tang here. I don’t know if I got a bad bottle or if years of blind-tasting sodas has permanently fried my taste buds, but this one wasn’t for me.
Maybe it’s geared for use as a mixer and isn’t supposed to be tasted straight.
The Bottom Line:
If you like your ginger beer sour and tangy, this brand might be for you.
Generally, I’m a big fan of Betty Buzz, it’s my go-to brand for grapefruit juice when I’m making a Paloma, but this one just didn’t hit with me. At the end of the day, it just doesn’t really taste like ginger beer to me, or ginger at all. The lemon notes were way too prominent here.
The Bottom Line:
It doesn’t taste like ginger, it tastes like unsweetened lemonade.
Devil’s Foot pride itself on using natural ingredients, and this tastes like ginger with a hint of citrus and floral honey sweetness with some heat on the backend. That absolutely works in a cocktail but I don’t know that I love it straight on its own.
I like Devil’s Foot Ginger Beer a touch more than the Fuego version. There is no heat here and that allows me to focus on the ginger root flavor with more prominent floral honey notes.
The Bottom Line:
An ideal mixer if you’re looking for natural ginger notes to add complexity to a drink.
This tastes a bit more like grapefruit juice to me than blood orange. It adds a bitterness to the flavor you expect from ginger beer and a nice juicy finish. To make this Fever Tree adds real Italian-grown blood oranges into a ginger beer made from ginger from the Ivory Coast, Nigeria, and Cochin, India. It relies on fruit sugar in place of cane sugar and is specifically created to be a mixer, but I think it tastes pretty damn good on its own.
The Bottom Line:
Juicy, natural, and tasty enough to drink on its own. A unique flavor in the world of ginger beers.
Devil’s Foot has a lot of ginger beer variations, but this one was far and above my favorite. Ghost takes Devil’s Foot Fuego Ginger Beer and infuses it with Scotch Bonnet Peppers, creating a ginger beer with a whole lot of heat. On its own, I won’t lie, I don’t like drinking it straight, but as soon as I had a taste it unlocked all these ideas in my head for complex cocktails.
The Bottom Line:
Devil’s Foot Ghost needs to be stocked in everyone’s bar cart as a secret weapon for complex and delicious cocktails.
Reed’s has several different ginger beer flavors out there but I’m willing to bet this is the most popular of the three since it was the only one I could find at all three stores. The ‘Extra’ sports two times the amount of ginger beer than the original flavor and utilizes a Jamaican-inspired recipe that combines real ginger root, natural fruit juices, honey, and spices.
The Bottom Line:
Sweet, tangy, and a bit spicy. Reed’s is great on its own or mixed in a drink.
Q Mixers Ginger Beer mixes real ginger, organic agave, chili peppers, and carbonation into a spicy soda that is explicitly made to be used as a mixer only. At least that’s what the website says, we think it tastes pretty damn good on its own!
The Bottom Line:
Spicy, sweet, and floral, Q Mixers is an ideal mixing ginger beer that dares to be delicious drunk straight.
Hailing from the house of Stolichnaya (but actually manufactured in the US) Stoli’s ginger beer is basic, in a good way. This just tastes like very good ginger beer, it doesn’t have any extra special ingredients that try and take it to elevate it to a new place, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes you just want something that tastes like ginger, this fits the bill.
The Bottom Line:
A delicious straight sweet ginger beer with no distracting bells and whistles. It has a classic flavor to it.
Barritt’s touts itself as the Caribbean’s most beloved ginger beer and considering it’s one of the few brands that proudly proclaims it is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup, it’s easy to see why. This ginger beer is soda sweet, but I’d be lying if I said it didn’t taste good because of that.
It’s delicious! But just be warned, you’re basically drinking straight-up soda with stuff. It might as well be ginger ale.
The Bottom Line:
A sweet sugary ginger beer that should probably be reclassified as a ginger ale.
Balance. That’s what Trader Joe’s was going for here and it works. This is the sort of ginger beer that pleases everyone, whether you’re looking for the sweet stuff or the more natural. It has a ginger bite mixed with some sweet cane sugar notes and a zesty citrus finish. No complaints here, this stuff tastes great straight.
The Bottom Line:
Sweet, natural, and citrusy, with a mild fizzy body.
To many, the name “Cock n’ Bull” is just a name, but to this Southern California boy, Cock n Bull will always make me think of the former Hollywood restaurant it was named for. This is the stuff that used to be served in house and if you like your ginger beer spicy and biting, this stuff is near perfect. It’s made with carbonated water, cane sugar, and natural flavors. Notice I didn’t say ginger…
Is this a ginger ale and not a real ginger beer? I think so, but dammit if it isn’t delicious.
