#side note: cool things to check out include the strong museum of play

[onekisstotakewithme]

quick! in the tags: favourite "low key vacation spot"

(as in, you'd go there for long weekends, or is somewhere that when you say you'd go there on vacations, people go "... why?")

[muffindaddystyles]

𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐃

Author note: Mention of drugs, sickness and blood (if you're not comfortable with it don't read it) . It mighty be heart warming fluffyyyyyy.

You're his kitten. No matter the consequences you're. Cause even in his anger sometimes (which's rare and it's on the silly go-to's) he still sticks to that pet name because he met you like that under the bus stop's shelter in a heavy rain offered you an umbrella (while you were huffing and puffing like a kitten annoyed with the weather), walked you home, had a tea with you and some chocolate chip cookies. Been bestfriends from that year and there isn't a red light to your guys wild adventures—but he's been having a rough time recently. Had a cruel heart shattering breakup from a relationship that he thought was a never ending dream (she brought him happiness in a weird way he couldn't put into words) indeed it tightened your chest but his happiness's most important to you. To overcome it he's been scribbling notebooks over notebooks with lyrics that screams he miss her and the sex for the most part of it. It breaks your heart.

He's usually the one to melt all over you, give you forehead kisses, cuddles you when your periods are the bitchiest, makes you brekkie if he stays a night, runs you a bath and sometimes brings you pomegranate berried candles (he lies that he got them as a gift, he's one hell of a liar). He takes care of you with so much gentleness and helps you with study after wiping your tears and reassuring you telling you how proud he's of you. It made you guilty sometimes 'cos if you'd be in camille's place. . .you'd never be able not to get jealous. She was cool with it. Fills you with another curiosity that maybe she treated it like a fling.

He was devastated. Knocking on your door feebly. Then the moment your small confused body was under his weary gaze, boom!! It crashed upon him like a pitch storm and he fell to his knees tucking his head in your armpit crying his heart out. At that moment you felt his pain radiating to you and twisting your own stomach with a dagger, it was insufferable. He gave out no-deep scrapes but not to freak your bones muttered that he lost her. Eventually his bottled up emotions seeped into hues infront of you by passing week and to your littlest of information you got to know that they didn't ended up well in some perspectives so their relationship turned out to be a downfall. So As, you do with your girlie best-friend when she have a breakup you did it with Harry too. It didn't included feral clubbing (you left that part to his mates) but watching sappy movies that could fill your ice-cream bucket once you eat it whole, doing homemade face masks, playing drunk uno and knocking on your neighbours door to run way at last, dragging his arse to museum and in all of this you ended up convincing him to adopt a kitty (she lives with you thou).

The roles have been reversed completely!

He's been living at your flat for five weeks now. It's fading his usual cheekiness and the itch to annoy you every second he gets. Instead, it's just eating, spending bits of hours with you, going out with his mates and coming back to crash at your couch padding in your room in the wee of night demanding a warm coddle from you and that his back hurts from the cruelty of that single spring popping from the leather, staying with him when he'd wrench his stomach out in the morning. He's sensitive. His heart's soft that's one of the reason he gets hurt real quick, you admire that about him and reminds him that it's one of his qualities you're totally in love with. You're gentle with him. Giving him space and time to recover. Going with him at his friend's birthday little get together not drinking at all knowing one would have to stay sober as he chugged red wine staining his hawain shirt and when he clumsily poked his pink tongue out lazily to reach for the cigarette in her hand you tugged him back into you before he'd burn his tongue with sparkles announcing it's time to head back home and he'd be a pain in arse (a beautiful one though because his antics makes you all mushy) when he pretended to steal sandwiches from the table hiding them under his shirt saying that "'m pregnant with twins and it's hard to carry them" while you dragged him outside making him wear his coat like a stubborn toddler. Making him cupcakes sometimes, playing with his fluff of curls while he reads the book she gave him. It hurts. But, it subsides down with his single amiable glance that tells you he needs you. He always had. He always will. You give him extra forehead kisses and pecks on cheek while leaving for UNI, because it's irresistible to give dust to his pouty sulk.

It's seven in the morning when he tumbled through your door (has a key, you even brought his clothes and toothbrush from his house—he even uses your strawberry scented shampoo and body wash) his nose tip blushed matching his cheeks, eyes pooling with haze and hair poking in every direction. You were studying for a class you've in an hour. When you saw his irirses blown out you arched your brow putting the cup down beside your thick book, to mingle his sadness he's experimenting different fun wild things (told you bout it and you even called Mitch to take care of him).

"How many am I, pet?" You asked walking towards him seeing him struggle to get out of his vans and your giggles echoed into coldness when he peers down at your crouched state with his gold fish-y eyes, "dunno. . . but ye'r seem like. .like a-a sunflower floatin' in me head." His lips molding around his each word agonisingly slow drawl and his voice hoarse and scratchy. "You need rest, bambi." You got him out of his jeans and socks knowing he despises to sleep with layers on. "I'll be back with you in some hours. Hmm? Then we'll snuggle into blankets, you me and. . .salsa the pussy cat." You have to control your laugh everytime you take the kitty's name (Harry's worst at giving names you were horrified when he once joked that he loves chelsea boots so much he could name his daughter Chelsea) He whines at that nodding his head but not loosening his grip from around your wrist while you tucked him under your baby green patch work quilt. It's like his brain and heart can't decide how to choose.

On your way back you got Jeff's call asking why Harry isn't picking his phone his own voice resembling that of Harry's and you know he'd be looking shit at the time. Harry was still snoring out like a bulb in bright day on his tummy and you shook him gently at first but when he didn't woke up you had to be a bit harsher. "Harry wake up pet. . . Jeff's been calling ye for since." But, not even a hum in response so you placed your finger under his nose checking if he's even alive. Gratefully he was just sleeping like a literal corpse (he argues that he isn't that bad of a sleeper but in fact he is. Everything around him would burn down and he wouldn't even change a side).

It was seven in the evening when you were preparing for dinner when he woke up grumpy. His nose scrunched up, lips quirked up as if he tasted something yucky and his gait jello. You eyed him quietly even when he came in kitchen to drink water.

"Jeff was callin'. . ." You quipped stirring the veggies before pouring soup into a bowl and sliding it his way on the counter, "I know bombarded me phone with calls—" He gruffed spooning a mouthful and you flinched when he tried to cool it inside his mouth with "hawahhoohaha" little sounds (he knew it was hot, he's just an impatient leech).

"Stop being a gremlin. He told me ye' aren't writing, leaving everything like a cliffhanger neither you're attending the meetings he calls you at. . . I think you're done with your mourning it's time to do what you actually love and is there for you. Your music." You frown seriously trying to put some senses into his forever high brain. He drops the spoon back and dips his brows frustratedly, pinching his eyes shut.

"Fuckin' hell. Stop being my mama!" It's not the first time you guys are arguing and you're not gonna take it to heart. You stood up towering him and jabbing your finger to his chest, "you better stop filling your system with drugs before eighteen year olds come to you thinking you're a drug dealer—" He snickers at that a total mocking one (you know he's doing nothing hard it's just shrooms in the safe environment otherwise you'd have never never allowed him) but still you had to bring him back to his line so it was necessary. "Piss off." He mutters still slurping on his soup and you left him there with a loud smack on his head, "Wanker."

You care about him. Always did. Always will. He's the love of your life. Even your love has nourishment of just water and lacks sunshine from your sun it's still there into existence, how could you see him like this? Wasting his precious time and energy. It's impossible.

All you heard before going to deep slumber was the tinsy creak of your main door after that it was silent and darkness until now your phone buzzed under your pillow resonating Niall's tired words. You were a wreck havoc fumbling for your coat and wallet, covering pathway to tube with shivering legs hallucinating that everyone's eyeing your fiddly self with judgemental stare even though there're few.

You rushed to Niall's doorsteps knocking like a maniac, "where's he? Is he okay? told ye—" You pushed him aside marching inside to look for him. "He looked fine, he's a strong guy y/n they took him to hospital." You snaps your neck raising your brows.

"What the fuck, d'ya mean hospital!?" Your heart hammering in her ribcage overthinking the worst scenarios. "Take me there. right. fuckin' now." You tell him firmly not caring even if he's high too. Niall leads you to his car heating it up in the first beat taking glances of your petite body leaning against the glass with lips sucked in, eyes watered and legs constantly on bounce so placed his hand atop your knee giving you reassuring squeeze and a genial smile.

Your pink cheeks warming up with the heat of hospital radiating your way and loud growl left your chest when your blurry vision cleared to the sight of dishelved Harry sitting on the bench outside of ER, his irirses weary, mouth stuffed with cotton and has few scratches of rashes on his elbows otherwise he's fine. With each step of yours towards him something kept breaking inside you like you're walking on the nails and it's ripping you raw. He raised his head timidly hearing footsteps and when his eyes fell over your worried state panic flashed over his features and his only gaze turned you a puddling emitting heavy sobs within you before reaching towards him. The reality of situation dawning upon you because from what Niall told you in the car that they were high trying to have some fun, drove around neighbour hood and Harry jumped out of the window and bit his tongue between his teeth resulting in heavy bleeding a deep gnash (the fuckin' dumbstick he is).

"I hate you. I hate you so fuckin' much! you bastard." You tried to shout at him but the voice that came out of your mouth was that of mice as you threw harsh blows at his chest, bottom lip jutting wet and salty tears tricking down. He wraps his hand around your wrists ushering you closer down to his chest speaking muffled, "'orry." causing you to grunt angrily into the crook of his neck.

"Sorry my ass!" When you tried to pull back he tightened his hold round your neck snuggling you warmly to him with a hum. Jeff came back with medicines and when he parted his lips to speak in his defence you ignored him wiping your tears with the heel of your palms muttering a, "I hate you guys." The drive back was silent and the walk to your flat too, you passed by him to lock yourself into your room (you wouldn't because of the fact you wouldn't be able to sleep if not sure he's okay few feets away from you). When Harry attempted to roll his tongue to make some words nothing came out but a hiss making you spin, "'s okay we'll speak in the mornin'." Saying this you headed to bed and when you were bout to turn the lamp off he was lurking at the foot of your bed with a pillow in his arms smushing his face into it and squeezing it close to his chest gesticulating you that he wants a cuddle.

"Only 'cos y're adorable." You muttered moving your bum to make space for him suppressing your cooe when he grinned showing nothing but snow cotton, fuckin' hell being this cute should be illegal! He snapped his finger to call Salsa and she instantly galloped to shrink into his side while you spooned him. You woke up to the running tap and the time you were stretching under your quilt with yawns he padded out looking healed than last night.

He got a little lisp as he spoke, "can we talk?" You nodded knuckling at your sticky eyes criss-crossing your legs. "'Forgive me kitten." He continues, "sorry fo' mistreatin' ye' last night." You shake your head not realizing tears are dropping down your collarbones.

"Please. . .I don't wanna be a party-pooper in your life. you can live your life to finest but not at the sake of your life Harry– and. . . and if you're trying to invade the feelin' of sadness with all of this I don't approve it. What bout me? dunno what'll do if somethin' will happen to you, pet. S'not fair to me. is it? Just. . . love y—" your confessions cameflouging with sobs.

"Oh baby. ." He immediately cradled you in his embrace trying to soothe you with 'sorrys' and 'I'll never do somethin' like that again, promise'. Smooching slobery kisses all over your face and when you gazed up at him attracting him closer to your clean warm features all he did was peck the corner of your lips tenderly pulling away to pat your hair with a sigh.

"So. . .ye' love me." He teased you and you rolled your eyes grabbing his chin with your fingers, "show me your tongue." biting down your laugh when he retorted misheviously, "hmm. Wanna kiss it better?" Blowing him off with a remark that he's an utter pervert hiding the fact it splashed crimson to your neck.

"Mind makin' me poor self some brekkie?" He pouts and you giggled pecking the corner of his burgundy lips getting a timid smile in return, "in trade of?" He hip-checked you straddling Salsa over his shoulder and grabbing her little paws to expertise her in some dancey-dance moves.

"Mind bloggin' orgasm–ique dinner." He cackled loudly at the end when you shook your head in fake disappointment at him and he clinged by your side helping you to make some breakfast.

Think so you guys will figure it out.

