Penn’s Peak is proud to announce Los Lobos with North Mississippi Allstars, Friday, June 9, 2023 at 8pm.
The journey of Los Lobos began in 1973, 50 years ago this year, when David Hidalgo (vocals, guitar, and pretty much anything with strings), Louie Perez (drums, vocals, guitar), Cesar Rosas (vocals, guitar), and Conrad Lozano (bass, vocals, guitarrón) earned their stripes playing revved-up versions of Mexican folk music in restaurants and at parties.
The band evolved in the 1980s as it tapped into L.A.’s burgeoning punk and college rock scenes. They were soon sharing bills with bands like the Circle Jerks, Public Image Ltd. and the Blasters, whose saxophonist, Steve Berlin, would eventually leave the group to join Los Lobos in 1984.
Early on, Los Lobos enjoyed critical success, winning the Grammy® for Best Mexican-American Performance for “Anselma” from its 1983 EP …And a Time to Dance.
A year later, the group released its full-length, major-label debut, How Will the Wolf Survive? Co-produced by Berlin and T Bone Burnett, the album was a college rock sensation that helped Los Lobos tie with Bruce Springsteen as Rolling Stone’s Artist of the Year.
A major turning point came in 1987 with the release of the Ritchie Valens biopic, La Bamba.
The quintet’s cover of Valens’ signature song topped the charts in the U.S. and the U.K. Rather than capitalize on that massive commercial success, Los Lobos instead chose to record La Pistola y El Corazón, a tribute to Tejano and Mariachi music that won the 1989 Grammy® for Best Mexican-American Performance.
That kind of sharp artistic turn has become Los Lobos’ trademark, serving to both fuel the band’s creativity and keep its fans engaged. In 1992, that willingness to defy expectations led them to record Kiko, an adventurous album produced by Mitchell Froom that’s considered by many to be one the band’s very best.
Since then, Los Lobos has continued to deliver daring and diverse albums such as Colossal Head (1996), Good Morning Aztlán (2002), The Town and the City (2006), Tin Can Trust (2010) and Gates of Gold (2015). On top of that, the band’s live shows never disappoint, as documented on the recent concert recordings Live at the Fillmore (2005) and Disconnected in New York City (2013).
Through the years, they’ve managed to keep things interesting with unexpected side trips like an album of Disney songs in 2009, along with countless contributions to tribute albums and film soundtracks.
One of those – “Mariachi Suite” from the 1995 film Desperado – earned the band a Grammy® for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. Los Lobos’ love letter to the city of Los Angeles as their album Native Sons (2021), returned the band to the Grammy winner’s circle with Best Americana Album of 2022. In 2023, Los Lobos celebrates its 50th anniversary as a band, a rare and impressive feat, as the band continues its great legacy.
Los Lobos has sold millions of records, won prestigious awards and made fans around the world. But perhaps its most lasting impact will be how well its music embodies the idea of America as a cultural melting pot. In it, styles like son jarocho–norteño, Tejano,folk, country, doo-wop, soul, R&B, rock ’n’ roll and punk all come together to create a new sound that’s greater than the sum of its parts.
North Mississippi Allstars
Nothing runs deeper than family ties. Brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters understand one another at the purest level. When families rally around music, they speak this oft-unspoken bond aloud and into existence.
North Mississippi Allstars
After 25 years, twelve albums, four GRAMMY® Award nominations, and sold out shows everywhere, North Mississippi Allstars open up their world once again on their thirteenth album, Set Sail [New West Records], welcoming other family (by blood and by the road) into the fold.
As legend has it, Luther and Cody Dickinson started the band in 1996 as a loose collective of like-minded second-generation musicians who shared a local repertoire and regional style. Over the years, the lineup shifted by design, and each subsequent record offered up a different combination of collaborators. This time around, they mined the talents of Jesse Williams on bass and Lamar Williams, JR. on vocals. During the Allman Betts Band Family Revival, the Dickinsons first linked up with Lamar, son of the Allman
Brothers bassist Lamar Williams, Sr., becoming fast friends and collaborators and eventually paving the way for Set Sail.
“The chemistry we have with this lineup is powerful,” observes Luther. “We are all
second-generation musicians and share a telepathic, relaxed ease about creating and
performing. I believe music is a form of communion with our loved ones and conjuring this vibe with members of musical families can be inspirational. Lamar and I are like-minded. I’ve never had the pleasure of working with a singing partner like Lamar. He has a true-blue quality in his musicality that will pull you in and break your heart. At the same time, Jesse grew up playing music with his brothers and his father—as did we. He plays like a sibling. We recorded the album fresh off the road and captured the energy we had worked up with him. I’m drawn to musical families, regardless of style. Playing with second- or third-generation players allows us an easy unspoken musical dialog. It’s not a big thing; it’s just what we do. We never had to figure out what it means and takes to be a musician. We all inherently know.”
