Lifestyle
Budweiser Launches Track Your Bud Program
The King of Beers is launching a new online program to cater to tech-savvy beer drinkers of the 21st Century. That’s right, Bud’s going digital and bringing your brew to life with the a new campaign called “Track Your Bud.”
Have you ever wondered what went into that Bud you’re holding on game day or sipping at the bar? Where did this beer come from? Who gave birth to this brew? What kind of journey did it take to end up chilling in your hand?
Well now you can find out your beer’s entire backstory. The Track Your Bud program from Anheuser-Busch lets you trace the origins of your Budweiser bottle from farm to brewery to coozie. You can even learn about the brewmaster responsible for crafting your beer.
To get the full story of your Bud, just use your smartphone to scan the QR code located on your Budweiser packaging. You can download the Track Your Bud app or visit www.trackyourbud.com to learn about how your beer came to life. You can find out all about the beer-making process and discover where the hops and barley that went into your beer came from.
So next time you sip a Bud, spent a couple minutes and get a download of your brew’s personal history.
Mar 22nd
Teva Fuse-Ion Review
Teva has always been known as brand that caters to outdoor enthusiasts. From water shoes to sandals that can take a beating, if you’ve ever tried to expose a pair of Teva shoes to the elements, you know these kicks are comfortable in the wild.
Lately though, the whole outdoor performance thing isn’t enough. Teva’s trying to focus on the dual-use factor. We received a pair of Teva Fuse-Ion shoes to review, and it’s clear that the company wants to offer the type of outdoor, elements-be-damned performance that you’d expect from the brand, while also providing a bit of everyday style to go along with the package. As the Teva website puts it, “We designed a shoe that you can wear to the bar, then made it the highest performing water shoe ever built. No big deal.”
So did they succeed in this effort? I think so.
From a performance/wetness-battling standpoint, the Teva Fuse-Ion uses Ion Mask material to keep the shoe extra dry. What’s Ion-Mask, you ask? It’s a nano-coating material that’s a thousand times thinner than human hair and molecularly bonds to a surface to provide extreme liquid repellency while still allowing for maximum breathability. Oh, and it’s also solvent-free and only uses tiny bits of protective monomer so it won’t have a negative impact on the environme Basically, shoe stays dry.
Other outdoorsy features of the shoe include the use of spider rubber technology for crazy grip (even in wet conditions) and a quick heel pop down feature that allows for instant slip on action. The pop down thing is pretty cool. Even if you’re not asking for extreme liquid repellency, and you just want to slip some shoes on real quick to take out the trash or something, you can slide your feet in there, totally stomp on the heel, and the heel part of the shoe will pop back into place, no problem.
As far as the “I can totally where this to the bar” factor, you can see that the shoe is pretty stylish. It doesn’t look like something developed by NASA in a lab or anything like that. They’re kind of form-fitting with a bit of a thin sole. If you have extra wide feet, you might find Fuse-Ion a bit restrictive, but not more restrictive than, say, your average pair of Adidas. Also, neon blue laces aren’t my thing, but the shoe pictured above also came with some light gray laces. I think those are the more subtle, bar-friendly play.
The Teva Fuse-Ion kicks retail for $90 and are available in black (pictured above), bungee cord (nice two-tone throwback action) or duck green (which, to me, has a bit of ninja turtle vibe going on). If you want a breathable shoe that can stay all kinds of dry and not look like some kind of futuristic aqua sock, you’ll find a nice middle ground with the Fuse-Ions.
Mar 15th
Irish Spring Body Wash Giveaway
Keeping with the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, we’re going to make sure that your March includes some total body freshness, Irish styl Remember those sweet Irish Spring commercials from back in the day? Everyone looked so happy, there so much whistling and who could forget the obligatory knifing of the green bar of soap?
Well now it’s a whole lot easier to get that fresh and clean as whistle Irish Spring experience. Starting this month, Irish Spring body wash will be available everywhere. Irish Spring® Clear & Fresh Skin™ Body Wash is made just for dudes. It contains 2% Salicylic Acid to help guys prevent break outs and that strong, distinctive Irish Spring scent is all part of the package. You could be smelling fresh and clean as a whistle for up to 8 hours, man! And you don’t have to bring a knife into the shower, either!