[ginkgomoon]

Shaw's Birth Chart- An Astrological Study

Late second birthday gift to Shaw. I haven't done any heavy analyses/studies in a while but I felt happy that I also completed some good solid Shaw content! Please enjoy. *Cries because it's finally done and before June is over.*

What is Astrology?

Astrology is the study of stars- the placements and movements of different celestial bodies to correlate what’s happening on Earth. It comes from the early Latin word astrologia.

There’s a rule that we live by-

As above so below

This means whatever happens within our solar system will ultimately affect us here on Earth. For example, the moon governs our emotions, and since our body is approximately 70% water, why wouldn’t the moon affect us too? But it’s not just us, it's the moon’s gravitational pull on the oceans, in the same sense, it’s also the moodiness you may feel during full moons!

There’s many aspects to Astrology, and that would normally be too much for a single post so I’ll be elaborating on the major contributions to one’s birth chart. This will include the planets and the signs.

There’s the inner planets, consisting of the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Mars and Venus, moving quickly within the chart. Then there’s the outer planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus and Pluto, the slower moving planets. And of course, the different signs of the zodiac with different personalities. They follow the order beginning with Aries, then Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and finally Pisces.

Shaw's Placements

Sun ☉ The Sun represents our character, personal identity and ego. Your star sign is also known as your Sun sign. It is the “you”. The “Self”. It shows your creative force, confidence, focus and our will to live. It’s the driving force of our charts in many ways, like how it is centred in our solar system. It’s the part of us that is the “adult”, censoring the “inner child”, and overall provides information on our vitality, and what we came to do.

Shaw's Sun is in Gemini ♊︎ The air sign of Gemini is famous for their self-expression and communication. Geminis are witty, clever and flexible people. They can easily gain social contacts just as they can easily adapt in various situations and communicate through intellectual conversations. Geminis love to collect and share all sorts of information and are rather seen to be “geniuses”.

Although, they can be easily bored if they’re not getting enough mental stimulation. Geminis with their abilities to detach themselves make them excellent observers, but this can make them very difficult to be close to and be intimate with. People note them to be confusing and hard to understand, but this is because their mind is always active and switching from one topic to another (as they are represented by “the Twins”). Geminis enjoy seeing the “lighter” side of life, making them more fun and pleasing to be around. It’s guaranteed that there is never a dull moment when you’re with a Gemini!

Shaw holds a good representation as a Gemini. He always has a witty remark to say to MC, has a way with words, is shown by how he reacts to “fight or flight” situations, and stresses the usage of his favourite word, “bored”. Shaw, by having this placement of the Sun in Gemini also gives much strength to his Mercury (the planet of communication) which is also in Gemini (more on this later).

Shaw: “What do people usually do during dates?”

MC: “Uh, it’s usually eating, shopping and watching movies.”

Shaw: “That’s too boring, isn’t it? Since it’s a date with you, I’d like to get your feedback. What would you like to do?”

MC: “Nothing else.”

Shaw: “Then, what do you want to do?”

He thought for a couple of seconds and raised his eyebrows slowly, with a hint of glimmer of dark light in his eyes.

“You'll agree to anything that I do…?” -One Day Date

MC: “Why did you suddenly take an interest in reading?”

Shaw: “For the final exam.”

Despite his concentration, he flipped the pages with incredible speed- it seemed as if he didn't like what he read. -Summer Night Birthday Date

Shaw values all forms of communication and self-expression, whether it would be through music, writing, and teaching others about ancient relics. Additionally, it appears that he enjoys a range of hobbies, such as playing the bass, skateboarding and spray-painting, due to his interest in the wide variety of passions he developed. MC notices this on one of her earliest dates with him.

MC: “Hey, you seem to have a wide range of hobbies.” -One Day Date

Moon ☾ The Moon in our charts shows what your home is like, your upbringing, the relationship between your mother, the unconscious, your instincts and what you need. It tells us a lot about a person’s emotions, how they deal with it and how they express it to others.

Shaw's Moon is in Capricorn ♑︎ Productivity, work, and feeling useful and respected are the basic need for Lunar Caps. They like to keep their emotions in check, as they want to maintain being the cool-headed, practical and steady person of any group and in any project. Moon in Capricorn suggests that they have clear boundaries and realistic kinds of goals, looking for reassurance and security in what they do. They value and respect tradition and all things tangible and real. Moon Caps look forward to working towards their distant future goals, planning one step at a time. When feeling moody, their emotions will emphasise the pressure they had already put on themselves. Additionally, this is why letting their guard down to be comforted and to be reminded that they are not alone is very beneficial. Capricorns are unwilling to stand down, especially when it comes to emotionally “letting go”, hiding their sensitivity under a sarcastic manner. Wherever Capricorn is found in the chart, there is a desire for control, structure, and organisation. Emotions are well dealt with and handled in an efficient and practical manner.

There is a certain mysteriousness and sadness behind Shaw that can be subtly detected and yet to further explore deeply. This might have come from past trauma, possibly related to family relations. He has realistic expectations and justifications for his emotions, and when it comes to his goals, he will utilise these to help him slowly achieve them. Shaw is slowly letting his guard around MC, and gradually allowing him to love.

MC: “How can you draw so well?” I murmured quietly, envying his skills which require much talent.

Shaw: “Is it good? In a few months, it will fade into obscure and worthless trash."

He glanced at the wall with an undisguised contempt, as if it was not his own work that he was judging.

“It’s a failure.” He shook a spray can and started spraying it on the wall.

MC: “Wait! Why are you doing this?”

Shaw did not avert his eyes, and stood with his arms folded, refusing to give in.

Shaw: “But it's flawed now.” -One-Day Date

After a few seconds of silence, he frowned and put everything in his arms back on the table except for a can of coke. “Don’t act like you know me so well.” -Exciting Moments Date

Perhaps it was because I didn't believe that Shaw would appear so calm or so still, or because I wanted to explore why he looked so focused, I also looked at him in silence.

Shaw: “You really like to immerse yourself in your past.”

MC: “Find strength through the memories, then grow and become stronger.” I suddenly recalled a line from a TV series, and read it out.

A flicker of doubt flashed through his eyes, and eventually condensed into a dismissive look.

Shaw: “Who told you that we can only become stronger with memories?”

MC: “Why are you so dismissive?”

Speaking of which, what made Shaw so strong if it’s not finding strength from his “memory” or “past”?

Shaw: Why are you telling me this? Reminiscing every day means you’re getting old.”

-

Rain started to shower from the gloomy sky. I looked up, and found that the dark clouds were only above this small area of filming location. It was actually very sunny over at the antique market.

Fortunately, the rain was not heavy, and was even getting lighter as he predicted. He pulled at his hair, shaking off the scattering beads of rain. Such serenity did not match my impression of him, yet it was unexpectedly harmonious and natural.

MC: “Are you the rain god? Why does it always rain when I'm out with you?”

Shaw: “It’s because I can control the weather.”

At this point, the rain, which had stopped just a short while, suddenly fell again, but more densely. The smirk on his face was not gone yet. The rain seemed to be getting heavier. I felt more saddened as he spoke, yet Shaw just laughed. -Seeking Date

As a Capricorn Moon, his value and respect for tradition, and in all things tangible is very much obvious, and is highlighted with his display of knowledge about historic relics in Loveland’s museum shown in various dates, being the only student in the Department of Archeology of in Loveland University, as well in this scene from Season 2 that I couldn’t bear to leave out.

Mercury ☿ Mercury is the communication planet. When you write, speak, absorb information and how rational we are, you’re using your Mercury. It refines our Sun sign and helps define how we take in and give out information. It also talks about short distance travelling, governing your thirst for knowledge, your wit and negotiating skills. If someone is an excellent talker, it’s thanks to their Mercury placements.

Shaw's Mercury in Gemini ♊︎ Since Mercury is already ruled by Gemini, which makes it a favourable placement for quick-witted communication. Gemini Mercury placements may come across as being scattered and restless, but this is because of their different interests, seemingly knowing a little bit about everything. They easily gain knowledge where all sorts of facts and figures are up their alley, however generally have too many interests to deeply delve all into one. They can thrive in a stimulating environment as they are fast adapters who effortlessly learn and multitask at lightning speed.

This overlaps with Shaw’s Gemini Sun Placement. He may confuse MC sometimes with his personality and wit, but it’s nice to see MC adapt to it as well, because they have a lot to learn and grow from each other. He encourages MC to live life more boldly, while she teaches him to take things slower and be more aware of how his emotions and thoughts should work in harmony under special circumstances.

“He has no problem with the noise from rehearsals, and yet he can't stop criticising me for being noisy. He gets easily bored by things and yet he never gets tired on aimless strolls. Moreover, he always disagrees with me…” -Exciting Moment Date

MC: “Are you doing something illegal?”

Shaw: “What do you think?” Shaw looked at me playfully, and I could not help taking a step back vigilantly.

MC: “I'm a good law-abiding citizen and I won't be your accomplice!”

Shaw: “That's not up to you.”

-

MC: “Oh no! What should we do, what if we get caught!”

Shaw: “Nothing. Having a date at the police station should be a good experience.” -One-Day Date

Additionally, those reoccurring moments when he says that he had changed his mind also stems from the “twinning” aspect of Gemini in his thought process.

Shaw: “Give the cake and forks to me.”

MC: “Didn’t you say you didn’t want it?”

Shaw: “I changed my mind.” -Exciting Moments Date

Venus ♀︎ The planet Venus is ultimately the planet of love, beauty, wealth, our material things and what we do with all that sort of jazz. It’s the pleasures, our sentiments, what we do for leisure and what we value. Grace, charm, creativity, and entertainment are ruled by Venus. We can use this planet to see how we approach relationships of the heart, investigate our ability to attract and the attraction to others (or things).

Shaw's Venus is in Cancer ♋︎ These kinds of people are quite sensitive and insecure when it comes to love, with egos perhaps said to be a little bit undeveloped but have so much love, comfort, security, and care to offer. These aspects are emphasised for Cancers, who pay more attention to your feelings rather than said words. All they want is a safe, solid and secure relationship. They can be moody when it comes to love, though they are not afraid of emotional confrontations and to put their emotions on display when feeling it’s safe.

But once they are hurt, they will have a hard time forgiving. Pleasing them will involve a lot of sentimentality, as recognising their influences and attachments are from the family and home. When fearful of being rejected, they can resort to some frustrating tactics to find out how loved they are. Venus Cancers will want to be cared for, and in return their partner will be rewarded with a loving, dependable and patient lover.

Shaw puts up a front with his teasing and seemingly lack of interest to attend events with MC, though we can tell that he’s a very thoughtful and intuitive lover. Once he has allowed himself to internally address his feelings, he will use straightforward methods in how he communicates it to MC, again, strengthened by his Gemini placements. Additionally, Cancers will cling onto something or someone that is of value to them, because it evokes memories and emotions. In the same sense, if there is someone that Shaw has his eye on, he will inch closer to them, and will be unwilling to give them up once he has them.

I tried to reach out and pull him down while watching out for him, but he just took me by surprise and grabbed my hand instead. I quickly pressed down my skirt with the other hand. Probably realising something, his amber eyes widened slightly, then let go of me, with a low “tsk”. -Seeking Date

Shaw: “Why can’t you let that go?”

MC: Because I'm sick of you treating me like this. One time, you waited for me to get to the Live House to tell me that there was a change in venue, and there was also this one time when you- achoo!”

I pulled my jacket tighter around myself. Suddenly there was a rustle above my head and I found myself covered in a warm coat. Shaw stood up without a word as if he didn't hear me. Clad in a white shirt, he looked at once familiar and strange from behind.

Then I noticed his hand in the pocket. I was expecting him to conjure something for me like he did last time with the Dragonfly Eye. Before I could react, Shaw suddenly grabbed me by hand. With no gloves on, he tightly wrapped his slender fingers around my palm. I felt an unexpectedly soft and warm sensation.

MC: “Let go of me!”

Shaw: “No, I don’t want to.”

-

Shaw: “You've been asking questions about me all day. Do you really want to get to know me? Bring your ear closer. I can tell you all about myself.”