They picked up this wisdom by osmosis. As sons of legendary producer and musician Jim Dickinson, Luther and Cody have been producing records themselves since they were teenagers. Separately, the brothers have produced albums by Samantha Fish, R.L. Boyce, Lucero, Amy Lavere, the Birds of Chicago, Ian Segal, and more. Luther produced two records from Otha Turner, including Everybody Hollerin’ Goat, which was named one of the ten most important blues albums of the nineties. Luther and Cody co-produce North Mississippi Allstars records as the “Dickinson Brothers.”
“We learned an enormous amount from our father,” Luther says, “Cody and I made mistakes, but we’ve always believed in ourselves, and we had to learn for ourselves. Rock ‘n’ roll is self-taught. Each generation has to reinvent itself and shed the skin of the elders. On Set Sail, we feel as if we’ve once again ‘broken the code,’ and know what we want and how to get it.”
Following 2019’s Up and Rolling, which received a GRAMMY® Award nod in the category of “Best Contemporary Blues Album,” Set Sail continues the band’s tradition of creating roots music that displays remarkable variety. Luther and Cody Dickinson dig in with the production and different guitar tones; the record sizzles with hard yet understated groove, grown folk music. Luther’s wide-ranging guitar style features jazz riffs, psychedelic sounds, and soulful slide. Drummer and multi-instrumentalist Cody draws on roots music, rock, jazz, rap, and other styles to create rhythms that propel the band’s sounds and move it forward. Their two aesthetics combine to create the band’s unique style, “Primitive Modernism,” melding the new and the old, traditional, and futuristic, crafted lyrics and improvisational music. Speaking of, the first single
and title track “Set Sail Part I” [feat. Lamar Williams, JR.] rides a riff right out of the Southern Delta into the embrace of a horn section as the vocal interplay simmers on the line, “The water may rise again, but we shall set sail.”
“‘Set Sail’ really set the tone,” Cody goes on. “It could be taken literally or figuratively.
Philosophically, it’s about the way the waters literally do rise. We’re talking about climate
change in a literal sense, but it’s also symbolic in a social sense. It won’t be the first time.”
“See The Moon” [feat. Lamar Williams, Jr. & Sharisse Norman] hinges on a head-nodding bass line as Sharisse’s harmonies uplift a downright spellbinding performance from Lamar underlined by Luther’s unpredictable guitar phrasing. The most familial moments on the record happen when Luther’s daughters Lucia and Isla sing together on “Authentic” and “Didn’t We Have A Time,” marking a full circle moment in poetic fashion. Delicate instrumentation wraps around plaintive and powerful lyrics laced with nostalgia on the lullaby-style chorus. “It’s one of my favorite songs,” smiles Cody, who has recently become a father himself. “Hearing my nieces on it was a high point. It was really meaningful, deep, and beautifully sad, but also hopeful.”
Strings and horns give way to the smoky blues of “Never Want To Be Kissed” [feat. William Bell], illuminating yet another side of the sound. Luther notes, “Most of these songs have been floating around in my lyric books, waiting for their time to come. ‘Rabbit Foot’ and ‘Outside’ were inspired by conversations I remember having with Otha Turner and R.L. Burnside. We leaned into our other greatest influences: folk, soul, and psychedelic rock, but everything we play feels like North Mississippi. The recording also benefited from a new creative process I learned from a book, Q on Producing, that Cody sent me. I read about Quincy Jones’s philosophy of never recording a vocalist reading a lyric sheet. Up and Rolling was recorded with the band in the room. The genesis of Set Sail was the nylon string guitar and the vocals, and letting the memorized lyrics shape the song structure or lack thereof. This led to a whole new phonetics-based editing process that I’d never used before. Some of the lyrics were improvised and created on the mic, capturing the moment of creation.”
Building the songs from the guitar and BPM on Set Sail enabled Luther and Cody to experiment with their drum and guitar sounds in a leisurely way they hadn’t afforded themselves since their debut album, Shake Hands with Shorty (1999). In the studio, Cody mixed the songs again and again, working tirelessly but never losing perspective. Cody’s grooves and Luther’s songwriting furnish the album’s foundations.
Luther admits, “Recently, I had my mind blown by Rick Rubin saying that fitting lyrics into the puzzle of structure can compromise the message. Indeed, rules are made to be broken. I’m glad these songs came to fruition at this time because I was able to express my stance on life and love. The fear of having my children grown up and asking me why I didn’t speak up for what I believed in has driven me and helped mature my songwriting and solidify my stance. Having kids made me get my story straight.”
The Dickinson brothers have recorded and toured with Mavis Staples, Charlie Musslewhite, John Hiatt, Robert Plant and Patty Griffin, G Love, Jon Spencer, the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Los Lobos, and the Black Crowes. Meanwhile, their seminal debut, Shake hands with Shorty (2000), earned the band the first of four GRAMMY® nominations, and changed the Dickinson brothers’ lives forever.
Luther adds, “Quincy says, ‘Music gives back what you put into it.’ We have dedicated our lives to music, and it’s given us a fantastic journey that’s still only beginning.
In 1997, R.L. Burnside hired me and took me on the road. R.L., Kenny Brown, and Cedric
Burnside taught me how to tour nationally after years of touring locally. The Shake Hands with Shorty tour in 2000 took Cody and I around the world and changed our lives. We never really slowed down.”
