We've seen a glut of quality craft beer roll through these parts in recent months, and it doesn't look like it's going to stop anytime soon as Bone Dry Brewery starts landing on tap handles across the city.

Bone Dry is the brainchild of Frank Naughton (yes, of that Naughton company, though he's making an effort to separate his hobby from his livelihood, so don't ask for beer at his store) who got into home brewing 15 years ago. As most homebrewers do, his batches went through fits and starts (a few good batches, a few exploding bottles, a few that tasted like motor oil, etc.) before he hit on a winner.

"I made some decent stuff along the way, but I made some really bad stuff too. Skunk stuff, you know? It's a labor of love, man," he says. Later he tells me that many of his brews were after family members and pets, including a beer named for his son he calls "Tre's Equis," playing off of the famous Mexican brand.

The "Bone Dry" name, he tells me, is just fun: "People just like saying it — Bone Dry!" he said. The brand itself is part of a small project he's had in mind for a while; the LLC was created two years ago, before he came up with the recipe he liked. From there, it was a matter of chatting with Barrio Brewing, who he contracted to do the production, and Golden Eagle to get the distribution set up. 

Now, Naughton is visibly pumped: he's firing off bone-related puns left and right, with ideas for branding his beers ranging from the benign ("Big Boned") to the moderately-unpublishable (dick jokes!), making new connections with every sentence. Talking with him about his pet project, one that's taken more than two years to get going, he reminds me of a Jack Black or an Ed Helms on The Office...but without the manic nature or terrible ties.

Bone Dry Amber Ale itself is fairly simple: It's a good, strong (6.7% ABV) amber ale ("It's got meat on the bones," Naughton quips; seriously, the puns never stop). It's a drinkable beer designed to appeal to most anyone who picks up a pint of it; hoppy, a bit of malt flavoring, with some caramel taste to it. Not too thick, and not bready, it goes down easily. Basically, it's like New Belgium's Fat Tire, but hoppier. 

The party tonight, Oct. 24, is party at Fini's Landing, 5689 N. Swan Road, is the beginning of a roll-out that'll take little more than a week, with launch parties set for bars and restaurants around Tucson. Each bar is donating money from each pint's sale to a different charity of their choosing (Fini's Landing is donating to the Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection), and sales from each shirt are going to the Humane Society of Southern Arizona. Fini's will also feature music from classic rock troubadour Scotty P, who'll be joined by Naughton on a few tunes.

This is just a test run for Naughton; if it goes well, he hopes to roll out another batch during the holiday season. "What's fun is it hits all of the above: I get to put my brand out there and try it, see if people like it; it helps charity; and it makes people laugh. It's a grand slam right there." 

The Fini's Landing party starts at 6 p.m., with another party set for tomorrow night at Old Pueblo Grille, 60 N. Alvernon Way. For more on where the Bone Dry tour is set to stop next, head to the Bone Dry Brewing website.

I know what you're asking yourself right now: Who's Jim Nintzel?

Pecan pie lovers should clear their calendar for the fifth annual Sahuarita Pecan Festival on Saturday, November 9, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at The Green Valley Pecan Company, 1625 E. Sahuarita Road.


The Sahuarita Pecan Festival website announced it's first ever first-ever pecan pie contest and Facebook scavenger hunt. Here's the instructions and prizes for those looking to participate:

Here's your chance to find out if World Beer Tucson is a trick or treat.


The new franchise is opening it's doors at 9 a.m. Thursday, October 31, Halloween night. World of Beer is located at 350 E. Congress St. on the bottom floor of the Cadence property next door to the Rialto Theatre. The Facebook event page says there will be chicken and Belgian waffles for breakfast and a costume contest in the evening. The chain bar offers up to 500 bottled beers and 50 brews on tap. There's going to be a sneak peek preview night on Monday, but you have to have get a special ticket from Justin. You know Justin, right?

Brace yourselves, Tucson: Giant George, the Guinness World Record-confirmed World's Largest Dog, has died.

His family announced his death last week, Oct. 18, via Facebook:

It is with a heavy heart that we announce Giant George died last night. George passed away peacefully surrounded by loved ones; one month before his eighth birthday.

We appreciate the love and support you have given Giant George over the last several years. We look forward to honoring his spirit by continuing his charitable works.

Your thoughts and prayers are much appreciated.

-Team Giant George

But worry not, Weekly Rangers: George isn't taking this 'death' thing laying down. No, he's continuing to write to us insignificant humans from the Great Beyond,  riding that Rainbow Bridge in the sky (which we assume is the bridge between Earth and Dog Valhalla)...and now he has wings?

Greetings from the Rainbow Bridge...

'Tis Grand here...I did a lot of frolicking today...Whilst frolicking I was thinking of giving back in a Giant way.

Here's what I am thinking:

November 17 marks my 8th birthday, and although I cannot be there in body, I can be there in spirit. I would like to make November 17 Giant George Service Day...a day for GG Nation to honor my spirit by giving of their time and/or shekels to an animal cause that is important to each of you.

Your time and/or your money will make a big difference in an animals life...

Help me make November 17 Giant George Service Day by sharing with your fellow humanoids and making something Giant happen!

