(Shooting for Swim Call Vol. 2 on my new old Nikonos camera in Italy this summer. See more @jgpeabody)
CONSIDER
About seventh months ago I decided I needed to give alcohol a break. I won’t go too much into it here (sobriety essays can be insufferable), but I will say that the experience forced me to seek out some new beverages, and I’ve been happily surprised with what I’ve found. This week I got to write about a few entrepreneurs behind two of the beverage brands I’m really enjoying: Casamara Club and Athletic Brewery. Both are making excellent nonalcoholic beverages and my profiles of each attempt to show how they fit into the larger industry and the #sobercurious movement that’s currently happening. (FWIW I never considered myself part of a “movement” when making the choice to abstain, just a happy coincidence I guess!)
For Marker, I wrote about Casamara Club, the Detroit startup making bitter sodas. Having spent a lot of time in Italy, I’ve always been frustrated that bitter sodas like Chinnoto and Sanbitter aren’t as common here in the U.S. These are very drinkable adult sodas that easily pull cocktail hour duty. In fact, in Italy drinking one of these sodas with aperitivo (later afternoon cocktail snacks) is very normal, unlike drinking sodas at happy hour here in the U.S.
The other brand I covered is Athletic Brewery, which is making FANTASTIC craft NA beer. I profiled the Connecticut brewery in a story published today in Fast Company. When I finally found their beer, I was super relieved that I could maintain a sober lifestyle and still drink good beer. As regular readers know, I’m obsessed with good beer. I make beer and love to visit breweries near and far. Athletic has created a line of beers that are damn good, NA or not. Try the IPA, the Cerveza Atletica, and the Gose if you can find it. You won’t be disappointed.
And finally, if you’re thinking about drying out for a bit, here are a few articles that helped me think about it in new ways, that aren’t insufferable.
Creating While Clean: Steven Tyler, Julien Baker, Ben Harper, Jason Isbell, Joe Walsh, and other sober musicians on how to thrive creatively without drugs or booze. (GQ)
How to Change Without Willpower (The Cut)
HAPPENING
Late notice, but if you’re in New York do check out this stoop sale at Daptone Records in Brooklyn today. Daptone is the label that brought the world Charles Bradley, Sharon Jones and Amy Winehouse’s best work (in my mind), and getting to visit the hallowed ground where these artists, and so many more, recorded is pretty amazing.
More about Daptone’s House of Soul here:
And if you can’t be there in person, you can always shop virtually.
LINKS
A Fire Lookout On What's Lost In a Transition To Technology (NPR)
The Military Origins of Layering (The Atlantic)
Olivetti’s Utopia Town Abandoned. (T Magazine)
The Consumerism Curse (Om.co)
Creativity is the new Productivity (Marker)
ACQUIRE
Looking for a new fall layer? Something waxed? Lined? May I direct you to the Flint and Tinder Waxed Trucker? I can personally attest to the quality of build and materials. Feels damn reasonable at $240 as well.
LISTEN
Daptone’s brand new Ballad Hour playlist:
FOLLOW
One of my favorite photographers of the day (for obvious reasons) is Megan Barrett. As I experiment with the Nikonos camera, I find myself frequently checking into her work for inspiration.
WATCH
The Weight is the greatest song of the modern era right? I think objectively speaking it has to be. What’s better? Or more universally loved? THERE ISN’T ONE!
At least that’s how I feel after seeing this video. Read the backstory here.
That’s it. What else did I miss this week?
John
P.S. A HUGE thanks and welcome to our new subscribers. Hit me up anytime with suggestions, thoughts and interesting links.