Mar 11th
Use Promo Code “MANJ” on Gunniess.com – Get in on the Biggest St. Patrick’s Day Party EVER
St. Patrick’s Day is coming up quick everyone, so remember to take a minute to get in on the biggest shamrock themed party of all time. We’ve told you all about Guinness and there efforts to break a world record this St. Patty’s Day. Well we need you to join the party, pal! The World Record for the Biggest St. Patrick’s Day Party EVER isn’t going to set itself, you know.
What can you do to support Guinness and MANjr? It’s super easy:
1. Visit Guinness.com.
2. Click “Count Me In”
3. Enter your first name, zip code and date of birth
4. Enter the promo code “MANJ”
That’s it! It takes less than 60 seconds to be part of something awesome and you could also win a trip to Dublin in the process.
Thanks again for your support and have a safe and happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Mar 10th
Glenfiddich Cask of Dreams Review
A couple weeks ago, I attended a tasting of Glenfiddich’s rare Cask of Dreams whisky at Seven Grand in Downtown LA. The tasting was hosted by Mitch Bechard, the Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador for the western US. Bechard did a great job of explaining the story behind the Cask of Dreams release, and he scored extra points with me after he hooked me up with a limited edition Cask of Dreams bottle to take home.
So here’s the story behind the Cask of Dreams whisky. The limited bottling of the Cask of Dreams is part of Glenfiddich’s 125th Anniversary celebration here in the states. In 2011, Glennfiddich brought 11 brand new American oak barrels from the Ozarks to different iconic cities throughout the US. They encouraged people from all over the country to sign these barrels and include a note about their dreams and what inspires them.
So people around the US arrived at these cask signing events, enjoyed some great whisky and put their mark on the oak barrels. The barrels were then shipped back to Glenfiddich where they wree filled with a variety of matured whiskies, the youngest being 14 years old. The whisky was decanted in the new oak barrels and monitored to ensure that the right combination of vanilla, spice and aromas were achieved. The whisky was sampled every three to four weeks by Glenfiddich Malt Master Brian Kinsman. After three months of finishing and achieving a 48.8% ABV, the limited edition whisky was ready to be bottled. Only 3,500 bottles were produced (for the US only) with a recommended retail price of $99.
So sampling this stuff was pure joy. I love single malt whisky and the Cask of Dreams flavor was just fantastic. Super smooth, well-blended flavor. No single flavor dominated the taste. It was strong without a big bite. It’s the kind of spirit that you don’t even want to swallow. You just let it sit on your tongue as long as possible so you can soak in the complexities. It has a sweet and fruity nose, a friendly entry and a mellow-spicy finish. If you have a chance to get your hands on this limited release, I highly recommend it.
And if you’re interested in regular whisky tastings at Seven Grand, contact Pedro Shanahan – pedro@213downtown.la. Pedro invites master distillers and brand ambassadors to visit the local Whiskey Society. He runs weekly and monthly events where you can learn about and sample whisky from all over the place. If you live close to Downtown LA, it’s definitely worth checking out.
Mar 1st
Guinness St. Patrick’s Day Pledge!
It’s never too early to start thinking about your St. Patty’s Day plans. Those four leaf clovers, green outfits, parades, pints and pubs aren’t going to enjoy themselves. You need to start mapping out what your March 17 festivities are going to look like now.
This year, instead of sipping on some god-awful American light beer loaded with green food coloring, why not take part in a time-honored St. Patrick’s Day tradition and responsibly celebrate with some tasty Guinness?
According to National Geographic, Guinness sales go through the roof on March 17:
On any given day 5.5 million pints of Guinness, the famous Irish stout brand, are consumed around the world. But on St. Patrick’s Day, that number more than doubles to 13 million pints, said Beth Davies Ryan, global corporate-relations director of Guinness.
The folks at Guinness are well aware that St. Patty’s Day and Guinness are the perfect party combination. That’s why this year Guinness is recruiting people from all over the world to sign a pledge to responsibly enjoy their tasty brew on March 17. Their goal is to set a Guinness World Records title for “The Largest St. Patrick’s Day Celebration” ever.
MANjr is partnering up with Guinness to get the word out on this pledge. Our blog is the representative for the state of California, so we’re asking you, dear reader, to help support the cause and sign the pledge for on Guinness.com.