They forge ahead always as a family, first and foremost. “North Mississippi Allstars means family,” Cody concludes. “I get the joy of working with my brother. Our families keep growing too. There’s a sense of history. The older I get, the more I realize how important it is to record this music, so younger kids can hear it. I just want to make sure we pass it on. It’s a huge honor to be a part of this tradition.”
Tickets on sale Friday, March 10th at 10:00AM at all Ticketmaster outlets, the Penn’s Peak Box Office and Roadies Restaurant and Bar. Penn’s Peak Box Office and Roadies Restaurant ticket sales are walk-up only, no phone orders.
Reserved Seating
Premium Reserved: $38.50
Regular Reserved: $33.50
About Penn’s Peak
Penn’s Peak, a beautiful mountaintop entertainment venue located in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, can comfortably host 1,800 concertgoers. Enjoy a spacious dance floor, lofty ceilings, concert bar/concession area and a full service restaurant and bar aptly named Roadie’s. Complete with a broad open-air deck for summertime revelry, Penn’s Peak patrons enjoy a breathtaking overlook of nearby Beltzville Lake, plus a commanding, picturesque 50-mile panoramic view of northeastern Pennsylvania’s Appalachian Mountains. Choose Penn’s Peak for your next wedding, banquet or special event and treat your guests to an event truly “Above the Rest”.
Geographically convenient to residents of major population zones in Hazleton, Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Stroudsburg, the Lehigh Valley, Philadelphia and New York City, Penn’s Peak is an ideal location for any event. It is located only four miles from Exit 74 of the northeast extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. For more information on Penn’s Peak, go to www.pennspeak.com or call 866-605-7325.
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Lehigh Valley is Looking for Quality, Canned Wine — We Tasted with Kristin Olszewski from Nomadica Wines
Sommelier Businesswoman Kristin Olszewski brings Michelin quality to Canned Wines with Nomadica Wines
Nomadica offers sparkling, rose, white, red and orange options — both canned and bag in a box.
Nomadica Wines ‘s Owner Kristin Olszewski
Nomadica Wines are sourced from vineyards with responsible farming practices and winemakers who engage in low intervention wine making.
Wine-lovers can be 100% confident you’re drinking serious sommelier-approved wine.
Nomadica Wines ‘s Owner Kristin Olszewski; Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Today’s conversation with Sommelier / Businesswoman Kristin Olszewski from Nomadica Wines has been edited for length and clarity. For the full, un-edited conversation, visit our YouTube channel here.
Joe Winger: We’re here today with Kristin Olszewski from Nomadica Wines.
What’s the most important message you want to share today with our audience?
Kristin Olszewski:
I think the biggest message that I want to get across is that everyone should be drinking more wine. That’s my mission in life to just bring consumers back to the wine category.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
Outstanding. And how how are you trying to get that done?
Kristin Olszewski:
I’ll give a little context on my own history and how I came here.
My undergrad degree is in sustainable agriculture and I ended up dropping out of Harvard Medical School to become a sommelier – typical journey.
I just really fell in love with wine. I worked in restaurants to pay for school and wine was always the thing that captivated my interest.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
I feel like it’s the intersection of history, agriculture and gastronomy. And then also there’s something so fun and communal and – you’re getting a little tipsy. It’s everything.
But I spent a decade-plus in Michelin restaurants all over the country, everywhere from three Michelin stars, Saison in San Francisco, Husk in Nashville, Osteria Mozza here in LA.
When Nancy Silverton was on a Netflix show called Chef’s Table, I started noticing a different customer coming into the restaurant. Usually as a sommelier, you’re talking to a very specific demographic of people. I would say 45 plus male white wine collector. That’s my demo. And when Nancy was on Chef’s Table, young people started coming into the restaurants, a lot of women, and I noticed they didn’t want to drink wine.
They would drink tequila, beer, cocktails, like anything but wine.
That always felt like such a missed opportunity because wine, it’s the most ancient beverage. Our people have drank wine for millennia. It’s also in an age where we care about what’s natural, what’s minimally processed, what’s better for you.
Great wine is literally just grapes, yeast, water, and time, so I started digging into why aren’t you drinking wine? And I found out a few things.
One, people felt like wine wasn’t a good value. If you weren’t going to spend a lot of money on wine, you couldn’t get a great wine, which is untrue.
The other one is people feel like they needed a PhD or some level of education or knowledge in order to access wine, which, again, is not true.
I want to be people’s guide, hold their hand and walk them into the world of wine. So I started Nomadica to do that on a larger level.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
That’s beautiful.
You mentioned two things. We’re going to go into both. Your background in Michelin restaurants. I’ve heard heavenly amazing stories. I’ve heard horror stories.
Can you share an experience and what you learned from?
Kristin Olszewski:
Everyone always asks me if I watch The Bear or not. And I’m like, no, I can’t.
Some positive stories, Michelin restaurants have changed a lot from when I started working in them. I think work has changed a lot for the positive. I remember one of my first serious jobs in a scary restaurant. You have your hair pulled back because you don’t want it to get in the food.