Miss you like Costco roasted chicken, GG

Ignoring how bizarre it is that such a huge dog/small moose has an Internet connection in whatever Dog Heaven (and uses it to hang out on Facebook, apparently), at least he's still attempting to do good things up there.

If you're interested in taking part in Giant George's Day of Service, you can hook up with the Facebook event here. And in keeping with George's desire to help out animals (and let's listen to what he says: there's nothing scarier than the idea of a huge, winged dog swooping down to exact vengeance), why not adopt a critter from the Humane Society of Southern Arizona, where adoption fees for all dogs, cats, puppies and kittens are $50 (and free for all dogs and cats more than six years old) 'til the end of the year.

The good folks over at Maker House are playing the film noir classic Sunset Boulevard tonight 7 p.m. According to their Facebook page, they've built a 20-foot movie screen for the occasion! The film stars Gloria Swanson as a washed-up, delusional actress and William Holden as an eager screenwriter/gigolo, and in my opinion, is one of the greatest films ever made. I'm obviously not alone on this.

Tonight is your chance to watch it with a bonafide movie critic. Joe Morella, formerly of Variety, will be in attendance and will be providing some sort of commentary after the film I'd imagine. Morella's written a fair share of books covering Hollywood's Golden Age, including biographies on Mia Farrow, Judy Garland, and Rita Hayworth.

The event tonight kicks off a four-part series Morella will be presenting on classic films at Maker House. Up next on the schedule is Shakespeare in Love on Nov. 22. I'd love to hear Morella's take on why that won Best Picture over Saving Private Ryan and The Thin Red Line.

Maker House is located at 283 N. Stone Ave. Admission is free, but you should probably RSVP at the event's Eventbrite page here.

Marvel/Disney finally released the Captain America trailers today, and I'm going to start camping out right now.

I caught most of the comic book references because I read the Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting Winter Soldier comics. Chris Evans is decked out in the Secret Agent Steve Rogers uniform from the Marvel Heroic Age era two years ago (I may be wrong about my dates). The trailer teases Falcon (Anthony Mackie) dodging fighter planes, and I'm glad he isn't wearing that dumb red latex suit.


The only Issue I have with the trailers is there isn't enough Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). She's a kick ass character and I feel like they don't utilize Johansson like they should. There's a ton of Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) in these trailers and he should have his own movie as well, or at least give him a cool fight scene. He's the old grumpy ass of the Avengers when he could kick ass and take names once in a while. I'm glad they picked Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) as the villain in this film. The biggest problem with Captain America is his rogues gallery. For the last 70 years he has been fighting Nazis and Hydra.

In terms of most original, wildly independent, underground hip-hop, 2013 was the year of the Zombies. That's Flatbush ZOMBIES to be precise. The Brooklyn-based trio has been ruling over the New York underground Beast Coast scene since the release of the whacked-out, hipadelic, murder-sex-and-drugs anthem D.R.U.G.S. (their first official mixtape). Though the mixtape dropped in mid-2012, the heat and hype created by the critically acclaimed tape carried the lyrical lunatics into 2013 with spotlights shining and tours kicking off.

But now it's the latter half of 2013. And it's time to get back to work.

Not a problem for the ZOMBIE crew, though. October saw the release of the new music video for "Death", a song coming from the brand new mixtape Better Off Dead. Directed and shot by Tone & Vinny Picone, the video features the ZOMBIEs up to their usual murderous antics with a rural twist— including riding tractors, and brandishing chainsaws. As per the usual, it's a banger, and perfect for the Halloween season.

Whatcha gonna do when the zombies come for you?

H20 Discotec, located at 61 E. Congress Street and brought to you by the folks behind Zen Rock and Sapphire, has been in the works for awhile and is seemingly opening soon with dazzling neon-light bathrooms, a LED ceiling and very expensive water features. Apparently, if you want to fully experience the bottle-service glamour of H20, you need to be a VIP member? Well, that's not entirely correct...according to the application form, women are set, but the guys need to fill out a form to get a card to get into a Tucson nightclub.

Information you need to give out if you want to apply:

• Basic contact stuff like your name, address, email, phone number.
• A link to your Facebook page
• Your employer
• Your income
• Your martial status
• How often you go out and where?
• What kind of music you like
• Your experience with bottle service

Give over all that data (I was looking for where to put my Social Security number and didn't see that field, so I just put it in the bottle service section) and you might be able to get your hands on a Black Card as a VIP member. No idea what that means, but I'M PRETTY PSYCHED ABOUT IT, BRO.

It's that time of the year when  you get to dress up as a sexy cat, and I'm not talking about the sexy feral cats that cry at my door for food. I know a lot of you have been dying to show off your costumes that you have spent months or hours making. Halloween is like comic-con with out all the clearasil and Big Bang Theory jokes. The Tucson Roller Derby is having their ninth annual ABC Halloween Party Fundraiser at 8 p.m. this Friday, October 25 at The Hut, 305 North Fourth Avenue.

I have attended a roller derby bash in Phoenix once and those girls know how to party. I felt like the pretty girl at the prom because there were more (tough) ladies than guys there.

Tickets are only $20 and you get five drink tickets. There will be a costume contest with cash prizes.  All the proceeds go to the Tucson Roller Derby. For more information click here for their Facebook event page.