When you visit the site, click “Join the Party” and you’ll be directed to a form that asks for your first name, country, zip code and an optional code. Just fill out the form and enter “MANJ” into the optional code field so they can track all the MANjr pledges that come in. You don’t have to be form California to sign the pledge, but help us represent our fine state in this noble cause! You could also win a trip to Dublin!
We get $1 for every pledge we bring in (up to $1,000), and if we dominate this pledge stuff, we can earn a trip to Dublin to attend a party at St. James Gate in September.
So help us out people! The competition is fierce, the cause is just and we need your support. Don’t forget to include “MANJ” in the optional code.
Thanks for your support and have a safe and happy St. Patrick’s Day!
Feb 29th
Autographed Yvonne Strahovski SoBe Lifewater Skinsuit Poster Giveaway
topbankinfo.ru
As I’m sure you’ve heard, the 2012 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition is available on newsstands everywhere. Just look for the insanely hot cover with Kate Upton smiling back at you, and take a look inside. You’ll find page after page of super fine models wearing barely a damn thing while posing in the most exotic locations in the world. You’ll also find Yvonne Strahovski’s steamy body paint photo shoot for SoBe Lifewater.
Yvonne is the third model to appear in a SoBe Lifewater Skinsuit, and she chatted with us about the experience a few weeks ago. We posted a couple of photos from the shoot, but photos on a blog a really don’t do the shoot justice. To fully appreciate the SoBe skinsuit, you need a big poster autographed by Yvonne herself. Something like this:
How do you score the poster? Easy! Just follow us on Twitter @MANjrcom and send us an email below. We’ll pick a winner at random next Tuesday.
Good luck!
Feb 21st
SnöBar Ice Cream Review
I like to drink and I like to eat ice cream. So naturally, when I heard about SnöBar alcohol infused ice cream and ice pops, I was a bit intrigued. Can two tastes that taste so great apart really taste that great together? I needed to investigate.
SnöBar basically takes premium alcohol and introduces a full cocktail in every ice cream and ice pop serving. Apparently this isn’t easy. There are all kinds of chemistry issues and complicated scientific know-how that goes into the ice cream/alcohol combo process. The main thing is getting the two things to coexist without separating during the freezing process. My understanding is that this has been tried before, just not that successfully.
At the moment, SnöBar ice cream and ice pops are only available in Arizona, but they’ll be showing up in Las Vegas very soon. These treats are ideal for pool parties, BBQs, sporting events, summer snacks, late night sweet-tooth nightcaps, you get the idea.
I got to sample a whole bunch of SnöBar goodies a couple weeks back. I came away impressed. Here are the current flavors of ice cream that are available:
- Grasshopper – Brandy with crème de menthe, crème de cacao and cream
- Pink Squirrel – Brandy, almond liqueur and crème de cocoa with cream
- Brandy Alexander – Brandy and crème de cocoa with cream
- Brandy Alexander with Chocolate Chips – Brandy, crème de cocoa with cream and chocolate chips
And here are the two ice pop flavors:
- Margarita ice-pop – premium tequila, lime and triple sec
- Cosmopolitan ice-pop – premium vodka, triple sec and cranberry.
I sampled a Cosmo ice pop and it was super tasty. Not too sweet, not too stiff of an alcohol taste – just the right combo of flavor, refreshment and slight head-change. For the ice cream flavors, the Brandy Alexander with Chocolate Chips was my favorite. It was a rich, homogenous blend of choco flavor with a bit of a kick. The Grasshopper has a more distinctive minty taste, with the alcohol being more of a subtle play.
The amount of alcohol included in each flavor varies a bit, from 3.59 to 6.41 percent (8.22 to 14.67 alc/vol). No one’s going to ask you for your keys after you enjoy some frozen SnöBar treats, but the alcohol content adds more than just flavor. You definitely get the satisfaction of a full cocktail with the added desert benefit of frozen refreshment.
SnöBar products can be found at Total Wine stores, but the company has plans for a more expansive nationwide rollout in 2012. Keep your eyes peeled for the displays and try one out if you have the chance. It’s a good idea that’s well executed and a delight to share with friends.
Jan 30th
The Feynman Series
I came across these vids yesterday and they’re fantastic. Created by @ReidGower, The Feynman Series is a companion project of The Sagan Series. Check out The Sagan Series Facebook page to learn more. Enjoy!
Jan 25th