I had one small piece of hair hanging down above my face and the chef takes a match from the stove, lights a piece of my hair and says don’t ever have a hair hanging down in your face again.
Some of the wonderful stories are having the opportunity, especially at Mozza, you taste each bottle you open there.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
When I was at Mozza, it was a $5 million dollar all-Italian cellar with 90 pages of the best Barolo, Brunello, Etna Rosso’s, just things that like collector’s dream about tasting.
And I feel so lucky to have tasted things like Conterno Monfortino, which is the type of wine that you want to smell for three hours before you drink it.
When you have a wine like that, it makes you realize why collectors obsessively chase bottles, there’s something so romantic and intangible, and having a wine like that, you realize you’ll never have A wine that tastes the same at any moment in time ever again.
It’s just such a lucky experience.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
I’m curious about how that experience inspired you to open Nomadica.
Kristin Olszewski:
My entry point into wine was always through farming. I majored in sustainable agriculture.
I was an avid farmer. I ran our community garden in college and was focused on permaculture. I lived in India and farmed for a while there.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
And I always say great wine is made by great farmers, great wines made in the vineyard, not the cellar.
So when I was looking at starting Nomadica, that sustainability ethos, it was always my starting point, but I was really shocked when I found out how bad glass bottles are for the environment.
30% of glass is recycled in the US. The rest just goes into a landfill. It’s highly energy intensive to make, to ship, because it’s so heavy.
The fact is, most wine does not need to be in a glass bottle.
Yes, that Barolo I mentioned absolutely needs to be in a glass bottle. That needs to be aged for years before it even comes into its own.
But for a $20 – 30 bottle of wine that you’re going to pop open and drink it on a weeknight or on a not special weekend does not need to be in glass.
So that’s how we started.
Cans at 70 % reduction in carbon footprint. Our newly launched bag and box wine is almost a 90% reduction in carbon footprint.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
I sampled your sparkling white, your white, your red and your rose, they were dangerously drinkable.
Can we talk about where the fruit is sourced from?
Kristin Olszewski:
Absolutely.
The name Nomadica is really a fun double entendre because you can take it wherever you want to go. Of course, cans and boxes can be found in places that bottles can’t.
We source our fruit from all over.
We’re truly a nomadic winery.
Our head winemaker spent time at some of the best wineries in California, like Eric Kent Cellars, which makes award winning Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and also Kosta Brown.
Before that he spent 10 years doing vineyard management in California. So through Corey, we’ve really got a handle on some of the best fruit. A lot of our wine comes from Mendocino. A lot of our grapes come from Mendocino or Lodi. I’m such a Sonoma girly. Our winery is located in Sonoma, and so I always find myself drawn back to that region.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
Are there any vineyards you’d recommend us touring when we come to Northern California?
Kristin Olszewski:
I think the Sonoma Coast is the best wine region in California. They’ve fought very hard to become designated as their own AVA, which is very important in terms of quality.
The oceanic influence, what we call a diurnal shift, the extreme temperature change between night and day, like Hirsch and Littorai.
I think if anyone ever wants to see proof in the pudding of what great farming can do, you need to go see Littorai.
Ted Lemon was one of the first Americans to ever be a winemaker in Burgundy and he brought all of his practices back, was one of the first people to practice biodynamic agriculture in California and really brought that style of farming onto a larger scale.
When you go visit his vineyards, it’s like teeming with life. You look next door at a conventionally farmed plot, which is just like dead and sad looking. And then you taste the wines and you’re just knocked on your butt because they’re so good.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
Nomadica Wines has several varieties. White, Sparkling white, Rose, Red, Orange.
Can you walk us through the taste profiles of any of your favorites – what’s the aromas, what are the profiles?
Kristin Olszewski:
Something really cool about our wines is everything’s practicing organic. No pesticides, no synthetic fertilizers, all of our wines are fermented dry. Naturally zero grams of sugar per serving. They have nice fruit notes, but none of the wines are sweet.
Crushable bright flavor.
Across the gamut, our entire portfolio has a brightness and a freshness to it. All of our wines are like slightly aromatic because I love an aromatic variety, but part of the thought that we put behind the brand is that I wanted to take that sommelier curation and put it in the restaurant, on the retail shelf so that when you’re serving Nomadica at your home, at parties and the beach, 99% percent of people will love it.
I’m doing the work on the back end on blending, sourcing, creating these flavor profiles that’s really taking that wine experience, that decade plus of developing my own palette and giving it back to the consumer.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
Are there any favorite wine and food pairings for you with your wines?
Kristin Olszewski:
I love an aperitif. Our sparkling rosé is definitely my favorite wine in our gamut. In a can you always have the perfect pour because sometimes you don’t want to open up an entire bottle of wine.
When we do that in my house, it usually gets drank. It doesn’t go back in the fridge.
Sometimes you just want a glass of sparkling. And I love that.
I love that with a charcuterie board and cheese. I also love Rose with green salads.
I think one of the best things about living where we live [Los Angeles] is we have the best produce on the planet.
I still run some wine programs in Los Angeles and I’m actually opening up a restaurant in Silver Lake next year, an Italian restaurant. Orange Wine is like the hottest trend.
