Elsewhere Review – Terrapin Beer Co. Dancing Gummy Beer Hemp Cherry Berliner Weisse

Posted on June 28, 2021 by Denise
Originally published at Green Man Review!

I remember falling in love with German Weißbier years ago when I first visited Germany. I tried to re-create that experience at home, but could only find its much inferior cousin, the Belgian Wheat. Cue that sad trombone. Perhaps it’s the raw malt in the Belgian stuff, or the way Weißbier is often blended with Sprite/ whatever lemon-lime soda on hand to make it extra refreshing. (Try Weißbier with a touch of grapefruit juice. TRUST ME.) Whatever it is, I was a sad panda for years, until my neck of the woods started getting the good Deutch stuff. Or, like Terrapin Beer Co., American breweries started making it themselves. Kanpai y’all!

This beer is A Lot, y’all. Hemp + cherries + Weißbier? Deeeeeam. Get ready, as that hemp comes straight at you as soon as you pop the top. I immediately wanted to turn on some Grateful Dead and change into my tie-dye. But at 4.02% ABV, you won’t be out of your head after one or two of these brews. Which makes it a perfect summer quaff. And that’s saying something, as I typically am not one for sour/sour-ish brews. But more on the sour thing in just a tic.

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Elsewhere Review – BrewDog Elvis AF Non-alcoholic Near Beer

Posted on June 26, 2021 by Denise
Originally published at Green Man Review!

Elvis is everywhere
Elvis is everything
Elvis is everybody
Elvis is still the king

Mojo Nixon had it right y’all. Elvis is everything. Even beer! This non-alcoholic beer is the crazy (or rather, the sober) twin of Brewdog’s full-tilt BrewDog Elvis Juice. As with BrewDog’s Punk AF, this 0.5% ABV pour tastes like a pint that’ll get you hammered. Yet all you’ll get is the taste. Not too shabby, especially during hot and humid (#SouthernLife) summer days. 

Elvishas a strong topnote of grapefruit the minute I popped the top on my can*. I love grapefruit. Seriously, it’s an obsession. So I got very excited. This beer has a quick-to-rise head that dissipates just as quickly, and a golden color with a touch of cloudiness you notice only if you’re staring at the stuff. (What?) And hello again, grapefruit – the nose here is pure Ruby Red sweetness. The taste is more pith than juice, with a bitterness that’s not off-putting, but wasn’t exactly what I’d expected from that initial sniff. 

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TrailerWatch – “Halloween Kills” drops its first full trailer…and it’s full of blood

Posted on June 24, 2021 by Denise
Images: Universal Pictures

Ready for the followup to 2018’s Halloween? Because it looks like it’s gonna be an epic throw down. Maybe bring your hip waders, because the body count is absolutely crazypants. Synopsis!

Minutes after Laurie Strode (Curtis), her daughter Karen (Judy Greer) and granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak) left masked monster Michael Myers caged and burning in Laurie’s basement, Laurie is rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, believing she finally killed her lifelong tormentor. But when Michael manages to free himself from Laurie’s trap, his ritual bloodbath resumes. As Laurie fights her pain and prepares to defend herself against him, she inspires all of Haddonfield to rise up against their unstoppable monster. The Strode women join a group of other survivors of Michael’s first rampage who decide to take matters into their own hands, forming a vigilante mob that sets out to hunt Michael down, once and for all. Evil dies tonight.

Halloween Kills hits theaters this October.

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Elsewhere Review – BrewDog Punk AF Non-alcoholic Near Beer

Posted on June 24, 2021 by Denise
Originally published on Green Man Review!

With the outpouring (GET IT) of low ABV and non-alcoholic brews from microbreweries, there’s a slew of interesting finds. And I have to say that Punk could fool a serious beer drinker if you put it in her glass and said nothing but “hey, here ya go.” This beer (beer-ish?) ain’t your momma’s O’Doul’s. No shade on OD’s; I dig their Amber. But I’m just saying there’s a whole lot for hop-lovers to enjoy here. At 0.5% alcohol and 37 calories – no that calorie count isn’t a typo – brew snobs? Get ready to be shocked and amazed.

There’s a blonde, straw-like color to this beer, with a slight cloudiness and light but constant fizziness. The head is quick to form upon pouring, but dissipates quickly, leaving a ring of small bubbles around the glass.  I got a punch of hops when I started pouring this brew, my nose nowhere close to the glass. Once I did get close? The nose is strong with pine, hops, and a sweet peachy note that made me smile. 

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TrailerWatch – “Candyman” drops second trailer,

Posted on June 23, 2021 by Denise

“Candyman ain’t a ‘he’. Candyman is the whole damn hive.”