The Bottom Line:
Strong, spicy, and very sweet. It’s probably actually a ginger ale, be warned.
As much as I liked the blood orange version of Fever Tree’s ginger beer, I have to give it to the original. It uses the same blend of ginger from the Ivory Coast, Nigeria, and Cochin offering a flavor that is dominated by spicy, full-bodied ginger. The faintest hint of sugar pulls it all together.
The Bottom Line:
Fever Tree is the perfect ginger beer for those looking for a distinct and flavorful mixer and it tastes great on its own without even trying. At just 80 calories per serving this ginger beer is that rare low-sugar variety that still tastes amazing.
Bundaberg is made from Australian-grown ginger from the brand’s own farm that is dried and ground before being combined with ginger wort, Queensland cane sugar and water, then fermented with yeast, and matured for three days in barrels before being mixed with carbonated water.
I’m not sure if it’s those three days of aging, but this is far and above the best ginger beer I tasted today.
The Bottom Line:
Sweet, distinct, spicy, and rich. Bundaberg offers a journey of flavors that offers something new with every sip. It is the ideal ginger beer for drinking straight or mixing in cocktails, offering a spicy natural flavor that rings in the back of the throat, and enough sweetness to make it a joy to slow sip.
Buzzing teenage rapper Luh Tyler has been getting more and more attention lately. With his debut mixtape My Vision out now (along with its deluxe version My Vision: Reloaded, he isn’t taking any time to rest on his laurels. Dropping a new song, “First Show,” he draws attention to his upcoming My Vision Tour, which kicks off on June 20 at The Echo in Los Angeles and includes performances at Rolling Loud in Germany, Miami, and Portugal, as well as Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash in Chicago.
“First Show” is short and simple, with Luh Tyler rapping straight through, boasting that he’s “snappin’ in this rap, just had to you know.” As the first new music since the release of his mixtape, “First Show” is an effective display of the young rapper’s appeal.
Check out “First Show” above and see the dates for the My Vision Tour below. You can get more info here.
6/20 -– Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
6/22 –- New York, NY @ Market Hotel
6/24 — Chicago, IL @ Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash
6/25 -– Dallas, TX @ HOB Cambridge Room
6/27 –- Durham, NC @ Motorco Music Hall
6/28 -– Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade – Purgatory
6/30 -– Orlando, FL @ The Social
7/1 — Tampa, FL @ Crowbar
7/5 — Portimao, Portugal @ Rolling Loud Portugal
7/7 –- Munich, Germany @ Rolling Loud Germany
7/11 –- London, UK @ Colours
7/22 –- Miami, FL @ Rolling Loud Miami
Editor’s Note: Upworthy earns a percentage of proceeds from sales of items listed in this article
We live in a disposable culture where products are cheap and abundant but not built to last. And in the short term, that’s great. But over the long haul, this wasteful mindset takes its toll, especially on the environment. However, a company called Kodiak Leather is trying to change that. As a family-run business, Kodiak Leather remains dedicated to crafting heirloom-quality bags for the modern world. Driven by a passion for people and leather, the brand offers products that embody the perfect blend of style, functionality, and timeless appeal. Each piece is handcrafted by skilled artisans from around the world, ensuring that you receive a treasure designed to last a lifetime and worthy of being passed down through generations.
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Autism is a disorder that is surrounded by stigma. Some families feel an unnecessary sense of shame for having an autistic child. People living with autism may feel socially ostracized because they relate to people in a different way. Children with autism are often bullied and have a difficult time making friends in school.
The stigma can also prevent people from being diagnosed with the disorder and getting the therapy they need.
Jen Coats of Long Beach, California, is well aware of the stigma surrounding autism, and that inspired her to make the world more accepting of children with the disorder. When her first son was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder at age two, she was pregnant with her second child and dealing with strong, challenging emotions. She cried when she heard the news, but her tears didn’t last long.
“A family member was with me that day, and she said, ‘No one needs to know.’ Right then and there, I stopped crying, and my first experience with the ‘mama bear’ attitude kicked in,” she told Upworthy. “I knew from that moment that I would advocate for him and share our journey of autism.”
This immediate transformation inspired Coats to form an organization that cultivates an attitude of kindness surrounding autism and celebrates all children’s differences.
In 2016, Coats and a group of parents created the LBC Hero Squad to create the first-ever Autism Awareness Week program at her children’s school, Cubberely K-8. The Hero Squad’s successful event inspired other schools in the area to do the same to join the celebration of neurodiversity.
She named the group the Hero Squad because she believes that children with autism and their parents are heroic.