I was doing the wine list at a restaurant in Hollywood called Gigi’s and I noticed I was selling more orange wine by the glass than all other colors combined, which was just mind blowing to me.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
We made what I think is the best orange wine coming out of California.
There’s a lot of talk about natural wine, orange wine. They’re not all created equal. My winemaker and I tasted through my favorite Italian skin contact wines and decided on a really concrete flavor profile source.
My mother in law in Orange County is drinking her orange wine with her friends. So I really feel like I’ve achieved something. That with sushi is a mind blowing pairing.
Then our red. We found Teroldego growing in Northern California, which is a grape that’s indigenous to Northern Italy from the Alto Adige.
It’s really Alpine, like dark fruit, like a Zinfandel, but really refreshing and bright acidity and a little bit more tannin than a Zin [Zinfandel] has.
There’s a perception that we had to overcome about can and boxed wine. People think that it’s low quality.
Whenever I pour our red for somebody, the response is always, “Wow, oh my god, that’s so good.”
No matter your level of wine knowledge, you can see what I’m trying to do when you taste our red wines.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
What’s next for you and Nomadica?
Kristin Olszewski:
Right now we’re in hardcore expansion mode. We were the first people to do fine wine and can, and I grew really slowly at my own pace.
I wanted to build the brand.
A lot of people just run to retail shelves and they want to be in every grocery store on the planet. I didn’t want that. I wanted to be, at the Four Seasons, at the Ritz Carlton, at music venues.
I wanted to be in places where people don’t typically expect to see wine in cans and boxes.
We are one of the highest velocity items at Whole Foods in our category.
We just launched all of our box wines at Total Wine in California, Texas, Florida, Colorado, and New York and got some really big plans for next year.
So keep your eyes peeled. People are about to see me everywhere.
That’s my goal.
Source: instagram.com/nomadica
Joe Winger:
Having a canned wine at some of these nicer hotels is a challenge.
What lesson did you learn by accomplishing that rather large challenge?
Kristin Olszewski:
That’s the best thing about how we’re positioned. Not only am I a sommelier, my VP of sales is a sommelier. My winemaker has an incredible reputation. Every person on my team comes from the wine industry and we have the best product.
When we’re sitting down and tasting with these buyers, these people that are in our industry. They recognize it. I always say taste out of a wine glass. Everything tastes better out of a wine glass. The second that they taste it, these are people who taste wine all the time and they taste a lot of bad wine.
So that has been amazing.
We’ve always had the industry behind us. It’s a huge differentiator for us. So I think it was slow build. Everything takes a lot more time than you think it will, which is I think the biggest lesson that I’ve taken away from this business over the last seven years.
But you got to build your brand first.
Joe Winger:
You seem like a deep-souled individual. Whether it’s wine or otherwise, is there an overall message that you want to share to inspire the audience?
Kristin Olszewski:
We are in a time where sustainability is more important than it ever has been. You can’t base your entire brand about it, but I think it’s an absolutely necessary component to any consumer product that’s coming out today.
One of my missions in life is to have that conversation about sustainability and have it with other brands because it needs to be convenient.
Otherwise, consumers will not buy it, care or participate or choose a sustainable option. That’s my big thing.
Joe Winger:
What are the best ways to follow your journey and to learn more about you?
Kristin Olszewski:
You can buy Nomadica online and our new rosé yuzu spritz, which is delicious at ExploreNomadica.com. And then our socials are at Nomadica on Instagram.
And if you want to follow me. I’m at Kristin__O.
Bob Dylan’s Bourbon Feud: Heaven’s Door Kentucky vs Tennessee
Bob Dylan’s Bourbon Feud: Heaven’s Door Kentucky vs Tennessee
Heaven’s Door Spirits, Bob Dylan’s highly awarded collection of super-premium American whiskeys, is turning up the heat on the age-old debate of which state, Tennessee or Kentucky, makes the best bourbon.
For as long as corn’s been cracked and stills have bubbled, Kentucky and Tennessee have been turning pristine limestone water and grains into a coveted amber elixir.
Heaven’s Door’s Great State Bourbon Debate rekindles the friendly feud
Heaven’s Door’s Great State Bourbon Debate rekindles the friendly feud between these two bourbon powerhouses, inviting whiskey lovers everywhere to put their palates to the test and voice their opinion.
Heaven’s Door sets itself apart as the first brand to offer both a Kentucky and Tennessee bourbon, giving fans a unique chance to compare.
The brand’s Kentucky Straight Bourbon, Ascension, and Tennessee Straight Bourbon, Revival, are made from high rye mash bills with grains largely sourced local to the distillery, and barreled at the same proof, yet yield vastly different taste profiles. Heaven’s Door invites you to level set, savor and decide which bourbon pleases your palate and wins your heart.
A Tale of Two Bourbons
Many folks mistakenly believe that bourbon can only be made in Kentucky, but the truth is, bourbon can be crafted anywhere in the U.S.
What makes an American whiskey a true bourbon is a special set of rules: it has to be made with at least 51% corn, distilled at a certain proof, and aged in new oak barrels.