-Exciting Moments Date

His hand flew past my face and landed on the back of my head. With a slight jerk, he pulled me toward him. Our foreheads were then pressed together, and I felt the warmth of his forehead resting on mine, my breath on my skin, his unintentional touch, and his body pressed against mine. -Summer Night Birthday Date

“Do you like me? Yes or no?” -Unanswered Phone Call

Mars ♂︎ Mars is the go-getter planet. Full of fire and passion, nothing would be done without it. It can give insights on how we can chase our goals and what our desires and our plans of attack are. Aggressive behaviour, lust and anger fall under this planet.

Shaw's Mars is in Libra ♎︎ Mars Libras often reflect about the things they do before they act, needing to weigh out all the decisions first. They also can get easily caught up in defending themselves and others, as well as charming others to win others’ favour if needed. They wish to not be disturbed in their life or how they “operate”, going about with the desire to balance everything, with almost having a seemingly passive-aggressive approach to situations. Mars Libras know when to compromise and manage conflict, as well as predicting problems and discord well in advance. Libras will question themselves on how they can make the playing field more fair, intervening when necessary and when things aren’t. Shaw demonstrates this during his bus stop intervention when he first meets MC, on his dates with her, as well as his confrontation with Gavin.

“Don’t hesitate if you have already thought it through.”

-

MC: “What’s the matter?”

Shaw shrugged, lifted the corner of his lip, and looked at me, saying this firmly word by word.

Shaw: “Don’t forget that this is our punishment. Be a good loser.” -One-Day Date

“What are you laughing at? Stop it.” he reached out his hand, trying to mess up my hair. I quickly dodged backward and started laughing harder.

“Hey.”

A stunned look flashed Shaw’s eyes. Before he finished his sentence, I slipped and fell heavily backwards. He looked at me before a hint of schadenfreude appeared in his eyes. Then he said in a raised tone, “that's what you get for laughing too hard.”

He then sat down with me. I turned to him in confusion.

MC: “Why did you sit down when you’re supposed to help me up?”

Shaw: “Because I wanted to.” -Exciting Moments Date

Brutal gales whipped up gravel and rocked trees. A bolt of lightning split the sly, illuminating the two people locked in a standoff.

Gavin’s face was completely devoid of its former calm, and in its place was wrath. The man opposite Gavin squinted his eyes ever so slightly. He went wild with laughter, and an arrogant expression swept back over his face.

Shaw: “Well, we’re finally starting to get serious. It’s about time.”

Gavin: “I warned you! She’s off-limits.”

Shaw: “Are you threatening me?”

Gavin: “You aren’t worthy.”

The man lifted his eyebrow and slowed his speech purposefully.

Shaw: “Anyway, my objective has been reached. I don’t mind toying with you. But I don't know how long this girl you’re obsessed with has long to live...”

The two fought with increasing ferocity. The man was slowly losing ground. Then, the sky roared, and a white flame connected heaven and earth. The man was gone without a trace. -Chapter 11-24

Jupiter ♃ Jupiter is the largest planet, a gas giant, known to expand as the “benefactor” of our solar system. Everything it touches is basically blessed. It’s the good luck, confidence, joy, freedom and adventure that it gives to one’s being that it’s so well known for. Jupiter is where you seize your opportunities, take a leap of faith and count your blessings.

Shaw’s Jupiter is in Aquarius ♒︎ Shaw attracts the most good fortune when he’s tolerant and fair, cooperative and inventive, being different from society’s norms and standards. He values technology, people and personal freedom the most, desiring to display his unique skills and talents. He is open to new methods and eccentric ways to progress. We see this as he’s willing to share his knowledge with others, shown in the CN Creative Date and Summer Solstice Date, and when Shaw offers a hand to help MC by making her alias “Mary Sue” to help her successfully break into STF in later chapters. He also shows her the electricity firework he makes with his Evol, which fascinates MC enough for her to reach out and touch it.

I looked at Shaw's on the other side of the wall. The flaunting design was imposing, as if it was about to jump out at me the next second. Then I looked at my grinning rabbit, which seemed to be the clumsy work of a child.

-

In the gold and purple pattern, “SHAW” could be faintly recognised while a grinning rabbit stood at the top of the world. They actually seemed… quite in harmony? -One-Day Date

MC: “Is that the same MP4 player you had on the bus?”

Shaw: “Yes, someone gifted it to me a long time ago.” Emboldened by his straightforwardness, I couldn't help but move slower. -Exciting Moments Date

Floating on his palm was a sizzling firework giving off dazzling sparks. I was stunned by the sight. I couldn’t believe that Evol could do that. I reached out to touch it, but Shaw stopped me.

“Are you out of your mind? It’s charged with electricity.” -Summer Night Birthday Date

Saturn ♄ Saturn is the planet of karma, restrictions, life lessons, hard facts and the challenges in life. It governs structure, our fears, work and self-discipline. Saturn is cold and calculating, however once the challenges and lessons Saturn have been mastered, great wisdom with great rewards can be obtained.

Shaw's Saturn is in Aries ♈︎ Aries Saturns are highly resourceful coming up with fresh ideas for our goals. They don’t like showing weakness and need to be careful when limiting themselves due to fear of failure or making a poor decision. They’re very self- reliant because they rarely ask for help. They need to be shown that not “being first” is okay.

It’s proven that Shaw has a competitive side to him, seen in the CN Summer Solstice Date and his Rumours and Secrets, where Shaw refuses to give up and ends up doing dolphin flips on his skateboard in a match against a senior and wins after his first loss. In Accompanying Date, he acknowledges his embarrassing moments when he got caught skipping class, then reflects on them. We also see this as he flees his battle with Gavin when he almost loses.

Shaw: "I just remember winning. Don’t people at ten years old want to get swept away, win against everyone, and leave them far behind?" -CN Summer Solstice Date

Shaw: "The fence of the school was disagreed with by the elementary students. Back then, my skills weren’t refined yet. I got discovered by a teacher when I fell from it." While reminiscing, Shaw pouts unhappily. -CN Accompanying Date

The two fought with increasing ferocity. The man was slowly losing ground. Then, the sky roared, and a white flame connected heaven and earth. The man was gone without a trace. -Chapter 11-24

Uranus ♅ Wherever Uranus is in the chart, it’s where we want to break free, where we want to do things our own way, when you don’t care what everyone else is doing or thinking about. It’s where we express our ideals on freedom, innovation and experience great epiphanies. We strive for independence with the influence of the Uranus character. As a result, we learn to rebel, break traditions and authority. It shakes things up from our past and into the modern future. It is often associated with unpredictability, chaos and anarchy.

Shaw's Uranus is in Aquarius ♒︎ These people are interested in innovating, changing and updating traditions related to technology, community and individuality. They see freedom through or in these areas, and are ready to rebel if needed. Aquarius Uranus people are open to new ideas and free thought.

Shaw is no stranger to the concept of rebellion. He sneaks into places he shouldn’t be in, spray-paints graffiti, and helps MC access top-secret information in STF. His comments on history further outlines the unique outlook that he challenges with traditional views.

I looked around nervously, remembering that last time, we were chased by city police for street graffiti.

Shaw: “Don’t you want to come? Hurry up.”

MC: “Do you just do anything you like? Do you abide by no rules?” -One-Day Date

Shaw: “What do you think history is?” Student: Those historical relics you told us about just then!”

- Student: “If everything is history, how does one learn it?” Shaw: “There’s no need for an intention. It’s everywhere.” -CN Summer Solstice Date

Neptune ♆ Neptune is the inspirational planet of dreams, inspirations, soulmates, enlightenment and sacrifice. It’s all about connection with the universe and the world around you, however can have the polar effect of deception and illusion, along with disappearances of sorts. It can also govern your music tastes and influence on how you can inspire others.

Shaw’s Neptune is in Capricorn ♑︎ With this placement, his idealistic world will be based around realism, morality, and responsibility. He has to believe in the ground foundations of realisability of his dreams- enough so that it usually has a realistic thread about them. General optimism and faith will be lacking if he’s not doing something that he is passionate about and finds inspiration in. However, he has the capacity to change his practical dreams into reality the most. His influences and contributions come from his connection with Dark/MC, again with Mars in Libra, and is seen as a guide and spectator, though less passive than a Time Observer. It’s also clear that Shaw cares a lot for his music and his band. He even recognises a plagiarised song in one of his Rumours and Secrets.

“Playing with the band is just a hobby, so Shaw rarely creates something from scratch. He must have hidden things he wanted to say in his music, but never mentioned it to anyone.” -Summer Night birthday Date

Shaw: "No wonder these people didn’t realise it, they copied an unpopular song from the 80s. You should also improve your musical literacy so you wouldn’t be confused by these things." -CN Glacier Navigation Rumours and Secrets

My phone started buzzing in my outer coat pocket. I took it out and saw an unfamiliar number. A few moments of hesitation, I answered it. An unfamiliar voice came from the other end.

“Long time, no see. I’m sure you’re trying to guess who I am right now.” There was something in his voice that gave me a sense of déjà vu.

MC: “May I ask, what this is about?”

“I can’t just call you for no reason? Everyone has already forgotten you. You are officially someone who shouldn’t exist in this world.

MC: “Impossible! Just who are you, anyway?”

“Go see for yourself. For instance, at the place where it all started.” -Chapter 19-1

Outside the floor to ceiling window, a tall man with light purple hair was looking at me in the eye, an unmistakable smile on his lips. Who is this person? He waved at me and strove in the diner.

“Oh, here you are.” He greeted me with such familiarity, a few loose strands of hair fell over his forehead, softening his sharp eyes. His actions were swift and sure, giving me no time to interrupt. His face seemed so familiar but I can’t remember where I’ve seen it before.

MC: “Who are you?”

Hearing this, the young man’s brow raised, and the look of amusement flashed over his eyes.

“You don’t remember? You bumped my skateboard.”

MC: “Oh! We met on the bus. But how is it that you remember me?”

He didn’t answer me straight away. He just observed my expression with great interest, seemingly enjoying watching my reaction.

“I’m the one who called you. It’s me. The dream world has no effect on me.”

Pluto ♇ Pluto is the Lord of the Underworld, and is not to be messed around with. It’s responsible for great destructible transformations and corresponds to the life, death and rebirth cycle. It’s the detoxing planet, for you to awaken and be reborn. It shows us where we can change the world, alongside right where we can go into the abyss of the cunning and controlling energies of Pluto. Its powers can be ever so subtle, however it can have the forces to trash you with the realisations of what you need to let go in order to transform. Think of it as the “healing crisis” moments that you can thank Pluto for.

Shaw's Pluto is in Sagittarius ♐︎ They take beliefs and philosophy of life very seriously, more than most. They believe deeply in personal freedom and expression, questioning ideologies in place. They often watch for a tendency to move from one project to another, perhaps due to inhuman expectations. They are motivated and driven by the vision of a better world, therefore their faith in humanity is strong.

Shaw helps MC multiple times when she is in need, additionally supporting her beliefs and vision to save the world and everyone in it, like when she first entered the Winter World and helped her rescue the kidnapped children against her battle with Leto in the Chapter 34. He even gives her his necklace- the Dragonfly Eye in the end of Season 1 and wishes her well once they meet again.

Shaw: “Oh yeah, the other you is really funny. Today, she saved someone on the street. Did you use to do stuff like that too?”

Dark MC: “I’m not like her. I don’t do meaningless things like that. Stick to the plan.”

Shaw: “Oh? I’d thought you’d like this scene. What are you planning to do, anyway?”

Dark MC: “Why of course, I’m going to accept my place as QUEEN.” -Behind the Curtain Chapter 5

MC: “Shaw, what are you doing here? Where’s Leto?”

Another thunder flashes, Shaw’s face was reflected clearly and I saw him lift his eyebrow slightly.

Shaw: “You are so slow. Did you bring the notebook? Keep it and give it to me later.”

MC: “You haven’t answered why you are here.”

Shaw: “And I thought you were starting to get smarter. None of us can stay out of it now. If I don’t intervene, this world is finished.”

I would love to see more about Shaw’s background character and his upbringing as to why he had appeared a bit defensive in some dates. Poor Shaw :( Hopefully this study allowed you all to gain a deeper understanding of Shaw and his character, and to why he’s important in the main storyline and other events alike.

[between-two-fandoms]

Unrequited Love

Summary: Julie fell in love with everyone she met. Flynn liked to joke that her heart had enough love to save the world. Who knew she’d end up falling in love with two of her ghost boys ten seconds after meeting them?

