First, some most excellent news: The Assembly just won two national Edward R. Murrow Awards!

The first, for sports reporting, recognizes Ren Larson’s investigation into state earmarks and misspending at the U.S. Performance Center.

The second award recognizes us for Overall Excellence. Our submission included 10 stories that showcased the depth and breadth of our reporting last year. We’re thrilled, proud, amazed, honored—all the words!

And lastly, Jordan Green’s extensive, personal account of right-wing extremism also took home this month’s Sidney Award for investigative journalism from the Hillman Foundation.

—Kate Sheppard, Executive Editor

☀️ In Today’s Edition

1. That’s the Spirit
2. The $8,887 Bloody Mary
3. What We’re Reading
4. Our Recent Stories

Visit any ABC store in Fayetteville and you’re bound to see bottles sporting Army insignia or prominently pro-military designs, such as Boundary Oak 82nd Airborne and Old Hillside Purple Heart Tribute. Mainstream brands like Evan Williams and Pendleton also have special offerings that celebrate the military.

Marketing to the military is a smart move in a region that is home to Fort Bragg and 90,000 veterans. Many themed brands are produced by veterans, and a significant number of them are associated with the U.S. Army Special Operations Command.

But at Fort Bragg’s liquor purveyors, called Class Six stores, you’ll find very few veteran-owned spirits. As Susannah Skiver Barton reports, it boils down to rules, hierarchy, and bureaucracy

Vets Put Their Stamp on Startup Whiskeys

While military liquor stores have been slow to warm to the trend, veteran-owned distilleries offer something unique for the armed forces.

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Commissioned by a group of vacationing Texans hoping to break several Guinness World Records, the $8,887 Bloody Mary served at a Holly Springs restaurant on August 9 looked like the kind of caricature of American intemperance that might appear in an animated movie about marine life, maybe during a scene in which the hermit crab protagonist slips into a dockside tavern to discover surf and turf isn’t the epic wave-riding competition he’d imagined.

The price tag, and the wow factor, come from what’s piled on top—a shipwreck of prickly crab legs, whole red snappers, shellfish, exotic proteins, and enough red meat to recreate Lady Gaga’s iconic VMA dress.

Lena Geller brings us the story of a group of out-of-towners who came to The Blind Pelican with ambitions of breaking multiple records and settling a year-old beef.

Have a news tip for our team? You can reach us at scoops@theassemblync.com.

What We’re Reading

Nyet Dead Yet: INDY reports that rumors of the demise of Duke’s Department of Slavic & Eurasian Studies are greatly exaggerated. But they did cause a momentary panic this week.

The Socratic Method: A Warren Wilson College professor writes for Aeon about an introduction to philosophy class that brings together people who are incarcerated and undergrads to ponder life’s big questions.

You Gotta Have Heart: A Cary teenager has been awarded a $25,000 scholarship for research that could revolutionize cardiovascular disease treatment, per WRAL.

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