Kentucky and Tennessee both have storied histories of producing excellent bourbon, with differences in water and climate producing distinct flavors.
Kentucky’s limestone water and Tennessee’s pure spring water are both famous for helping yeast thrive during fermentation.v
Differences in flavor profile come from the type and provenance of the grains used, the type of yeast used, water quality, the proof at distillation and the particular wood used to make oak barrel.
Even the location of the barrel warehouse, the circulation of air between the barrels being stored and where the barrels are within the warehouse (high up or near the bottom) all conspire to give impart flavor differences.
Heaven’s Door Kentucky Straight Bourbon, Ascension
Heaven’s Door Kentucky Straight Bourbon, Ascension, is a unique blend of two premium Kentucky straight bourbons aged for over five years and non-chill filtered, boasts warm and slightly sweeter notes of vanilla and baking spices. The limestone-filtered water of Kentucky, renowned for its purity, plays a key role in developing these rich flavors.
Heaven’s Door Tennessee Straight Bourbon, Revival
Heaven’s Door Tennessee Straight Bourbon, Revival, also aged for over five years and non-chill filtered, offers a drier profile with complex and sharp flavors. Unlike many Tennessee bourbons, Revival skips the “Lincoln County Process” – a charcoal filtering step – allowing the natural flavors of the local non-GMO grains to shine through, resulting in a lingering finish with hints of caramel, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
“We wanted to fan the flames of this old debate
between Kentucky and Tennessee bourbon
and showcase
our outstanding expressions of both styles.
We’re excited to hear what consumers think and how they experience these two classic bourbons.”
Alex Moore
Master Blender and COO
Heaven’s Door Spirit
Heaven’s Door marries art and craft in every bottle, drawing inspiration from Bob Dylan’s restless spirit to continually innovate. By sourcing non-GMO grains and honoring each state’s natural elements, the distinct character of each bourbon is evident in every sip.
Lehigh Valley, are you Following your Heart and Need Media Attention? Reach to Publicity For Good, CEO Heather Holmes explains
Lehigh Valley, are you Following your Heart and Need Media Attention? Reach to Publicity For Good, CEO Heather Holmes explains
Publicity for Good is a millennial run communications firm that provides high-level disruptive, publicity and social media services for wide array of purpose driven clients in the food, beverage and beauty industry.
In 2016 by Heather Holmes former miss Ohio international celebrated publicist and Forbes 30 under 30 nominee publicity for good has built a reputation as the countries number one PR agency for CPG brands that have social causes built into their DNA.
Publicity For Food CEO Heather Holmes
Today’s conversation with Heather Homes from PublicityForGood.com has been edited for length and clarity. For the full, un-edited conversation, visit our YouTube channel here.
Joe Winger:
Heather Holmes from PublicityForGood.com. I’m a big fan because you’ve helped us facilitate a lot of previous conversations about food and drink and nutrition and all the things we like talking about.
What’s the most important thing that you want to share with the audience today?
Heather Holmes:
I really want to take away the unknown or worry about getting in the media. I want to make it more accessible to amazing brands and people.
So I definitely want to share tactical advice that if someone is reading this, they have a good story in business, they have the confidence that their story is good enough and they could absolutely make an impact and grow their business by getting in the media.
Joe Winger:
Starting with the basics, let’s pretend I have a company, I think I want public attention. I want to reach out to someone like you.
So what should I be thinking about? What do I present to you as a step one?
Heather Holmes:
Step one is really the intentionality of why you want to get in the media. What’s your goal? Are you wanting to reach more people? Are you wanting to get your story out there?
Are you wanting more sales and more people to buy your product?
You really need to know. Where you’re going first, and if you don’t know where you’re going, or you don’t have a vision, then it’s really hard to help you.
But if you have clarity there, then we can really pull back and help you identify your story, how you’re different, your why, and why your product and or company, would be really great to be in the media.
The PublicityForGood Team
FlavRReport.com on YouTube
Joe Winger:
Now, looking at the grand scheme of the campaign, what kind of a campaign should we be looking for: expectations, results?
Heather Holmes:
After we know our outcome that we’re wanting to get more sales, more backlinks, or name in the media, then what I like to do first is work with every entrepreneur, and even if you have a product, to really reflect in “why your story matters”
Why does your product matter?
If you’ve never been in the media before, I take people for an exercise where I have them draw on a piece of paper, them as a baby, to where they are now.
I have them write the key pivotal moments that have happened in their life that have made them start that company, because those little components are absolutely a part of your story.
I’ve been in the media 700 plus times: Inside Edition, Fox News, The New York Coast, incredible media, but it hasn’t always been about being a publicist, right?
Yes. I’m the founder of Publicity For Good, but a lot of that has been my story or building a seven figure company from an airstream.
Now I have almost two under two with a third on the way.
So you need to have your key pivotal moments because those are things you can talk about in the media.
Then we need to look at what’s going on in the news and how we bridge the gap between your product. Relevancy.
Joe Winger:
People may not know you are a former Miss Ohio International. Can you tell us a lesson you learned from being a former Miss Ohio International that you’re using in today’s work?
