Dead ball

3 Austin locations in play for potential Major League Soccer stadium

A rendering shows Austinites what a potential Butler Shores Major League Soccer stadium could look like.

Rendering via Precourt Sports Ventures

The list of locations for Austin's possible Major League Soccer stadium has been narrowed down. Precourt Sports Ventures, who announced in October 2017 that it is considering moving the Columbus Crew SC team to the Capital City, has eliminated the Travis County Exposition Center and the site of a former Home Depot at Interstate 35 and St. John’s Avenue as possibilities.

The two locations were out of five potential sites that the City of Austin identified as viable homes for the project. After a tour, reps from PSV told the Austin American-Statesman that the Expo Center did not meet their location and infrastructure needs. MLS Austin lobbyist Richard Suttle also told the newspaper that the Home Depot site “doesn’t check a lot of the boxes we need.”

Three locations remain in the running: Butler Shores Metropolitan Park, Roy Guerrero Metropolitan Park, and McKalla Place. City-owned Butler Shores, the lakeside tract between Zilker Park and Auditorium Shores, continues to be the PSV favorite, although that plan has drawn opposition from some city council members and neighborhood groups.

Although the project is on the council agenda for February 15, it will likely be delayed as PSV continues its vetting process. Once a site is selected, the city will begin a process of analysis and citizen input that will take at least two months, according to acting Austin Parks and Recreation director Kimberley McNeely.

If Austin is selected as the next home of the Crew, PSV aims to have the project completed in time for the 2019 season. The team will be housed in a temporary location during construction.

sports

Refill, revere, rejoice

Austin distiller refills Kentucky Bourbon bottles for $1 in UT gameday stunt

Photo courtesy of Still Austin Whiskey Co.

Still Austin is filling up empty Kentucky Bourbon bottles and adding its own label in a display of Texas dominance.

Cheap bourbon isn't usually something people line up for, but in this case they know it's good. Still Austin Whiskey Co., a favorite Austin distiller, is offering $1 refills of its own Cask Strength Bourbon on empty Kentucky Bourbon bottles on November 23.

The promotion celebrates the Texas Longhorns vs. Kentucky Wildcats football match the same day. This is a highly anticipated game because the two teams have only been matched up once, back in 1951. Kentucky coach Mike Stoops reportedly also upped the ante by saying the Longhorns have "no weaknesses."

Essentially, this is a parallel challenge by Still Austin: Replace your Kentucky Bourbon with our Texas spirit and watch the Lone Star State win again.

"Why would I ever taint your bourbon with dried up Kentucky juice[?]" asked a (frankly, terrifying) customer on Instagram.

There is a misconception that bourbon has to be made in Kentucky. The Kentucky Distillers’ Association itself points out that, "According to the 1964 Congressional Resolution, in order to have “Bourbon” on the label it must be made in the United States of America and meet all other federal “standards of identity” for Bourbon."

Still Austin CEO and co-founder Chris Seals is setting the record straight with a little snark, inviting both fans and "skeptics" to stop by to take advantage of the deal.

“We’re deeply grateful to Kentucky for inventing the stuff, but after 200 years of the same old bourbon, people want something new,” said Seals in a press release.“The idea that great bourbon can only come from Kentucky is a myth based on decades of misinformation. We’re inviting everyone still holding onto this old guard notion to ‘Kentucky Fill Up’ to experience the difference for themselves.”

The product he's chosen to represent the brand, the Cask Strength Bourbon, is described as "a deeper more 'metal' version of our beloved straight bourbon." It's 116 proof (58 percent ABV) and has won double gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition twice, in 2022 and 2023.

Still Austin will only refill 500 bottles. Here are the rules: The bottles have to be 750 milliliters, clean, intact (with the original cap on hand), and they must have originally contained bourbon from a Kentucky Distillery. There are two time slots for refilling at 9 am and 11:30 am. Patrons can get tickets ahead of time at stillaustin.com.

In addition to the fill-ups, Still Austin will host a watch party starting at 2:30 pm. More Texas-Kentucky crossover will include Frozen Texas Julep cocktails, Texas fried chicken, and an armadillo derby race. There will also be exclusive merch and giveaways. Still Austin is the official corporate partner of Texas Athletics.

------

Fans of Austin sports and Austin food and drinks can now score tickets to The Tailgate, CultureMap's all-out party devoted to everyone’s favorite way to get in the gameday spirit. The event, presented by Verizon, goes down from 6-9 pm December 12 at Distribution Hall. Find out more about it here.

whiskey university of texas longhorns