Notes: Love confessions, fluffy first kisses, this is my apology after posting Ocean Tides.

Also on ao3 under Random_Nerd3.

Reblog to spread around.

Anxiety boiled under Julie’s skin and she hoped this wasn’t how Alex dealt with it all the time. If she felt like this all the time she’d probably spend her free time banging on drums and screaming in museums too. Luke and Reggie sat on either side of her, both boys held her hands trying to help her say what she was trying to say. “Julie,” Luke said. She couldn’t help but turn her head to look at him. Those damn puppy dog eyes stared back at her, begging for her to talk to them. “Just tell us what’s wrong.” Julie let out a shaky laugh because that’s what tripped her up. There wasn’t anything wrong with her or with them.

“Nothing’s wrong Luke,” Julie said, raising her hand to gently cup his face. Luke leaned into her touch and Reggie nuzzled into her shoulder, trying to get her attention again. How was one supposed to tell two of your band mates you were in love with them at the same time? She knew the concept of romantic love was an uncomfortable topic for Reggie to talk about but she couldn’t hide the feelings she felt towards her boys anymore. 

Not after they performed at the Orpheum together like that, the chemistry between the three of them electrifying the entire stage. Not after everything they’ve been through - Alex would be here for this conversation too if he wasn’t on a date with Willie - and she realized that the love in her heart could be given to more than just Flynn. Flynn who she kissed at school today, and Carrie who Julie kissed at school yesterday after she apologized and complemented their Orpheum debut. But her boys didn’t know about that yet, about her dating Flynn, Carrie and Nick, and about how the girls were one hundred percent into bringing them into the fold. Her girls wanted to be there for her when she talked to her boys, but she told them this was something she had to do on her own.

“Julie you’re scaring me,” Reggie mumbled, scrunching his hand through her hair, massaging her skull. Julie couldn’t help but relax at his touch, she let Luke guide her hand back to her lap as Reggie continued to play with her hair. After taking a few minutes to compile her thoughts Julie chuckled, her boys both looked at her with confusion written across their faces.

“What’s so funny mariposa?” Luke asked her, moving so close to her that their noses were just barely touching each other. Julie chuckled again, shaking her head as her chuckle turned into laughter. Crystal clear laughter that rang through her bedroom despite tears starting to roll down her cheeks.

“Julie?” Reggie asked softly, intertwining their fingers together. Julie squeezed her eyes shut in response and took a deep breath. Squeezing his hand back Julie opened her eyes again, finally ready to tell her boys she loved them.

“It started in uh… fourth grade I think,” Julie said, finding herself starting from her very first gay panic. Luke’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“What did?” He asked, reaching up to brush a few loose curls behind her ear.

“My crush on Flynn,” Julie said, finally admitting the words out loud. Luke’s face twisted as he tried to process what she said, Reggie wasn’t better off. She was a little worried she broke both of them so she cleared her throat and continued. “I didn’t realize what it was at first but then one day I started thinking she was pretty and beautiful instead of cool and nice and I sort of put two and two together… and then we met Carrie and god that just made everything worse.” Once she started talking she couldn’t stop. Her words tumbled out of her, discombobulated and twisty but she was finally telling her boys the truth. As terrifying as this was she had to do it, she knew about Alex and she knew Reggie and Luke kissed one time so they deserved to know what she was too. “Because suddenly instead of it only being Flynn I had two huge crushes and with Carrie came Nick which meant I finally had a crush on a boy like a normal girl -” Luke cut her off, pulling her in for a hug so she could catch her breath.

“There’s nothing wrong with you if you like girls Julie,” Luke said, and Julie regretted meeting his eyes the second she did. He looked like he was a kicked puppy, that his hopes and dreams were just snuffed out and taken away from him. Julie’s heart twisted in her chest so she leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Luke’s forehead.

“I don’t just like girls Luke,” Julie said, trying to explain how she felt. She turned to Reggie and gave the bassist his own kiss, causing him to flush all the way down to his neck. “I like everyone Luke, not just Flynn and Carrie and Nick.” She took a breath, inhaling through her nose and out through her mouth like her therapist taught her. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Reggie asked, still looking flustered from her kiss. Julie reached up to lightly run her thumb against his cheek, his hand reached up to hold her wrist. “Jules, what’s going on?” Reggie asked, starting to look slightly panicked. Luke reached across Julie’s chest and ran his hand through Reggie’s hair, the motion calming the bassist slightly.

“Reg I -” Julie cut herself off with a weak choking sound. Enough, she has to get this out otherwise it was going to eat at her for the rest of her life. “I love you both and Alex too… and I’m polysexual,” Julie said, the word whispered into the air. Luke frowned slightly, but he didn’t look disgusted or insulted. Reggie didn’t look like he hated Julie like she feared they would. Instead a look of recognition settled on their faces and they huddled closer to her on Luke’s couch, wrapping their strong warm arms around her as she cried.

“Julie we both love you… but we don’t know what that… what polysexual means. Is it one of the newer labels Alex is learning about?” Luke asked, brushing Julie’s hair back, out of her face. Julie refused to look at him, keeping her focus on playing with her polysexual colored friendship bracelet. She made one for each of her people, her way to show her love for them. Julie had made three more the night after she performed Bright with her boys but she was too afraid that they didn’t love her back.

“Yeah I guess uh… it wasn’t really a thing when you guys were alive. Polysexual basically means I love more than one person at a time, like… like I’m dating multiple people but they all know so it’s not really cheating as long as we communicate with each other. Communication’s key in any successful relationship,” Julie explained, glancing at Reggie to see how he was going to react.

“Jules look at me,” Luke said quietly, running his thumb across her knuckles. Julie didn’t want to look at him though. Because looking at Luke would make the whole thing so much more real. “Jules,” Luke insisted, using his free hand to cup her cheek and turn her face to look at him. “The boys and I - including Alex - we all love you. More than being just friends Jules. Aside from Alex, cause he’s the gayest out of all of us. Reg and I love you too Jules, mi mariposa, we love you a million times over.” Julie could feel her tears staining his shirt as she dived forward for a hug, burying her face into his shoulder.

“Hey!” Reggie exclaimed after a few minutes, “where’s my hug and kiss?” Julie let out a water laugh and Luke dried her tears. He nodded at Reggie,

“He really is a good kisser Jules,” Luke said with a glint in his eyes. Julie turned to face the bassist and toyed with the collar of his leather jacket. She let her eyes flicker up and down, checking him out in the fullest sense of the word.

“Jules - ” Reggie whined, only to be cut off by her pressing her lips against his. Her chest filled with warmth as the kiss rolled through her body. Her eyelids fluttered as Reggie managed to push forward, taking over the kiss with wide gleeful eyes. Julie let out an embarrassing moan when Luke wrapped his arms around her from behind and pulled her back into his chest, breaking up the kiss. Luke leaned his head down to press a soft kiss at the top of her head and she tilted her head up to smile at him.

“Good?” Luke asked her, those damn golden flecks were sparkling in his eyes again. Julie nodded, then pulled him down to give him his own kiss.

“Perfect,” Julie said, breaking their kiss for a few seconds to reposition herself before Luke dove back in for a deeper, more passionate one. “Remind me later, you need better Spanish lessons.” She yelped in surprise when Reggie tackled Luke, pushing him aside so he could steal another kiss from her.

The next morning when she woke up she was tucked into her bed, pajamas on and under her covers. The only thing that was different was now she had her two boys sleeping soundlessly on either side of her, curled inward, a silent promise to keep her safe.

[johnboothus]

VinePair Podcast: Why Did the Entire Beer World Sleep on Modelo Especial?

This week on the “VinePair Podcast,” hosts Adam Teeter, Joanna Sciarrino, and Zach Geballe discuss the meteoric rise of Modelo Especial. After listing what they have been drinking recently — including some unusual skin-contact wines and Spanish-inspired rosé blends — our hosts dive into a discussion about the second-most popular beer in America, in light of an article written by VinePair senior staff writer Tim McKirdy.

Teeter points to the work of Constellation, the parent company behind the lucrative marketing campaigns that have propelled the beer to new heights. Sciarrino explains how Modelo Especial bucks the growing trend of low-calorie, “better-for-you” beer. Also, Teeter and Geballe discuss the role Latinx communities have played in its sensational rise. Finally, our hosts wrap up their discussion by pondering how media influences trends across the beverage alcohol industry.

If you have any thoughts on the rise of Modelo Especial or any other trends, please send your ideas to podcast@vinepair.com.

Listen Online

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Listen on Spotify

Or Check out the Conversation Here

Adam Teeter: From VinePair’s New York City headquarters, I’m Adam Teeter.

Joanna Sciarrino: And I’m Joanna Sciarrino.

Zach Geballe: And in Seattle, Washington, I’m Zach Geballe.

A: And this is the VinePair Podcast.

Joanna and Zach, how are we doing?

J: Great.

Z: Doing good.

A: Come on, don’t answer at once. It is still so weird to be doing these remotely where we can’t really see each other but we never could see you, Zach.

Z: That’s true, lucky you.

A: It is just so funny.

Zach, what have you been up to recently? I see you got some press for your wine club. Congratulations.

Z: I did, thank you.

A: And it wasn’t from VinePair.

Z: No, from the good ol’ Seattle Times.

I think I mentioned this before, but one of the coolest and yet strangest things for me has been to see how much I really enjoy and missed pouring wine for people because it was a big part of my life before the pandemic. I knew I missed that but I don’t think I realized how much I had missed it until I started doing it again. As much as I love doing the podcast, writing about wine, and even teaching wine classes, there is nothing that’s quite as enjoyable as being able to say, “Here is something that I find delicious and interesting, but now you can try it.”

I don’t have to talk at you about it or write about it. Again, I like doing those things, too, but there’s something about the immediate feedback of someone trying and saying, “Yeah, this is really good,” or “Well, the next one may be better.” In that vein, one of the things that I had recently and that I really enjoyed was a rosé, or as it’s labeled here, a Rosado from a Washington winery that was founded by a guy who’s from the Rioja region and has two wineries.

One focuses on more conventional varieties here in Washington and then his other label, which I think is his passion project, focuses on Spanish varieties here in the state. The Rosato is a blend of Graciano, Garnacha, and Monastrell, so a classic-ish blend, but not something you would see all that often in Spain with a dominant Graciano wine. Yet, it’s really good. It shows a different side of what most people expect from rosé. It’s very savory and has an earthy, terracotta quality that I really enjoyed.

It’s fun to pour that for people and get to show off things in that setting where you can do that thing where you say, “Here, try a taste. You don’t have to buy the bottle, you don’t have to buy a glass, you can just taste it and hopefully you like it.” That piece of experiencing beverage is something that I really miss dearly and it’s very nice to get back to it.

A: Very cool.

Z: With someone besides my immediate family.

A: Yeah.

J: And how is the wine club going?

Z: It’s going.

I mean, it’s such a weird venture for me. I was actually just talking to someone else about this today, with one of my wine reps. One of the hardest things for me, though, in transitioning into focusing my buying on a wine club as opposed to really buying for a restaurant, is with a restaurant, I know exactly the setting in which people will be drinking the wine. They’ll be drinking it in the restaurant with food, so that drives a lot of the thought process behind what I would buy and considering how it works with the menu.

With a wine club, you can offer people suggestions but the wine is out of your hands once someone picks up their wine or you deliver it. They may drink it later that day or they might throw it in their freezer for an hour and then drink it. For me, it is hard to let go of some of that control but also be thoughtful on selections when it comes to wines that have a lot of different applications because I do think it’s important for this to pick wines that might not need food, because some people don’t want to drink wine only with food.

There’s a big culture of that here in the U.S. of wine after dinner or wine in the middle of the afternoon with nothing. I respect that and don’t want to create a club and select wines that only work if you’re having a full meal because I think that won’t be doing people the service that I hope to provide. It’s required additional mental gymnastics on my part but that’s good, it keeps me somewhat sharp.

A: Very cool.

J: Nice.

A: Hopefully, it’s continuing to grow, which is awesome and it’s a fun project to be working on for sure.

Z: Yeah, it’s nice to have that tangible piece of my work life.

A: Totally. Joanna, what about you?