Heather Holmes:
It’s really all about your platform and reaching new audiences.
When I was building my company I decided I wanted to get into pageants. I wanted to meet a community of like minded people that wanted to make a difference in the world.
It was a way for me to have a platform because at the time I was talking about why you absolutely can build a profitable business. But also make a difference in your community and make a difference amongst your team. And really just build an incredible legacy.
So that was why I did the pageants.
I did a bunch of publicity and again, it made me relevant and timely because that was what got me in the media because I was Miss Ohio and I was only Miss Ohio International for a period of time.
So it gave me that relevancy. So you have to be relevant.
You have to bridge the gap between what’s happening in the news, or we often use Awareness Days, National Nutrition Month, National Social Media Day, and you have to position your product or yourself as the solution.
[For example], we were talking about an incredible juice brand, but most pitches I see are very promotional, right? It needs to be how you or your product simplifies people’s lives. How are you adding value? Or you don’t have a product you need to inspire people.
Joe Winger:
You’re growing a 7- figure business. What’s it like growing a huge business while you’re taking care of your kids and for a while you were living out of your Airstream
Heather Holmes:
We lived out of a 23 foot airstream for 3 1/2 years. I went from dating to engaged, to married to [my first child] Rose, who’s almost two, who lived in our airstream with us.
The year the pandemic [hit] was our first million dollar year.
I think a lot of the reason why it was that year is because when March hit, everyone was so scared that we lost about 40% of our business, number one.
Number two, we had to hustle and grit to make it. There was no choice of failing. All the distractions were gone.
When you’re in an Airstream, all you have is your laptop, but we had no external distractions, and then everything else was closed.
So the only focus we could do was our business and we had to scale out of necessity because we didn’t want to lose what we had put so much time in.
Fast forward, we now have 22 acres where we live and we have two under two, we have one on the way, we’re a full time team of 40, and it’s not easy.
I say transparently, it’s a hot mess. There are so many miracles that happen every day, but life is one, right? I can’t turn off my founder hat and publicist hat and then “Oh, I’m a mom”. It’s all one.
So yes, I might have Rose [my daughter] on a call with me from time to time, but I’ve learned that the more you step in and embrace your life, who you are and the realness, sometimes people opt out and that’s okay.
And this is my legacy.
I like these missions that we’re doing good work to us is way more than a business. We want to grow your brand and mission and we take it so seriously.
So it’s not perfect. It’s not perfectly scheduled. I’m a full time mom, all the time on the weekends when the kids are sleeping, we’re working.
We know where we want to go, and these clients and ambitions that we’re aligned with and supporting are helping people with their health.
Joe Winger:
What an incredible story to share.
Heather Holmes: I have so much to share. Like I was adopted when I was a week old to having two under two and another one on the way and building a business and building a homestead.
It’s so crazy. Austin, who’s my husband, the first week we were dating, we’re all about intentionality. I have the journal and we mapped everything out.
This year, we were going to get engaged then married. Austin and I,l we will have been together almost five years.
We’ve had a kid every year. Rose will be two in June.
We want to build a business. We want to impact our clients, brands, and scale their business. We want our team to get better and flourish in their personal lives too.
This is our mission and I’ve seen so many miracles happen from getting in the media on a personal level.
I was talking to [a business owner client] and her business grew by 40% from getting in the media.
One of my favorite cookie brands, a mom had an incredible heart story. She went on our local news and she brought in $12,000 worth of sales, just the local people wanting to support her.
On the flip side, when people Google my name, it’s like my social currency, there’s all these articles. So I have so much peace in that. Our kids will see the good work we’re doing.
Joe Winger:
You’re talking to an audience of foodies. What is your favorite meal?
Heather Holmes:
We just had Indian food last night that my husband made and it was so good.
We used to live in San Diego and I think San Diego has the best food. It’s all fresh. We’ve traveled a lot. We’ve been to Bali, their food is pretty incredible too. Where we live [now] we’re right outside of Asheville and Charlotte. So they have some good restaurants, but like I’m not in the phase right now where I’m the foodie like I used to be.
[At our house] we have chickens and we have fresh eggs. So I’m obsessed with fresh eggs every morning. You’re living a good life when you can go get your eggs and have them at home with some goat cheese.
And honestly, I love Livermuth. Crazy. So I’d say some Livermuth fried in a cast iron with some eggs and goat cheese. It’s the simple things that I really do love.
Joe Winger:
Heather Holmes with Publicity for Good. As we wrap up, whether it’s a potential client, a potential vendor, someone wanting your help with publicity, what are the best ways to find, follow you, websites, social media, etc?
Heather Holmes:
You can go to PublicityForGood.com You can find me on social media as well.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/heatherdesantis
https://www.instagram.com/heatherdesantis
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Eagles Vs Chiefs: Super Bowl LVII Kicks Off #MUSEUMBOWL23
Eagles Vs Chiefs: Super Bowl LVII Kicks Off #MUSEUMBOWL23
In 2023’s Super Bowl LVII it’s Philadelphia versus Kansas City on February 12.
Restaurants and businesses in both cities are getting in on the competition – including museums.
