Lolita Party Festive All Year Round

Need an idea for a last minute themed party? Try a Lolita Cocktail Party! Have your girlfriends bring their favorite Lolita Painted Glass (or if you are a collector, have your Divas choose one of yours to use for the evening) and make all the cocktails that are written on the bottom of the glasses. You and your girlfriends can have fun all night trying out different cocktails all inspired by their chosen Lolita Glass! To insure a fully stocked and well prepared bar for the evening you might write on the invitations that each girl should bring the main alcohol (or the specialty liqueur) in their Lolita recipe. For example on the Lolita Princess Glass the cocktail on the bottom of the glass reads: “Princess: 1 Part Peach Schnapps, 1 Part vodka, fill with white wine, top with lemonade”. The girl bringing the Princess Glass could bring the Peach Schnapps or the lemonade to the party. Make up some easy appetizers like caramel popcorn, Chex Mix and cheese trays and maybe even have a contest for best cocktail (with maybe a Lolita Glass Ornament as a prize).

Traveling with Wine

So you successfully planned a trip to that place where you’ve always wanted to go for which you had saved money, took off from work and booked some great sightseeing tours (including some wineries). You were so enamored with some of the wines that you decide you MUST have a bottle (or two). But should you? What are the rules on airlines? Taking wine across state borders? If you would rather not bother with rules, most states allow you to ship your wine back home to you (via the winery you bought it at). You can check if your state allows shipping here. But if you are flying – note that ANY liquid over 3oz is forbidden (sample liquor technically can be carried on, as long as it is in your zip lock baggie). If you decide you can bear to check your luggage (maybe you were going to check it anyway, or your frequent flyer points allowed 1 free checked bag) you are allowed to carry as many bottles of wine as  you’d like (you can read the official TSA rule here). Unless you are a super packer, or would like to chance TSA not checking your bag, simply pad your wine with your dirty socks and such. However, for added security, consider putting your wine in a Wine Skin – it is clear so TSA can see what is in it, and it is padded with layers of bubble wrap as well as a means to seal your wine in the bag so if the unfortunate was to happen, the broken bits and wine stays completely contained in the Wine Skin or the Wine Mummy. As far as driving across state lines – most states allow individual transportation of wine as long as the seal is not broken and the wine is not in the driver’s reach. The penalties can be hefty if that seal is broken (you can view the official Texas law about transportation here) so be mindful of where you pack your wine on the trip home. If all else fails, you can always plan a return visit – or plan a special night on your vacation to enjoy a bottle of local wine under the stars and in complete legal bliss. However you decide to proceed, always double check your state laws and drink responsibly.

Wine 101: Vintage

When buying wine, many of us wonder what some of the terms on the bottle actually mean. Like Vintage. Doesn’t vintage just mean old? Well, in wine terms, vintage means the year in which the grapes from a single vineyard were harvested. The flavor of the wine isn’t just dependent on the stuff used to clarify and filter the wine, but how the grape is actually grown. Soil types, droughts, excessive rain, letting vines grow near other plants, all these are factors that can change the actual taste of the grape from year to year which in turn affects the flavor of the wine made from those particular grapes year to year. Vintage can ONLY be applied to grapes from a SINGLE vineyard. So if you don’t see a year or a “vintage” on the bottle, it probably means that several different grapes from different vineyards were used to make the wine. The same is true for blends such as a Cabernet Merlot in which Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are mixed with Merlot grapes to produce a wine. The Merlot grapes might’ve come from the winery’s own vineyards, but perhaps the Cabernet Sauvignon didn’t grow well that year and they had to use another vineyard’s grapes instead. This becomes a blend and because it is from two different locations, it will not have a vintage. Expert wine connoisseurs can identify the difference between one vintage and another (you’ve probably heard in movies “oh 1958 Cabernet? Excellent year” they are referring to the vintage) but for most of us, the wine we buy at grocery stores generally have similar characterics from year to year. Next time you visit a winery or wine tasting room, ask about the wines that do not have years or vintages on the label and see all the different places the grapes came from. Another experiment would be to try to taste wines at a local winery made in different years. Happy Tasting!

Sale on Wine Shirts!

Select styles of wine shirts are now on sale for $14.00, that’s 50% off regular price!  Chose from 6 styles. Designated drinker, So Little Time, So Many Wines, How Merlot Can you go? t-shirts and Kiss My Glass, 5′Oclock somewhere, and Living in Zin tank top!

Hurry while supplies last! Sale applies only to select shirts.  We have a large selection of other wine t-shirts styles available for purchase as well!

We just joined the Facebook and Twitter!

Wine Diva is making sure to keep with in touch with our growing number of customers through Facebook and Twitter! Click on the links below to find us on your favorite social networking platform.  We would love to hear more from each and everyone of you!

Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

With Mother’s Day approaching, we wanted to let you know about some of our wine accessories that Mom would love.  With a variety of wine glasses, wine shirts, home decor and chocolates to choose from, you can find something to fit any mom’s taste. We have also recently created themed gift baskets. This Group Therapy gift basket is just what Mom needs after taking care of the kids all day. It is filled with needed to put together a group therapy session, well with the exception of the wine. This basket includes brownie mix, wine glass charms, a group therapy wine bottle charm, a purse stopper and our popular Group Therapy wine t-shirt. Look for other great themed gift baskets like Leopard print, Zebra Print, Shoe Lovers, and Winey Bitch.

Hand painted wine glasses are a popular trend these days and Lolita has some of the best quality and consistency for a hand painted glass that one can find.   A great gift idea for Mom this year is a Lolita’s hand painted Queen wine glass.  When drinking from this rhinestone studded wine glass, your Mother will feel like royalty, at least for the day. We also have the same design in a set of two acrylic wine glasses, appetizer plates, and even wine napkins. Lolita also has a variety of animal print,  Gossip wine glass, and Dirty wine glass for the Mom’s with a wild side.  For the calmer, more peaceful mother take a look at “It’s 5 o’clock Somewhere” “Wine Tasting” and “Little Black Dress”.

Home decorations and chocolates are never a bad choice when shopping for mom.  We have three styles of the very popular wine cork cages: Wine bottle, barrel, and purse.  At the top of each of these items is an opening where you drop your cork inside.  Once the cork cage is full, you can remove the corks by opening a trap door at the bottom of each cork cage.   Another great home décor item is our Zebra High Heeled bottle holder.  Designed as a shoe with black and white stripes, this super tall heel cradles a bottle of wine.  Place this decorative wine holder on your kitchen counter, above the fridge or any room that has a wine or animal print motif.

Chocolates are always a great back up plan.  We carry a variety of chocolates, fudge and chocolate sauces.  If you didn’t read about any products that your Mother would love, take a look under our shop by theme category to find items like Lolita wine products, shoes and purses,  animal prints and many more.

Winey Bitch Wine Accessories

Have fun with your wine and wine accessories by adding sassy wine accessories to your home or gathering.  There are several products that involve word play with Bitch and wine, one of my favorites being “Winey Bitch.”   Being bitchy helps to get things accomplished so why not use that impressive skill set?  In today’s posting we will be exploring whiney and bitch wine accessories you can find online.

At affordable prices, cocktail napkins are a simple and fun way to liven up your kitchen or a party.  If you find napkins that you absolutely love and don’t want to use every last one, there are acrylic coasters that are cut in squares with a slit in the side so that you can slide a decorative or fun phrased napkin to create a custom coaster.   Once you get bored of the style, just pull it out and insert a new napkin.  You can change your coasters every week if you like!  Look for sassy Bitch napkins like, “Wine Takes the Bitch Right Out of Me”, “You Go Girl, and take those tacky shoes with you”, “Whining, Bitching, Moaning”, and “B.I.T.C.H. – Babe In Total Control of Herself.”

Wine glasses are available in multiple shapes, colors, phrases, and designs.  Two of the most popular of the phrases available to you are “Wine a Bit, You’ll Feel Better” and “Wine Time.”  While these phrases are fun, and very true, these two glasses have more sass and humorous undertones than most: “Wine Takes the Bitch Right out of Me” and “Without Family, Alcohol Wouldn’t be Necessary.”

At Wine Diva Shop you can also find hand painted wine glasses that are made by a local artist in Grapevine, TX.   My Girlfriend Glasses have sexy modern women hand painted in colorful dresses.  Sassy phrases like the ones found below are available for order now.  You can even order a customized wine glass and request for your favorite dress color, hair style and color as well as any phrase you can think of to have painted on the glass.  It generally takes about two weeks to create the wine glass and ship it out, but you will be ecstatic with the results.

Lolita is one of the largest manufactures of hand painted wine glasses with what seems like an endless collection of designs.  One of their newest is their PMS wine glass.   This glass is dedicated to making sure that when it is your hand, people will keep their distance, well until you need a refill that is.  Sometimes we just can’t help being a winey bitch, so the least we can do is have some sort of warning.  Look for other Lolita “whine” glasses like “Holiday Whine” and “Whine Time” throughout the year.

Look for several other great products like coasters and bottle stoppers in these phrases under Shop by Theme at WineDivaShop.

To Decant or Not to Decant?

Deciding on the best way to let your wine breath can be a difficult one.  When I open a bottle of wine, I am ready to relax with my glass of wine. I generally don’t have much patience for allowing it to breath.  Why do we let wine breath?  Because it allows for the full flavors to emerge and make the wine better!  While there are many wines that do not need to go through this process, it is good to know the little details that can make a big difference.  This article, To Decant or Not To Decant, will give you a more in depth analysis of why wines need to breath and various ways to acquire the intended flavors of your wine.  The aerators mentioned in this article can be found at Su Vino Winery and are wonderful presents for the wine lovers in your life.  Enjoy your wine to its fullest!

Welcome to our blog.

Thanks for visiting our blog.  We will be discussing the world of wine gifts and accessories geared towards wine divas.  We’ll write about our favorite wine glasses, wine totes, and other fun things.  You can also visit our retail website www.winedivashop.com