J: I feel like I’ve been drinking quite a bit in the past week. Anyways, last week Evan and I celebrated our anniversary.

A: Congratulations.

J: Thank you.

It also happened to be the last week of service at one of our favorite restaurants, Racines. We went there for dinner and it was lovely, as it always is. They were absolutely slammed with a skeleton staff and I felt terrible but it was really exciting to be there. We had some wonderful wines. We had a few glasses: skin contact Muscat, and a lovely Aligoté. But we also had this really special bottle of wine that they recommended. It was a 2012 Hegoxuri from Maison Arretxea in the Irouleguy appellation, which is a very small appellation in southwest France, in the French Basque country. It was a white blend of Gros Manseng, Petit Manseng, and Petit Courbu. It was wonderful. It was really potent, floral, and aromatic but also really savory, as you were saying before, Zach. I really enjoyed that.

Z: Very cool.

A: That’s really cool.

They’re only closing because the chef is leaving, is that the deal?

J: Racines as the restaurant won’t exist anymore, but they’re reinventing themselves as something else in the fall of this year because the chef is leaving. As I understand it, Pascaline will be there and the rest of the wine program along with the drinks program will be there as well.

A: OK, cool. That would have been a bummer if everything else was gone.

J: What about you, Adam? What are you drinking?

A: I got to go out last week and have a pretty fun dinner with Josh, VinePair’s co-founder.

J: We’re familiar with Josh.

A: Josh and I used to like Lure Fishbar and we went on Thursday. We had a meeting there as well. We got this 2006 Chablis from Daniel-Etienne Defaix.

Z: OK.

A: It was really awesome and I never had a Chablis that old. It’s 100 percent stainless steel. Then, he ages it in the bottle forever, so this is the current vintage on the market, the 2006.

Z: Wow.

A: It was really cool. Josh, as it has been documented before, is very much a Chablis lover or just like white Burgundies in general. We said, “Oh, let’s get a bottle.” This bottle was on the list. I asked Josh, “Have you ever had a Chablis this old?” He hadn’t and I don’t really think I ever had either so we tried it and it was super cool. It was still really beautiful and refreshing but then there were these characteristics that you get with aged white wine. Those almonds and stuff were starting to come out and it was very crazy.

I was talking to the sommelier and I said, “Why is this the current vintage?” They said, “This winemaker’s crazy but this is what he likes to do and that is how he likes his Chablis.”

J: I love that.

A: That also shows you what you can do if there’s a wine that has been in your family for generations. You can afford to hold the 2006 vintage until 2021 and make it the current vintage.

Z: Yeah, and we’ve talked about this before, Adam, about how it’s one of those things that you see in some places in Europe. It’s almost impossible to imagine happening here in the States or in a lot of other New World regions where someone holds a vintage to release in 15 years when they think it’s ready. Unless you’re making bourbon, no one is doing that.

A: Yeah, not at all, but that was a pretty fun night.

Then, over the weekend, I went to a beer garden which was great. We went to this beer garden on Sunday afternoon after we went and saw some exhibits at the Brooklyn Museum.

J: Nice.

A: It was fun and I hadn’t done that before. I just had a pint of pilsner and I thought, “Oh, this has been a while. Also, I have one other thing.

I went to my favorite restaurant in New York City, which is Miss Ada. It’s amazing and it’s just the best. Tomer, the chef, was there and we got to catch up, which was nice. They also always have just really cool wines. I had a really amazing orange wine that I did not take a picture of or write down so I cannot tell you what it was. I also had a really cool cocktail that was a riff on a Gin Fizz, but it had arak in it.

Z: Oh, nice.

A: It was really interesting and when I ordered it, the server asked, “Do you know what arak is?” I said I did and she said, “OK, this is a very polarizing cocktail because it has such a strong anise note. I’m like, “Whoa, whoa, what is this?” Yet, it was really fun and really delicious so that’s what I’ve been up to.

So, what we want to talk about today, which I think is really interesting, is if you polled the majority of American drinkers and you asked them what the No. 2 most popular beer is in America, they probably wouldn’t be able to tell you. Most if you asked them what is No. 1, I assume would guess Bud Light and they would be right. If you ask them, No. 2, I think you’d hear a range of beers. You would hear Budweiser, Coors Light, Miller Light, maybe even Corona.

However, the beer that is actually the No. 2 most popular beer in America and the No. 1 import, which is surprising to a lot of people, is Modelo Especial. We published an article last week about this written by Tim McKirdy, who is on our editorial team. What is so interesting about this is it allows us to look at how everyone missed this, right? This is a beer that’s been growing in popularity for the last decade but most Americans are still unaware that it’s so huge.

Now, there are a few reasons for that. Part of what makes it huge is that it’s just massive in certain regions. Its massive popularity allows it to be No. 2 because it’s No. 1 in so many places. I think it’s also that we just don’t look at certain beers seriously enough. I’m curious, how did you both react when you heard that Modelo was No. 2? And do both of you drink Modelo?

J: Well, I certainly drink Modelo. I don’t buy it often but I’ve had it before. I edited Tim’s piece that went up last week and I was pretty surprised. Somebody could have mentioned that it was popular and I would have said it’s popular in dive bars or dive specials. Yet, the data backing this up was very surprising to me.

Z: Yeah, totally.

For me, without the data, I would have lumped Modelo Especial in with Pacifica or some of the other widely available and recognizable Mexican lagers that are imported into the U.S. I would have bet an alarming sum of money that Corona would be by far the No. 1 imported Mexican beer in the country and I would have been totally wrong. What’s interesting to me about this, in addition to that fact and also something that Tim highlighted in his piece, is that it’s not necessarily a new phenomenon. Modelo has been on this upward trajectory for a really long time. Maybe it is because I don’t see it advertised as much. Part of my perception of Corona is driven by the fact that they advertise it very aggressively. Much more aggressively, at least in English, than they had advertised Modelo Especial.

Part of it is also that Modelo Especial is advertised on UFC, which is not something I watch personally, but obviously there’s a huge audience for it. A thing I want to get to at some point in this conversation is, what does this tell us about other things we might be missing?

On the specific topic of Modelo Especial, it’s funny to me when I think about this because it’s also true that when I have been to places to eat where your selection of beers tends to be that slate of imported Mexican lagers, Modelo Especial is what I would pick. It’s my favorite of those beers. I think it’s significantly better tasting than the others so it’s cool that, actually, everyone seems to agree with me.

A: I think what’s really interesting about Modelo Especial is that there has definitely been a marketing campaign. In the article, Tim talks about how the ground game was really good. Constellation, who basically has built the brand in the U.S., made it as huge as it is.

For those of you who aren’t familiar, when AB InBev bought Grupo Modelo and they basically took control across the world, our Justice Department said you can’t do that in America. You need to sell those brands to someone else in America, so Constellation bought Modelo, Corona, etc.

Constellation has done an incredible job of building this brand in these stores. I actually think what they’ve done, which is really interesting and that they were able to do because Modelo didn’t have a broad market awareness, is they were able to build it separate from Mexican restaurants. Corona has really become synonymous with the beach. If you’re out having Mexican food, you have a Corona with lime. Honestly, to some extent, Negro Modelo has become that as well. Modelo Especial has this position where it’s a really well-made imported Mexican lager, and it can be drunk everywhere. Basically, at any dive bar you go to, at this point in time, Modelo is one of the tap handles. It’s the new PBR.

Z: Yeah.

A: I think that is what has been brilliant about its growth, is that it’s not tied to specific occasions where you think, “Oh, I am going to the beach, I should pick up some Modelos.” Yes, you should and if you like Modelo, people probably do but it’s not the thing. Whereas, some people would say “Oh, we’re going to the beach, I guess we have to have Corona.” That has really allowed it to explode.

Z: Some of it is even things like the packaging —the foil has a little bit of an upscale vibe to it. I think the PBR comparison is a really fascinating one and I would be curious for both of your thoughts. PBR’s popularity, I think, was born out of this notion that it had both a combination of it being affordable, widely available, but it wasn’t as well known. It had the cachet of history behind it. It was this idea that here’s a beer that has been made for over a century. That’s not entirely the case with Modelo Especial but it’s been around for a long time. It’s not overexposed, so even if you’re drinking the No. 2 beer in the country, you don’t feel that way when you order it.

J: Yeah, I agree. I think it’s cheap, but not the cheapest. It’s not one of the biggest macro beers or light beers out there. I also find its success really interesting because it’s not one of the light beers and it bucks this bigger trend of low-calorie light beers and health and wellness in the space that I find just really interesting about this beer.

A: Yeah, I think it’s also interesting because it’s well regarded by lots of people and lots of people think it’s their beer. A lot of those who think it is their beer don’t think anyone else drinks it.

J: Right.

A: If you talk to a lot of people in the Latin community, they think it’s their beer. They think it’s not really consumed by many other people besides people who are Latinx. That is not true. I think there are lots of people, from brewers, winemakers, somms, who say it’s an industry drink. It is what you drink at the end of the shift for lots of cooks.

It’s funny that all these different communities feel like they own it and that it’s theirs, which I think is really special. Whereas the problem with PBR that I think hurt it a little bit was that it really did become labeled as the hipster beer. During the time of 2005 to 2013, it was really on fire. Brooklyn. The Strokes. It was that group of people that drank PBR. It’s a much more diverse group of people that drink Modelo Especial, which is also so incredible and just absolutely bonkers. Everyone drinks it in so many different formats. I’ve seen it in the bottles that you’re talking about, Zach. I do think the foil is a nice touch. I’ve also seen it in the cans, I’ve seen it in the tiny 7 ounces, I’ve seen it in the massive tallboys. It’s just across the board. Everyone drinks it and everyone loves it.

Z: Yeah, and of course on draft in a lot of places, too. That, I think, is another area where we mentioned before, another area that I think sets it apart a little bit. Corona is maybe its nearest competitor, even though they’re both owned by Constellation. It exists in other formats, but when people think of Corona, they think of the bottle of Corona with lime. If you are not drinking it that way, then how are you drinking it? Modelo, despite having all these other formats, which work, isn’t as tied to one specific packaging format so we can dominate on-premise, on tap, but also these various off-premise formats as well.

A: Totally, and I think it dominates because you don’t have to be at a bar that has fresh limes on hand to serve Modelo. Again, if I’m going to a tailgate and I’m picking up Modelo, I don’t want to also say, “Oh, I better pick up five limes to slice up.”

Z: Right, let me bring my cutting board and paring knife.

A: Exactly.

That is very different whereas you’re going to the beach and you bring Coronas, you better have limes. Joanna, why do you think this has been missed so badly by so many people? Much of the press, and just industry in general. How do you think we all miss this?

J: That’s a really good question. There is the data to back it up and it’s theoretically existed for years at this point. Possibly, it wasn’t trendy or it wasn’t in craft beer communities. There was just so much else going on that it was easy to miss. Then of course, there are the big macro brands that people are always talking about and what’s happening with them.

I also think it managed to fly under the radar. To your point, Adam, everyone thinks that it’s theirs without really acknowledging that other communities really love it. And then, as a result, it created this extreme growth for the brand. Also, I’ve been thinking about this during our conversation, and it’s something we’ve touched on in editorial meetings before, is the younger generation’s attraction to international brands and not American brands that I think also potentially could play a role in this conversation.

A: Interesting.

I think it’s interesting how imported brands, in general, become different things in our market. I actually don’t know, to be fair, where Modelo sits in its home market but I’ve always found it really interesting with a brand like Stella. In the U.S., we think of it as a fancy imported Belgian beer but especially in Great Britain and Tim loves to share this fact, it’s the cheap beer. It’s the cheap beer that everyone drinks when they’re out watching soccer because it has a little bit higher alcohol. It’s the party beer and it’s just funny that it came here as an import from Belgium and we think it must be fancy and we treat it very differently.

That is also interesting to me. I don’t believe there’s a treatment of Modelo by a lot of consumers that this is especially Mexican if that makes sense? I mean that in a more stereotypical way Americans tend to do things. The way we treat Corona, right? “You have your nachos, you better have Corona.”

Z: It’s not siloed off into that.

A: It really isn’t, right? And that is so fascinating to me.