“Battle for the Masterpieces”
A “battle for the masterpieces” will also be at play, accompanied by a pigskin scramble on social media as two major art museums
Philadelphia Eagles
Sasha Suda, the George D. Widener Director and CEO of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, has wagered a master painting on the Birds’ success.
Kansas City Chiefs
Julián Zugazagoitia, Menefee D. and Mary Louise Blackwell CEO & Director of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, has eagerly taken up the challenge on behalf of the Kansas City Chiefs.
In the bet, the winning city’s museum will receive the other’s painting on loan.
A Chiefs victory would bring a future delegation from the Philadelphia Museum of Art to the Nelson-Atkins, with a Philadelphia master work in hand.
An Eagles triumph would bring a future delegation from the Nelson-Atkins along with a master work to Philadelphia.
Sasha Suda stated:
“When the Eagles soar to victory…
“…we will warmly greet our friends from the Nelson-Atkins and treat them to unforgettable cheesesteaks here in Philadelphia. They have such a remarkable collection, and we will be thrilled to share a piece of it with our visitors, in a very special Point After Touchdown (PAT). We’ll make it feel right at home in our galleries and display it with Philly pride.”
Julián Zugazagoitia said:
“We expect to offer our Philadelphia friends something they’ll long remember after the…
Chiefs make short work of the Eagles.
Philadelphia’s museum has so many amazing works, and they will see how wonderful the PMA loan will appear in our beautiful galleries. We won’t let them leave, of course, before they can taste the best of our Kansas City barbeque.”
#MuseumBowl23 is on. Let the games begin.
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Comedian Brian Regan brings Big Laughs to the Poconos’ Sherman Theater Friday June 16
Comedian Brian Regan brings his stand-up performance to the Sherman Theater in Stroudsburg on Friday, June 16.Critics, fans and fellow comedians agree:Brian Regan is one of the most respected comedians in the country
with Vanity Fair calling Brian:“The funniest stand-up alive”
and Entertainment Weekly calling him:“Your favorite comedian’s favorite comedian.”
Having built his 30-plus year career on the strength of his material alone, Brian’s non-stop theater tour continuously fills the most beautiful venues across North America, visiting close to 100 cities each year.Brian returns for his third season in Peter Farrelly’s TV series, Loudermilk streaming on Amazon Prime. Farrelly personally cast Brian in the series alongside Ron Livingston, Anja Savcic, Will Sasso and Mat Fraser. Brian is receiving praise for his portrayal of “Mugsy,” a recovering addict who is estranged from his family. The first two seasons of Loudermilk originally aired on AT&T’s Audience Network and moved to Amazon Prime on March 12, 2021.
A regular on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Brian is the rare guest who the show invites on for two segments: a performance segment and a segment on the couch to chat with Jimmy. Previously, Brian was a regular guest on The Late Show with David Letterman, making 28 appearances on the CBS show.
Show: Brian Regan Live
Date: Friday, June 16Time: Doors – 7:00; Show – 8:00For more information, call 570-420-2808 or visit shermantheater.com.The Sherman Theater is Monroe County’s only nationally ranked, non-profit theaterand performing arts center. Located in downtown Stroudsburg, PA, the Sherman Theater has proudly served the Pocono region for more than 90 years. The Theater and Performing Arts Center is committed to strengthening the community by producing culturally-diverse, nationally-known professional acts and festivals at the theater and at satellite locations throughout Monroe County for people of all ages, by providing an opportunity for local artists to perform, and by creating economic development in the region. The Sherman Theater projects and events attract over 100,000 visitors to the Pocono Region annually.
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Comedy Legend Tom Papa at The Scranton Cultural Center with his 2023 Comedy Tour on March 10
Comedy Legend Tom Papa at The Scranton Cultural Center with his 2023 Comedy Tour on March 10
With more than 20 years as a stand-up comedian, Tom Papa is one of the top comedic voices in the country finding success in film, TV, radio and podcasts as well as on the live stage.
He is a regular guest on “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast and the late night TV shows.
For tix to Tom Papa at The Scranton Cultural Center.
On May 12, Tom released his second book, “You’re Doing Great!: And Other Reasons To Stay Alive,” a collection of essays on how people really live in modern America and what’s truly good and wonderful about our lives.
Tom Papa at The Scranton Cultural Center.
On February 4, Netflix premiered Tom’s fourth hour-long stand-up special, “Tom Papa: You’re Doing Great!” A hilarious rebuttal to the current cultural feeling of dread, Tom wants viewers to remember that they are doing great; life isn’t perfect, it never will be, and that’s okay.
Tom’s new podcast, “Breaking Bread with Tom Papa,” premiered on May 12 and features Tom and his guest for an hour of eating, drinking and enjoying life. Listeners are invited to take a seat at the table as Tom and his guests celebrate the true meaning of breaking bread with insightful, revealing and always funny conversations.
Tom is host of the daily Netflix radio show, “What A Joke With Papa And Fortune,” on SiriusXM’s Netflix Channel, airing Mondays through Thursdays from 10:00 AM – Noon ET.
To learn more, visit tompapa.com.
