It's been a gritty stretch for Nashville's craft brewery scene.

• Beloved breweries have consolidated, sold to out-of-towners or just plain closed.

Yes, but: Against the backdrop of declining craft beer sales, Xul, a newcomer to Nashville's beer brood, delivered a product so beloved that people stand in impossibly long lines in order to buy a case.

• Xul's PB&J Mixtape is a gluten-free sour that mimics the comforting taste of your favorite childhood lunch, but with a crisp and refreshing finish and a rather pleasant buzz.

Why it matters: Xul, the Knoxville-based brewery that purchased local Southern Grist last year, is hosting a PB&J Mixtape release party today.

Driving the news: If Mixtape release parties in Knoxville are any indication, the event figures to attract hundreds, maybe thousands, of people.

• At its annual Mixtape release last month, Xul sold about 3,500 cases to a crowd that swelled to about 5,000, according to one report.
• A video posted to Xul's Instagram page shows the throngs of fans waiting patiently for their fix.

The intrigue: You've probably never had a beer like the PB&J Mixtape. The company is coy about its brewing process, but told the DC Beer outlet last year that it does use real roasted peanuts in the process.

• You can already get the beer on draft at both Southern Grist locations.

If you go: The release event will take place at the Southern Grist tasting room in The Nations, starting at 5pm.

• The OG Mixtape is grape-flavored, but there will be six varieties for sale by the case at today's release party: blueberry, grape, blackberry, raspberry, cherry and banana.

Nate's thought bubble: As a meat-and-potatoes beer drinker who prefers lagers and IPAs, I was skeptical of the PB&J Mixtape. Generally speaking, I'd rather drink water than a seltzer.

• Still, I wanted to see what the fuss was about, so I snuck over for one during my son's swim practice a few weeks ago and left fascinated.
• I subsequently took two non-beer drinkers to the tasting room to get their opinions. One (my wife Alison) loved it and the other (newsletter reporter Adam Tamburin) thought it was one of the rare flavored beers that actually tasted exactly as it was described.
• Let's put it this way: If time allows, I'll be slugging it out in the beer line this afternoon.

The bottom line: The news of Southern Grist's sale to Xul was met with some skepticism, but this peanut-butter-and-jelly jolt of enthusiasm to the local beer scene is a welcome sight.

Tennessee is one of four states interested in hosting the entire range of nuclear energy-related development, including high-level waste.

Why it matters: The Energy Department hopes that by building what amount to nuclear mega-cities for such activities as uranium enrichment and fuel fabrication, states will have to address the thornier problem of waste as well.

Driving the news: Two of the states that recently submitted publicly available applications to DOE, Idaho and Tennessee, already host department national laboratories that do extensive nuclear-related work.

• Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) said in a letter accompanying his state's application that a new complex would further Tennessee in "leading in advancing President Trump's America First energy dominance agenda."

Zoom in: Nuclear News reported last week that a DOE official said front-end fuel cycle activities can be seen as "appetizers" for states, but that the "main course needs to be ultimate [waste] disposition."

Read the full story

Women dominated nominations for this year's Academy of Country Music Awards.

Why it matters: The ACMs are an annual indicator of the major players on Music Row.

By the numbers: Megan Moroney leads the pack with nine nominations, followed by Miranda Lambert with eight. Ella Langley and Lainey Wilson are tied for third place with seven nominations each.

The big picture: Country music is a male-dominated genre, and talented female artists have struggled to break through for years. But these nominations reflect a growing group of women who are finding commercial success.

Reality check: Despite their dominant showing throughout the awards ballot, women are still underrepresented in the top category.

• The field for entertainer of the year includes two women and five men.

What's next: The ACM Awards stream live on Prime Video at 7pm on May 17.

🏀 Nashville was awarded a franchise in the UpShot women's pro basketball league. The new team will begin play in 2027.

• The league serves as a developmental system for the WNBA and its players are able to be called up to WNBA teams.
• Former Nashville councilmember Nancy VanReece will serve as the team's president and CEO. (Nashville Business Journal, subscription)

🧑‍⚖️ The state Senate advanced a bill that penalizes judges who are found to obstruct ICE. (Tennessee Lookout)

🍿 Hooky, a movie theater, bowling alley and arcade complex, will open April 29 in the downtown Nashville Yards development. (Tennessean)

It's time to reward yourself for keeping up with the news. Hit reply and answer the following questions and you could earn a shoutout on Monday.

1. What robotaxi company started offering driverless rides in Nashville this week?
2. Name the sports team that LeBron James said should move to Nashville.
3. Which public university is adding a new master's degree focused on film and television productions?