Ready for a deeper look into the world of the new Candyman film? Strap in y’all, it’s gonna be a ride. “Black people don’t need to be summoning. “ Honey, I wouldn’t be in front of a mirror repeating that name either. (Fingers crossed this intelligent man survives the film. You can do it dude. I have faith in you.)

I’m really digging the retooled back story. Excellent idea, and ZOMG the layers of the new mythology… Read the full press release after the jump! #Candyman is in theaters August 27.

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“F9” – Silly. Crazy. Fun.

Posted on June 21, 2021 by Denise

“How the hell are you not dead?”

Story: Guys and gals who have particular sets of skills (like driving cars, doing The Computer, and so on) have had all sorts of adventures together. The laws of physics are never invited. So this time? The world is in danger of being taken over by internet hacker/controller type thingies. To the Batcave, family!

Genre I’d put it in: Wait This Series Is Still Happening/Can’t Help But Watch Action Throwdowns

Remake, Sequel, Based-On, or Original: Part of the FFCU (the Fast & Furious Cinematic Universe.)

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Candyman’s director/co-writer Nia DaCosta’s Juneteenth message

Posted on June 18, 2021 by Denise

As of today, Juneteenth is a Federal holiday! Nia DaCosta takes a moment to talk about the holiday, and how “the duality of the Black experience in America” and how her film looks at that duality, and “the truth of that pain”.

The full press release is after the jump! Candyman hits theaters August 27th.

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Elsewhere Review – The Stonewall Inn IPA

Posted on June 17, 2021 by Denise
Originally published at Green Man Review!

Thank goodness the pendulum has swung from high ABV brews to lower ABV brews. I do love me some solid pours, but when I’m home alone? I like having the option to sip without having to crawl my way upstairs. Feel me? I know you do. And while Stonewall has been around for a minute, this 4% ABV beer is a delight, even outside of Pride Month.

First, the pour. This session IPA  – a brew with an Alcohol By Volume percentage of 5 or lower – does love to give good head (HEH), but the thick foam dissipates quickly, letting you really dig the beautiful golden color of the beer itself. This beer is clear, with only a slight cloudiness and lots of incredibly tiny bubbles serving fizzy realness. There’s a fresh, clean, hoppy nose that tells you you’re gonna love sipping on this while on the porch waiting for that grill to finish its work, or just after getting home (or hey, during – I’m not the boss of you) your local Pride parade. The taste is hop-forward, but with a clean, springwater finish that had me going for sip after sip. 

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Elsewhere Review – Devils Backbone Brewing Company’s Wine Barrel Aged Glitter Bomb

Posted on June 17, 2021 by Denise
Originally published at Green Man Review!

Woot woot! Who doesn’t love glitter? Okay, so it gets everywhere and it has been known to be called The Herpes Of Craft Supplies. And I can’t argue with that. But for those of you who aren’t exactly in love with glitter, know that Bomb doesn’t have actual glitter in it. (Though you can buy other beers that do have it, such as DuClaw’s Unicorn Farts and Ingenious’s Black is Beautiful…or search brew glitter to buy some and add it to whatever brew you like.)

I have to come clean though; I’m not typically a sour beer fan. My stomach hates the stuff, my tastebuds scream in protest…and this from a gal who loves sour gummies. So I don’t know what it is about the vast majority of sour beer that turns my entire body into a shudder factory, but it happens. I can enjoy Iron Hill Brewery’s Cherry Blob (a Belgian Tripel made with sour cherries), and now, I can enjoy Glitter Bomb. Mostly because with Bomb, it’s not really a fruity sweet-but-sour thang that makes my taste buds go cross eyed, but is more like the sour center of those old Zotz candies. https://zotzpower.com/ (And yes, the wee 70s in kid me got very excited when I realized these candies still exist.) It’s not a harsh sour, but more like a bubbly fizz. And though smooth won’t be a word folks call the citric acid-y punch Bomb delivers, it’s much more drinkable than the sours I’ve tried in the past. As I’ve said before, I hate drinking a beer that’s so hoppy/sour/yeasty that I feel like I’ve lost a bet. I want to enjoy my pours, and Bomb is something I enjoy.

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza – “Summer of Soul”!

Posted on June 14, 2021 by Denise

Ready to see that kickass Harlem Cultural Festival documentary by Questlove? I’ve been stoked about this ever since he mentioned it during the Oscars… You too? Synopsis!

In his acclaimed debut as a filmmaker, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson presents a powerful and transporting documentary—part music film, part historical record created around an epic event that celebrated Black history, culture and fashion. Over the course of six weeks in the summer of 1969, just one hundred miles south of Woodstock, The Harlem Cultural Festival was filmed in Mount Morris Park (now Marcus Garvey Park).  The footage was never seen and largely forgotten–until now. SUMMER OF SOUL shines a light on the importance of history to our spiritual well-being and stands as a testament to the healing power of music during times of unrest, both past and present. 

Ready? Let’s go!

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