Z: It’s one of the anecdotes that Tim shares in the story or data points, which is that it’s a huge beer at Buffalo Wild Wings. It’s one of their absolute best sellers and that makes sense pairing-wise. Of course, you want a light lager or a lager with your wings. It’s that exact point where you don’t see it dominating because it’s huge. In Mexican restaurants and things like that, it’s big in lots of places.

I also want to advance another thought on this and maybe talk about this question of why it’s been missed, especially because the data is so clear and so readily available? We are not the only people who get the sales data. I think that it’s a combination of two trends. One of them is what you hinted at the beginning, Adam, the success is driven by sales in the Southwest, in the Midwest, places that certainly have lots of people and lots of media of their own. Let’s be honest.  Drinks media and drinks ad agencies are mostly in New York. It’s not a huge beer in New York. Obviously, it is readily available and it sells quite well, but its dominance is driven by other markets.

A: It’s definitely not massive in New York, for sure. You see it, but you don’t see it. It’s not everywhere, even in the way that PBR was everywhere. It definitely isn’t in the same way.

Z: The other part is a reminder that those of us who are in this industry are professionals. I think our coverage is sometimes driven by these weird two competing polls. One is a desire to look for something new and trendy, which is totally understandable. Part of our job is to be aware of what is happening and inform people of it before it hits their market or before it’s everywhere, so that people can try something out if they’re interested and or be apprised of the situation.

On the flip side, I think it’s because of the way that the sale of the brands to Constellation was covered at the time. Everyone in the media said, “Oh, yeah. They got six brands… Corona, etc.” That’s understandable but it’s a good reminder to us to revisit and say, “Hey, this thing that we assumed eight years ago may not still hold true.”.

The data pointed that out to us and I think it’s great that we really looked at it and found the story here. I want to throw out a suggestion to both of you or a question to both of you: Do we sometimes think that trends are over before they are?

The one that occurred to me when I was planning for this is that I have seen a lot and heard a lot, both written and talked about, is the trend of pumpkin beer is over. I’m curious, and maybe we can dig into this for another episode because I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but I wonder if that is, in fact, true — that lots of people are making it now even though it’s early August. That’s the trend I wonder if we have already written off, but in fact is still really, really popular?

A: You know what my answer is.

Z: I’m not asking what you think about pumpkin spice beer. We’ve already been there.

J: I do not like it.

A: I hate it and I wish it was over.

Seriously, I think the trend is definitely not over. People wouldn’t keep making it if it wasn’t exactly popular. I think we have a tendency to do that in general and try to write things off, say things are over. I think one of the biggest lessons that this teaches us is there’s a lot of lifestyle coverage out there that really fails to look deeply at data. We’ve talked about this a bunch on this podcast, but I think data doesn’t lie. That’s what you learn in journalism school.

We’re talking about the coronavirus and we’re talking about vaccination rates. Those journalists are looking at data. They’re not just saying that vaccinations are low because they walked by a few vaccination sites and aren’t seeing lines. They’re saying it’s low because they’re literally looking at the data and they’re saying it’s slowing or increasing. I think that’s the same for drinks. It really is important to have a gut check where you say, “OK, what do sales numbers look like? Have they been declining year over year over year?”.

For example, wine under $10 has been declining in its popularity and in its sales for the last few years. It’s a shrinking category. While there are still some brands that are pretty decently sized in that category, the category is shrinking. It’s basically disappearing, which is great for American wine culture, in all honesty. We’d rather that everyone is drinking nicer wines, a little bit more expensive wines, and taking it a little bit more seriously. That’s good for wine culture but that’s supported by data. Twenty years ago, we could have said that and that would have been true.

Z: Exactly.

A: I think that’s how we miss a lot of this stuff. We declare trends or declare things dead without trying to look into what the numbers say?

Z: Do we, alternatively, declare things alive without the information? I am going to bring up something that was on Twitter the other day. I hate to do this but Bill Shufelt is the founder of Athletic Brewing, who I interviewed.

A: Oh, this is crazy.

Z: I love the brewery but his claim that, in five years, 20 percent of the beer industry will be nonalcoholic is incorrect. I get it, he has a very high stake in that coming to be true but we should not and do not obviously just take that at face value because someone said it. There’s data that you can look at that shows what the market share for a nonalcoholic beer or anything is. It is, frankly, a lot smaller than certain people would have you believe because it’s their beat or their passion or whatever. That’s fine. The person who makes it needs to believe in its potential. We, as journalists, do not need to take their words as gospel.

A: No, although a lot of people often do because everyone needs to file a story. Of course, 100 percent look at the nonalcoholic sales and separate it out. Truly separate out, as we talked about a bunch, from low-alcohol and it’s really small. When I interviewed the founder of Lyre’s, he was saying that they are a $50 million revenue company and they’re the biggest non-alcoholic spirits company in the world. That’s not a big market.

Z: No.

A: If $50 million makes you the biggest nonalcoholic company in the world, again, as you said, that’s within people’s interests. He’s a salesman. He has to say that. I think what is really amazing is we could have noticed Modelo, we just didn’t. I also think that maybe we just lumped it in, sadly. We failed to truly examine and say it is actually this one standing out above all others and when you do, it is like, holy s**t, it is.

J: I also think why this piece is pretty special is because if you do try to search for another piece on it, it doesn’t really exist. Even after all this time, we’re still the first one’s publishing this piece.

Z: It was hiding in plain sight and I think that point is very good. There was a fascinating story to tell here, that everyone either completely ignored or if they saw those numbers, assumed there was nothing to say, which is silly but hey, good for us.

A: Totally. Well, this is fascinating and I think I am going to go have a Modelo right now actually.

Z: Yeah, good call.

A: I’m really craving one.

Z: I want to say that if you guys are out there, and if there’s something that’s obvious in the beer category or other categories, let us know if there are things that we’re overlooking, specific drinks in particular, whether it’s a beer or wine.

J: Cosmopolitan.

Z: We’ve certainly covered that one, but yeah, those things are super fascinating to us. Sometimes we find out about them because of you guys. You tell us what we’re missing. It’s super helpful.

A: Totally. Well, that was a great conversation as always. See you next week.

J: Thanks.

Z: Sounds great.

Thanks so much for listening to the “VinePair Podcast.” If you love this show as much as we love making it, then please give us a rating or review on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever it is you get your podcasts. It really helps everyone else discover the show.

Now for the credits. VinePair is produced and recorded in New York City and in Seattle, Wash., by myself and Zach Geballe. He does all the editing and loves to get the credit. Also, I would love to give a special shout-out to my VinePair co-founder, Josh Malin, for helping make all this possible and also to Keith Beavers, VinePair’s tastings director, who is additionally a producer on the show. I also want to, of course, thank every other member of the VinePair team who is instrumental in all of the ideas that go into making the show every week. Thanks so much for listening, and we’ll see you again.

Ed. note: This episode has been edited for length and clarity.

The article VinePair Podcast: Why Did the Entire Beer World Sleep on Modelo Especial? appeared first on VinePair.

Via https://vinepair.com/articles/vinepair-podcast-modelo-especial-trend/

source https://vinology1.weebly.com/blog/vinepair-podcast-why-did-the-entire-beer-world-sleep-on-modelo-especial

[wineanddinosaur]

VinePair Podcast: Why Did the Entire Beer World Sleep on Modelo Especial?

This week on the “VinePair Podcast,” hosts Adam Teeter, Joanna Sciarrino, and Zach Geballe discuss the meteoric rise of Modelo Especial. After listing what they have been drinking recently — including some unusual skin-contact wines and Spanish-inspired rosé blends — our hosts dive into a discussion about the second-most popular beer in America, in light of an article written by VinePair senior staff writer Tim McKirdy.

Teeter points to the work of Constellation, the parent company behind the lucrative marketing campaigns that have propelled the beer to new heights. Sciarrino explains how Modelo Especial bucks the growing trend of low-calorie, “better-for-you” beer. Also, Teeter and Geballe discuss the role Latinx communities have played in its sensational rise. Finally, our hosts wrap up their discussion by pondering how media influences trends across the beverage alcohol industry.

If you have any thoughts on the rise of Modelo Especial or any other trends, please send your ideas to podcast@vinepair.com.

Listen Online

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Listen on Spotify

Or Check out the Conversation Here

Adam Teeter: From VinePair’s New York City headquarters, I’m Adam Teeter.

Joanna Sciarrino: And I’m Joanna Sciarrino.

Zach Geballe: And in Seattle, Washington, I’m Zach Geballe.

A: And this is the VinePair Podcast.

Joanna and Zach, how are we doing?

J: Great.

Z: Doing good.

A: Come on, don’t answer at once. It is still so weird to be doing these remotely where we can’t really see each other but we never could see you, Zach.

Z: That’s true, lucky you.

A: It is just so funny.

Zach, what have you been up to recently? I see you got some press for your wine club. Congratulations.

Z: I did, thank you.

A: And it wasn’t from VinePair.

Z: No, from the good ol’ Seattle Times.

I think I mentioned this before, but one of the coolest and yet strangest things for me has been to see how much I really enjoy and missed pouring wine for people because it was a big part of my life before the pandemic. I knew I missed that but I don’t think I realized how much I had missed it until I started doing it again. As much as I love doing the podcast, writing about wine, and even teaching wine classes, there is nothing that’s quite as enjoyable as being able to say, “Here is something that I find delicious and interesting, but now you can try it.”

I don’t have to talk at you about it or write about it. Again, I like doing those things, too, but there’s something about the immediate feedback of someone trying and saying, “Yeah, this is really good,” or “Well, the next one may be better.” In that vein, one of the things that I had recently and that I really enjoyed was a rosé, or as it’s labeled here, a Rosado from a Washington winery that was founded by a guy who’s from the Rioja region and has two wineries.

One focuses on more conventional varieties here in Washington and then his other label, which I think is his passion project, focuses on Spanish varieties here in the state. The Rosato is a blend of Graciano, Garnacha, and Monastrell, so a classic-ish blend, but not something you would see all that often in Spain with a dominant Graciano wine. Yet, it’s really good. It shows a different side of what most people expect from rosé. It’s very savory and has an earthy, terracotta quality that I really enjoyed.

It’s fun to pour that for people and get to show off things in that setting where you can do that thing where you say, “Here, try a taste. You don’t have to buy the bottle, you don’t have to buy a glass, you can just taste it and hopefully you like it.” That piece of experiencing beverage is something that I really miss dearly and it’s very nice to get back to it.

A: Very cool.

Z: With someone besides my immediate family.

A: Yeah.

J: And how is the wine club going?

Z: It’s going.

I mean, it’s such a weird venture for me. I was actually just talking to someone else about this today, with one of my wine reps. One of the hardest things for me, though, in transitioning into focusing my buying on a wine club as opposed to really buying for a restaurant, is with a restaurant, I know exactly the setting in which people will be drinking the wine. They’ll be drinking it in the restaurant with food, so that drives a lot of the thought process behind what I would buy and considering how it works with the menu.

With a wine club, you can offer people suggestions but the wine is out of your hands once someone picks up their wine or you deliver it. They may drink it later that day or they might throw it in their freezer for an hour and then drink it. For me, it is hard to let go of some of that control but also be thoughtful on selections when it comes to wines that have a lot of different applications because I do think it’s important for this to pick wines that might not need food, because some people don’t want to drink wine only with food.

There’s a big culture of that here in the U.S. of wine after dinner or wine in the middle of the afternoon with nothing. I respect that and don’t want to create a club and select wines that only work if you’re having a full meal because I think that won’t be doing people the service that I hope to provide. It’s required additional mental gymnastics on my part but that’s good, it keeps me somewhat sharp.

A: Very cool.

J: Nice.

A: Hopefully, it’s continuing to grow, which is awesome and it’s a fun project to be working on for sure.

Z: Yeah, it’s nice to have that tangible piece of my work life.

A: Totally. Joanna, what about you?

J: I feel like I’ve been drinking quite a bit in the past week. Anyways, last week Evan and I celebrated our anniversary.

A: Congratulations.

J: Thank you.

It also happened to be the last week of service at one of our favorite restaurants, Racines. We went there for dinner and it was lovely, as it always is. They were absolutely slammed with a skeleton staff and I felt terrible but it was really exciting to be there. We had some wonderful wines. We had a few glasses: skin contact Muscat, and a lovely Aligoté. But we also had this really special bottle of wine that they recommended. It was a 2012 Hegoxuri from Maison Arretxea in the Irouleguy appellation, which is a very small appellation in southwest France, in the French Basque country. It was a white blend of Gros Manseng, Petit Manseng, and Petit Courbu. It was wonderful. It was really potent, floral, and aromatic but also really savory, as you were saying before, Zach. I really enjoyed that.