“My son is my hero. We named our nonprofit the LBC Hero Squad because his favorite Avenger is Captain America,” Coats told Upworthy. “We believe that people with autism are heroic because they are honest and true to themselves. They have gifts and talents that surpass any superhero. We also think the parents are superheroes. Being a parent is hard work, but being a parent with a neurodiverse child takes a lot of patience, understanding and fighting for the right services and care.”
Coats and the Squad have expanded their efforts over the past six years to raise funds for students in special day and general education classes in Long Beach to participate in extracurricular activities. The Squad has also had multiple giveaways and organized social events for families of children with autism.
The Squad’s regular Autism Night Out events allow families of children with autism to eat out in a stigma-free environment. The dinners also allow families on the same journey to get to know one another and for their children to make friends.
Coats is most proud of the community the Hero Squad has helped create.
“It’s all about feeling proud of who they are, and families that are new to the diagnosis no longer feel alone,” Coats told Upworthy. “These families have support and resources and their kids are meeting new friends for the first time. It’s a community that is inviting, accepting and welcoming. “
The LBC Hero Squad is also pushing for Long Beach to become an Autism Certified City (ACC). Long Beach is home to over 450,000 people and is the second-largest city in Los Angeles County.
It’s all part of the greater goal of creating acceptance and understanding.
“Our goal is to create and organize community events and help other schools implement their own neurodiverse or acceptance day and to continue to collaborate with other nonprofits by creating a more inclusive and welcoming community for all,” Coats said.
Coats has some heartfelt advice for other parents who want to create accepting community organizations like the LBC Hero Squad.
“Once you find your village, start planning meet-ups and sharing your journey,” she said. “Make it a welcoming and safe space for parents and children to meet. Share stories and support one another. My favorite quote of all time is by DJ Dusk, ‘We are better together than alone.’”
Stock photos of any job are usually delightful cringey. Sure, sometimes they sort of get the essence of a job, but a lot of the time the interpretation is downright cartoonish. One glance and it becomes abundantly clear that for some careers, we have no freakin’ clue what it is that people do.
Dr. Kit Chapman, an award-winning science journalist and academic at Falmouth University in the U.K., recently held an impromptu contest on Twitter where viewers could vote on which photos were the best of the worst when it came to jobs in scientific fields.
According to Chapman’s entries, a day in the life of a scientist includes poking syringes into chickens, wearing a lab coat (unless you’re a “sexy” scientist, then you wear lingerie) and holding vials of colored liquid. Lots and lots of vials.
Of course, where each image is 100% inaccurate, they are 100% giggle inducing. Take a look below at some of the contenders.
Chapman’s unofficial photo competition received nearly 500,000 votes cast throughout four rounds. The grand prize winner was a photo of a female scientist holding a soldering iron (very much not in the right way) as she is “working” on some kind of electrical board.
It’s titled, “Hold My Soldering Iron.”
Time to vote for the worst science stock photos ever!
“I mean there’s the obvious thing that she’ll burn her hand, but nobody ever talks about how she’s ‘soldering’ the wrong side of the board,” one person quipped.
Of course, “Talk to Us, Dr. Chicken” was also popular.
Clearly using the scientific method to figure out why exactly Dr. Chicken crossed the road.
But not as popular as “Syringe Chicken,” where, for some reason, a scientist covered in a mask and safety goggles inspects a raw, syringe-filled chicken with his teeny tiny magnifying glass. For science!
While these are certainly not an accurate depiction of the vast and wondrous world of scientific research, it did cause many a scientist to share a giggle. So no harm, no foul. Not even to chickens.
I don’t know what it is about impersonations that are so fascinating to people but they’re often hilarious, and Jack Black impersonating The Rock does not disappoint. From the 2018 clip you can’t tell what prompted the impersonation but “Screen Junkies” interviewer looks to Black and asks him about his workout routine as if he’s Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
The comedian adjusts himself in his seat and doesn’t break character the entire time and somehow the interviewer is able to maintain a serious face throughout the process. Kevin Hart and the actual Dwayne Johnson cannot keep it together while Black does his impression of his co-star.
Black obviously knows the workout routine of the 6-foot, 5-inch muscular Black Samoan demigod and it starts out with 27,000 rip curls at 5 a.m. At least, that’s the “School of Rock” alum’s best guesstimate, and judging by Johnson’s size, that seems about right.
But his ribbing of his co-star didn’t stop there. As Johnson and Hart are practically wheezing with laughter, Black continues with his impersonation adding in Johnson’s philosophy on life. If you’re curious about that, it involves blood, sweat, tears and sucking life deep.
Yeah, I don’t know what that means either but you should check out the video below because it’s pretty impressive and might just brighten your day.
This article originally appeared on 10.22.22
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