How to make a festive cocktail like they do at an Irish castle

October is National Pasta Month — and if you ask me, it’s not getting nearly enough hype. There’s never a bad time for pasta, but the high carbohydrate content can keep people running the other way. Luckily, Hero has us covered, bringing back pasta night with three new low-carb pasta shapes. Backed by celeb athletes like Tom Brady and Kevin Durant, the Hero Pasta collection now includes Elbow Macaroni, Penne and Mini Spirals. All three deliver the taste, texture, and bite of traditional pasta with a fraction of the carbs.

Every box of Hero Noodles has the same nutrition profile: 5g net carbs, 0g sugar, 32g fiber, 12g plant-based protein, and 80 calories per serving. With over 40,000 5-star reviews, Hero has shown that pasta lovers no longer have to settle for pea-based noodles, spaghetti squash, or cauliflower stand-ins. For someone like me who has followed a generally low-carb diet for years, innovations like Hero’s low-carb noodles are a true game changer (and make it possible to enjoy National Pasta Month just like everyone else).

Boxed wine gets a bad rap because, well, it’s wine in a box. You’ve heard all the negative connotations by now: They’re cheap, unsophisticated, and downright boring. You walk into any party with boxed wine, and you’ll not only raise eyebrows, but also be persona non grata at the next shindig. I’ve personally never sipped wine from a box, though that has a lot to do with the fact that my introduction to wine happened when a date of mine from more than 20 years ago ordered a bottle of Château Ste. Michelle Riesling at a restaurant I frequented. The Riesling was sweet, crisp, and truly delicious for someone who runs on beer, tequila, rum, and whiskey. That bottle of Riesling, however, sparked curiosity: Buying a dozen red and white bottles of wine from my local shop in Pasadena, California. The bottles sat mostly on my wine rack collecting dust. I’d open one every few months when guests preferred something buttery or fruity over carbonated or oaky booze.

It wasn’t until my trip across Tuscany in April 2018 that I really learned to appreciate wine. After touring the tiny village, one wine came out on top, and it’s one I order every chance I get when dining out: Chianti Classico. But always make sure the bottle carries the black rooster symbol. The older I get, the more I appreciate a glass of wine. Heck, last summer while visiting Cuban Creations Cigar Bar in New Orleans, the lovely waitress recommended a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon for the Arturo Fuente Gran Reserva cigar I was about to light. It was a great recommendation. 

Twenty years is a long time to wait for anything, let alone a whisky, but Bowmore is betting its newest release is one worth the delay.

The distillery, founded in 1779 in the town of Bowmore, is the oldest licensed distillery on Islay. It’s also the second-oldest in Scotland, and one of the few that still runs its own floor maltings, using peat smoke to dry the barley on-site.