Z: Very cool.

A: That’s really cool.

They’re only closing because the chef is leaving, is that the deal?

J: Racines as the restaurant won’t exist anymore, but they’re reinventing themselves as something else in the fall of this year because the chef is leaving. As I understand it, Pascaline will be there and the rest of the wine program along with the drinks program will be there as well.

A: OK, cool. That would have been a bummer if everything else was gone.

J: What about you, Adam? What are you drinking?

A: I got to go out last week and have a pretty fun dinner with Josh, VinePair’s co-founder.

J: We’re familiar with Josh.

A: Josh and I used to like Lure Fishbar and we went on Thursday. We had a meeting there as well. We got this 2006 Chablis from Daniel-Etienne Defaix.

Z: OK.

A: It was really awesome and I never had a Chablis that old. It’s 100 percent stainless steel. Then, he ages it in the bottle forever, so this is the current vintage on the market, the 2006.

Z: Wow.

A: It was really cool. Josh, as it has been documented before, is very much a Chablis lover or just like white Burgundies in general. We said, “Oh, let’s get a bottle.” This bottle was on the list. I asked Josh, “Have you ever had a Chablis this old?” He hadn’t and I don’t really think I ever had either so we tried it and it was super cool. It was still really beautiful and refreshing but then there were these characteristics that you get with aged white wine. Those almonds and stuff were starting to come out and it was very crazy.

I was talking to the sommelier and I said, “Why is this the current vintage?” They said, “This winemaker’s crazy but this is what he likes to do and that is how he likes his Chablis.”

J: I love that.

A: That also shows you what you can do if there’s a wine that has been in your family for generations. You can afford to hold the 2006 vintage until 2021 and make it the current vintage.

Z: Yeah, and we’ve talked about this before, Adam, about how it’s one of those things that you see in some places in Europe. It’s almost impossible to imagine happening here in the States or in a lot of other New World regions where someone holds a vintage to release in 15 years when they think it’s ready. Unless you’re making bourbon, no one is doing that.

A: Yeah, not at all, but that was a pretty fun night.

Then, over the weekend, I went to a beer garden which was great. We went to this beer garden on Sunday afternoon after we went and saw some exhibits at the Brooklyn Museum.

J: Nice.

A: It was fun and I hadn’t done that before. I just had a pint of pilsner and I thought, “Oh, this has been a while. Also, I have one other thing.

I went to my favorite restaurant in New York City, which is Miss Ada. It’s amazing and it’s just the best. Tomer, the chef, was there and we got to catch up, which was nice. They also always have just really cool wines. I had a really amazing orange wine that I did not take a picture of or write down so I cannot tell you what it was. I also had a really cool cocktail that was a riff on a Gin Fizz, but it had arak in it.

Z: Oh, nice.

A: It was really interesting and when I ordered it, the server asked, “Do you know what arak is?” I said I did and she said, “OK, this is a very polarizing cocktail because it has such a strong anise note. I’m like, “Whoa, whoa, what is this?” Yet, it was really fun and really delicious so that’s what I’ve been up to.

So, what we want to talk about today, which I think is really interesting, is if you polled the majority of American drinkers and you asked them what the No. 2 most popular beer is in America, they probably wouldn’t be able to tell you. Most if you asked them what is No. 1, I assume would guess Bud Light and they would be right. If you ask them, No. 2, I think you’d hear a range of beers. You would hear Budweiser, Coors Light, Miller Light, maybe even Corona.

However, the beer that is actually the No. 2 most popular beer in America and the No. 1 import, which is surprising to a lot of people, is Modelo Especial. We published an article last week about this written by Tim McKirdy, who is on our editorial team. What is so interesting about this is it allows us to look at how everyone missed this, right? This is a beer that’s been growing in popularity for the last decade but most Americans are still unaware that it’s so huge.

Now, there are a few reasons for that. Part of what makes it huge is that it’s just massive in certain regions. Its massive popularity allows it to be No. 2 because it’s No. 1 in so many places. I think it’s also that we just don’t look at certain beers seriously enough. I’m curious, how did you both react when you heard that Modelo was No. 2? And do both of you drink Modelo?

J: Well, I certainly drink Modelo. I don’t buy it often but I’ve had it before. I edited Tim’s piece that went up last week and I was pretty surprised. Somebody could have mentioned that it was popular and I would have said it’s popular in dive bars or dive specials. Yet, the data backing this up was very surprising to me.

Z: Yeah, totally.

For me, without the data, I would have lumped Modelo Especial in with Pacifica or some of the other widely available and recognizable Mexican lagers that are imported into the U.S. I would have bet an alarming sum of money that Corona would be by far the No. 1 imported Mexican beer in the country and I would have been totally wrong. What’s interesting to me about this, in addition to that fact and also something that Tim highlighted in his piece, is that it’s not necessarily a new phenomenon. Modelo has been on this upward trajectory for a really long time. Maybe it is because I don’t see it advertised as much. Part of my perception of Corona is driven by the fact that they advertise it very aggressively. Much more aggressively, at least in English, than they had advertised Modelo Especial.

Part of it is also that Modelo Especial is advertised on UFC, which is not something I watch personally, but obviously there’s a huge audience for it. A thing I want to get to at some point in this conversation is, what does this tell us about other things we might be missing?

On the specific topic of Modelo Especial, it’s funny to me when I think about this because it’s also true that when I have been to places to eat where your selection of beers tends to be that slate of imported Mexican lagers, Modelo Especial is what I would pick. It’s my favorite of those beers. I think it’s significantly better tasting than the others so it’s cool that, actually, everyone seems to agree with me.

A: I think what’s really interesting about Modelo Especial is that there has definitely been a marketing campaign. In the article, Tim talks about how the ground game was really good. Constellation, who basically has built the brand in the U.S., made it as huge as it is.

For those of you who aren’t familiar, when AB InBev bought Grupo Modelo and they basically took control across the world, our Justice Department said you can’t do that in America. You need to sell those brands to someone else in America, so Constellation bought Modelo, Corona, etc.

Constellation has done an incredible job of building this brand in these stores. I actually think what they’ve done, which is really interesting and that they were able to do because Modelo didn’t have a broad market awareness, is they were able to build it separate from Mexican restaurants. Corona has really become synonymous with the beach. If you’re out having Mexican food, you have a Corona with lime. Honestly, to some extent, Negro Modelo has become that as well. Modelo Especial has this position where it’s a really well-made imported Mexican lager, and it can be drunk everywhere. Basically, at any dive bar you go to, at this point in time, Modelo is one of the tap handles. It’s the new PBR.

Z: Yeah.

A: I think that is what has been brilliant about its growth, is that it’s not tied to specific occasions where you think, “Oh, I am going to the beach, I should pick up some Modelos.” Yes, you should and if you like Modelo, people probably do but it’s not the thing. Whereas, some people would say “Oh, we’re going to the beach, I guess we have to have Corona.” That has really allowed it to explode.

Z: Some of it is even things like the packaging —the foil has a little bit of an upscale vibe to it. I think the PBR comparison is a really fascinating one and I would be curious for both of your thoughts. PBR’s popularity, I think, was born out of this notion that it had both a combination of it being affordable, widely available, but it wasn’t as well known. It had the cachet of history behind it. It was this idea that here’s a beer that has been made for over a century. That’s not entirely the case with Modelo Especial but it’s been around for a long time. It’s not overexposed, so even if you’re drinking the No. 2 beer in the country, you don’t feel that way when you order it.

J: Yeah, I agree. I think it’s cheap, but not the cheapest. It’s not one of the biggest macro beers or light beers out there. I also find its success really interesting because it’s not one of the light beers and it bucks this bigger trend of low-calorie light beers and health and wellness in the space that I find just really interesting about this beer.

A: Yeah, I think it’s also interesting because it’s well regarded by lots of people and lots of people think it’s their beer. A lot of those who think it is their beer don’t think anyone else drinks it.

J: Right.

A: If you talk to a lot of people in the Latin community, they think it’s their beer. They think it’s not really consumed by many other people besides people who are Latinx. That is not true. I think there are lots of people, from brewers, winemakers, somms, who say it’s an industry drink. It is what you drink at the end of the shift for lots of cooks.

It’s funny that all these different communities feel like they own it and that it’s theirs, which I think is really special. Whereas the problem with PBR that I think hurt it a little bit was that it really did become labeled as the hipster beer. During the time of 2005 to 2013, it was really on fire. Brooklyn. The Strokes. It was that group of people that drank PBR. It’s a much more diverse group of people that drink Modelo Especial, which is also so incredible and just absolutely bonkers. Everyone drinks it in so many different formats. I’ve seen it in the bottles that you’re talking about, Zach. I do think the foil is a nice touch. I’ve also seen it in the cans, I’ve seen it in the tiny 7 ounces, I’ve seen it in the massive tallboys. It’s just across the board. Everyone drinks it and everyone loves it.

Z: Yeah, and of course on draft in a lot of places, too. That, I think, is another area where we mentioned before, another area that I think sets it apart a little bit. Corona is maybe its nearest competitor, even though they’re both owned by Constellation. It exists in other formats, but when people think of Corona, they think of the bottle of Corona with lime. If you are not drinking it that way, then how are you drinking it? Modelo, despite having all these other formats, which work, isn’t as tied to one specific packaging format so we can dominate on-premise, on tap, but also these various off-premise formats as well.

A: Totally, and I think it dominates because you don’t have to be at a bar that has fresh limes on hand to serve Modelo. Again, if I’m going to a tailgate and I’m picking up Modelo, I don’t want to also say, “Oh, I better pick up five limes to slice up.”

Z: Right, let me bring my cutting board and paring knife.

A: Exactly.

That is very different whereas you’re going to the beach and you bring Coronas, you better have limes. Joanna, why do you think this has been missed so badly by so many people? Much of the press, and just industry in general. How do you think we all miss this?

J: That’s a really good question. There is the data to back it up and it’s theoretically existed for years at this point. Possibly, it wasn’t trendy or it wasn’t in craft beer communities. There was just so much else going on that it was easy to miss. Then of course, there are the big macro brands that people are always talking about and what’s happening with them.

I also think it managed to fly under the radar. To your point, Adam, everyone thinks that it’s theirs without really acknowledging that other communities really love it. And then, as a result, it created this extreme growth for the brand. Also, I’ve been thinking about this during our conversation, and it’s something we’ve touched on in editorial meetings before, is the younger generation’s attraction to international brands and not American brands that I think also potentially could play a role in this conversation.

A: Interesting.

I think it’s interesting how imported brands, in general, become different things in our market. I actually don’t know, to be fair, where Modelo sits in its home market but I’ve always found it really interesting with a brand like Stella. In the U.S., we think of it as a fancy imported Belgian beer but especially in Great Britain and Tim loves to share this fact, it’s the cheap beer. It’s the cheap beer that everyone drinks when they’re out watching soccer because it has a little bit higher alcohol. It’s the party beer and it’s just funny that it came here as an import from Belgium and we think it must be fancy and we treat it very differently.

That is also interesting to me. I don’t believe there’s a treatment of Modelo by a lot of consumers that this is especially Mexican if that makes sense? I mean that in a more stereotypical way Americans tend to do things. The way we treat Corona, right? “You have your nachos, you better have Corona.”

Z: It’s not siloed off into that.

A: It really isn’t, right? And that is so fascinating to me.

Z: It’s one of the anecdotes that Tim shares in the story or data points, which is that it’s a huge beer at Buffalo Wild Wings. It’s one of their absolute best sellers and that makes sense pairing-wise. Of course, you want a light lager or a lager with your wings. It’s that exact point where you don’t see it dominating because it’s huge. In Mexican restaurants and things like that, it’s big in lots of places.

I also want to advance another thought on this and maybe talk about this question of why it’s been missed, especially because the data is so clear and so readily available? We are not the only people who get the sales data. I think that it’s a combination of two trends. One of them is what you hinted at the beginning, Adam, the success is driven by sales in the Southwest, in the Midwest, places that certainly have lots of people and lots of media of their own. Let’s be honest.  Drinks media and drinks ad agencies are mostly in New York. It’s not a huge beer in New York. Obviously, it is readily available and it sells quite well, but its dominance is driven by other markets.

A: It’s definitely not massive in New York, for sure. You see it, but you don’t see it. It’s not everywhere, even in the way that PBR was everywhere. It definitely isn’t in the same way.

Z: The other part is a reminder that those of us who are in this industry are professionals. I think our coverage is sometimes driven by these weird two competing polls. One is a desire to look for something new and trendy, which is totally understandable. Part of our job is to be aware of what is happening and inform people of it before it hits their market or before it’s everywhere, so that people can try something out if they’re interested and or be apprised of the situation.

On the flip side, I think it’s because of the way that the sale of the brands to Constellation was covered at the time. Everyone in the media said, “Oh, yeah. They got six brands… Corona, etc.” That’s understandable but it’s a good reminder to us to revisit and say, “Hey, this thing that we assumed eight years ago may not still hold true.”.

The data pointed that out to us and I think it’s great that we really looked at it and found the story here. I want to throw out a suggestion to both of you or a question to both of you: Do we sometimes think that trends are over before they are?

The one that occurred to me when I was planning for this is that I have seen a lot and heard a lot, both written and talked about, is the trend of pumpkin beer is over. I’m curious, and maybe we can dig into this for another episode because I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but I wonder if that is, in fact, true — that lots of people are making it now even though it’s early August. That’s the trend I wonder if we have already written off, but in fact is still really, really popular?

A: You know what my answer is.

Z: I’m not asking what you think about pumpkin spice beer. We’ve already been there.

J: I do not like it.

A: I hate it and I wish it was over.

Seriously, I think the trend is definitely not over. People wouldn’t keep making it if it wasn’t exactly popular. I think we have a tendency to do that in general and try to write things off, say things are over. I think one of the biggest lessons that this teaches us is there’s a lot of lifestyle coverage out there that really fails to look deeply at data. We’ve talked about this a bunch on this podcast, but I think data doesn’t lie. That’s what you learn in journalism school.

We’re talking about the coronavirus and we’re talking about vaccination rates. Those journalists are looking at data. They’re not just saying that vaccinations are low because they walked by a few vaccination sites and aren’t seeing lines. They’re saying it’s low because they’re literally looking at the data and they’re saying it’s slowing or increasing. I think that’s the same for drinks. It really is important to have a gut check where you say, “OK, what do sales numbers look like? Have they been declining year over year over year?”.

For example, wine under $10 has been declining in its popularity and in its sales for the last few years. It’s a shrinking category. While there are still some brands that are pretty decently sized in that category, the category is shrinking. It’s basically disappearing, which is great for American wine culture, in all honesty. We’d rather that everyone is drinking nicer wines, a little bit more expensive wines, and taking it a little bit more seriously. That’s good for wine culture but that’s supported by data. Twenty years ago, we could have said that and that would have been true.

Z: Exactly.

A: I think that’s how we miss a lot of this stuff. We declare trends or declare things dead without trying to look into what the numbers say?

Z: Do we, alternatively, declare things alive without the information? I am going to bring up something that was on Twitter the other day. I hate to do this but Bill Shufelt is the founder of Athletic Brewing, who I interviewed.

A: Oh, this is crazy.

Z: I love the brewery but his claim that, in five years, 20 percent of the beer industry will be nonalcoholic is incorrect. I get it, he has a very high stake in that coming to be true but we should not and do not obviously just take that at face value because someone said it. There’s data that you can look at that shows what the market share for a nonalcoholic beer or anything is. It is, frankly, a lot smaller than certain people would have you believe because it’s their beat or their passion or whatever. That’s fine. The person who makes it needs to believe in its potential. We, as journalists, do not need to take their words as gospel.

A: No, although a lot of people often do because everyone needs to file a story. Of course, 100 percent look at the nonalcoholic sales and separate it out. Truly separate out, as we talked about a bunch, from low-alcohol and it’s really small. When I interviewed the founder of Lyre’s, he was saying that they are a $50 million revenue company and they’re the biggest non-alcoholic spirits company in the world. That’s not a big market.

Z: No.

A: If $50 million makes you the biggest nonalcoholic company in the world, again, as you said, that’s within people’s interests. He’s a salesman. He has to say that. I think what is really amazing is we could have noticed Modelo, we just didn’t. I also think that maybe we just lumped it in, sadly. We failed to truly examine and say it is actually this one standing out above all others and when you do, it is like, holy s**t, it is.

J: I also think why this piece is pretty special is because if you do try to search for another piece on it, it doesn’t really exist. Even after all this time, we’re still the first one’s publishing this piece.

Z: It was hiding in plain sight and I think that point is very good. There was a fascinating story to tell here, that everyone either completely ignored or if they saw those numbers, assumed there was nothing to say, which is silly but hey, good for us.

A: Totally. Well, this is fascinating and I think I am going to go have a Modelo right now actually.

Z: Yeah, good call.

A: I’m really craving one.

Z: I want to say that if you guys are out there, and if there’s something that’s obvious in the beer category or other categories, let us know if there are things that we’re overlooking, specific drinks in particular, whether it’s a beer or wine.

J: Cosmopolitan.

Z: We’ve certainly covered that one, but yeah, those things are super fascinating to us. Sometimes we find out about them because of you guys. You tell us what we’re missing. It’s super helpful.

A: Totally. Well, that was a great conversation as always. See you next week.

J: Thanks.

Z: Sounds great.

Thanks so much for listening to the “VinePair Podcast.” If you love this show as much as we love making it, then please give us a rating or review on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever it is you get your podcasts. It really helps everyone else discover the show.

Now for the credits. VinePair is produced and recorded in New York City and in Seattle, Wash., by myself and Zach Geballe. He does all the editing and loves to get the credit. Also, I would love to give a special shout-out to my VinePair co-founder, Josh Malin, for helping make all this possible and also to Keith Beavers, VinePair’s tastings director, who is additionally a producer on the show. I also want to, of course, thank every other member of the VinePair team who is instrumental in all of the ideas that go into making the show every week. Thanks so much for listening, and we’ll see you again.

Ed. note: This episode has been edited for length and clarity.

The article VinePair Podcast: Why Did the Entire Beer World Sleep on Modelo Especial? appeared first on VinePair.

source https://vinepair.com/articles/vinepair-podcast-modelo-especial-trend/

[tyleroakley-obsessed]

Ed. Note: Veena is here to tell us about Young Arts Patron’s event this weekend, the fourth annual Youth Collectors Contemporary: several days of art shows, art sales, workshops, and speakers. It’s happening this Friday through Sunday, with the big party and art sale on Friday at Crosstown Arts at 7 p.m. You can find out more on the YCC website and purchase tickets for any or all of the events here. What Is The Young Collectors Contemporary? The fourth edition of the Young Collectors Contemporary is right around the corner! I had the opportunity to speak with Whitney Hardy, founder of Young Arts Patrons (and the brains behind the YCC) about the importance of the conference and art fair in the Memphis arts scene. In front of the Birdcap + Sentrock mural at Crosstown Arts. Philip Murphy, provided by YAP. The mission of Young Arts Patrons is to link audiences with emerging art to better support the arts economy. What began as a simple Meetup is now a group of powerhouse women who connect community members (that’s you) and artists. Young Arts Patrons is proof that Memphis does have a strong art patron community, i.e., people who enjoy going to art openings, having artistic conversations, and supporting creative work. Young Art Patrons hosts plenty of events throughout the year.  The Young Collectors Contemporary highlights up-and-coming artists from around the country, allowing these artists to reach new audiences. They can meet and learn from one another, and Memphians can meet them and check out their work. In the words of Whitney, “it’s four-day party celebrating artists and collectors”. Photo by Philip Murphy, provided by YAP. (Whitney Hardy in center.) Young Collectors Contemporary Schedule Friday, March 22: Workshops and Opening Night Party  Friday night is a giant party in Crosstown Arts (sponsored by NEXAIR) where you can mix and mingle with the artists and buy their art. Artists are coming in from Seattle, Brooklyn, Baltimore, Nashville, Atlanta, Charleston, and more to showcase their wares, in addition to local Memphis artists who will have items for sale. Food for this party will be provided by Paradox Catering and is included in the ticket price. Tickets are $35, or $50 with alcoholic beverages. (Plus fees.)  Earlier that day, Amy Walleston, faculty member at Sotheby’s Institute of Art, will lead a sold-out masterclass on arts journalism: a topic conference organizers feel is lacking in Memphis. Aspiring writers will workshop pieces to better be able to write art criticism and to fill in the knowledge gaps that exist.  On Friday afternoon De Nichols, an artist and activist from St. Louis, will lead a workshop around community and the arts that is designed to bring together artists and community organizations. According to Whitney, there are not enough opportunities to bring both sides to the table to learn from one another. Tickets for this workshop are still available for purchase at time of publication.  Saturday, March 23: TED-Talks Style Speakers Saturday will follow a TEDx format, with artists and journalists coming to speak. One of the keynotes is Allison Glenn, the Associate Curator for Contemporary Art at Crystal Bridges Museum of Art, who will be making her first visit to Memphis. The entire day will focus on the state of the arts, social justice, mental health, innovation, and more and sounds like it will be an incredible experience. Tickets are $50 (plus fees) and include access for Saturday and Sunday Sunday, March 24: Workshops and Mimosas Sunday will feature vignettes on incorporating art into your home with Shavonda Gardner, a designer and blogger from Sacramento, and Carmeon Hamilton, a local interior designer. Both women will speak about the role art plays in interiors, and there will be mimosas all around! (Thursday night there’s also a sold-out Progressive Dinner Art Bus Tour. Keep a look out for it next year.)   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Young Collectors Contemporary (@theyoungcollectors) on Feb 13, 2019 at 12:20pm PST See Work From Local & National Artists at YCC One featured artist is Memphis native and current MCA student Anna Bearman, whose work will be on display for the first time. Anna and Whitney met during Anna’a internship at Epicenter co-working space in Cooper Young (which is Whitney’s day job), and Anna is on the Creatives Council with Young Art Patrons.  Anna Bearman Self Portrait. Provided by the artist. Anna attended YCC in 2018 and met “so many genuinely cool artists” who inspired her to focus more of her time on her personal work, the result of which is being featured at this year’s event. Anna’s take is that the more time spent around other freelancers and artists increases her drive to create, and she is excited about the exposure being featured might bring. As a native Memphian she is especially excited that this event was started by local Memphians from the ground up and is the first event of its kind in the area. More About The Young Collectors Contemporary Whitney is quick to point out that this event cannot happen without the awesome YAP team (Claire Brulatour, Whitney, Emily Oppenheimer, Denise Parnell, and Mary Webster) along with support from the Creatives Council and local collectors. Her hope is that this event will encourage more young collectors to interact with artists and engage in conversation. L to R: Emily Oppenheimer, Mary Webster, Claire Brulatour, Whitney Hardy, Denise Parnell. Photo by Veena Rangaswami. Overall the YCC sounds like an awesome event bringing together artists and community members to celebrate the role art plays in all our lives, and I cannot wait to attend and see it all for myself. And maybe pick up a thing or two for my house! Again, you can find out more on the YCC website and purchase tickets for any or all of the events here. Tickets for Friday’s opening night party are $50 with alcohol included, or $35 without alcohol. The Saturday + Sunday pass is $50 +fees and gets you in the art fair, to all the speakers, and the interior design tour. Events on Friday-Sunday will take place in the Crosstown Arts spaces at the Concourse, and Saturday’s talks will be in the Crosstown Theater.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Young Collectors Contemporary (@theyoungcollectors) on Jan 22, 2019 at 2:46pm PST Go There: Young Collectors Contemporary 2019 Crosstown Arts, Crosstown Theater March 21 – 24, 2019 $35 – $50 Friday’s Opening Night Party $50 Weekend Pass (Saturday + Sunday only) + fees Are you a home owner in Memphis, with a broken garage door? Call ASAP garage door today at 901-461-0385 or checkout https://ift.tt/1B5z3Pc

http://ilovememphisblog.com/2019/03/meet-the-artists-at-the-young-collectors-contemporary-this-weekend/