It’s that time again! Reality Tea’s Booze ‘N Books Club! With zillions of reality stars – and new ones popping up every second – and each one with something to sell, we here at Reality Tea decided to test out some of these fetes of literary greatness. And what goes better with books that are badly written than cocktails? So we thought we’d try something fun and review some of these gems!
Each month Reality Tea will be reviewing both a book and a cocktail. Last month we reviewed Real Housewives of Orange County star Vicki Gunvalson’s book More Than A Housewife: Talent! Purpose! Direction! Drive! along with her Wines By Wives club, her joint venture with Tamra Barney.
August was all about the Housewives of Atlanta – Kim Zociak, Nene Leakes and Cynthia Bailey. We gave Mary a month off from ‘testing’, as we don’t want to pay for her rehab nor be forced to co-author her memoir “Will Blog For Booze” and since I love me some cheap wine moscato, I took one for the team!
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THE BOOZE: Kim Zolciak’s Viva Moscato & Cynthia Bailey’s PT Sparkling Rose Moscato
I have to preface this review with a confession that I am not a “real” wine lover. At all. I’ve attended wine tastings and “classes” to learn to appreciate it, but I just can’t. It dries out my sinuses, gives me a headache and just generally tastes bad. About a year ago I tried a moscato and fell in love. Everyone teases me that it’s not “real wine”, but I’m okay with it because I’m not alone in my love for this sweet and fruity wine-cooler-like wine, as moscato sales skyrocketed by 78% last year! Clearly I’m not the only fan club member.
Since Kim Zolciak’s Viva Moscato (above) came in so many flavors, (Raspberry, Peach, Strawberry, Mango and a few more coming soon!), we felt it would only be a true test if we tried them all. In the name of thorough research and all.
Each one of the flavors was light and not overpowering at all. They weren’t overly fruity, but definitely sweet. Each one of the flavors were almost dangerously light.
Strawberry was the clear winner in our group, but when it came to the mango flavor it was girls vs. boys. The girls were loving the mango while the men refused to even finish more than a few sips. Peach and Raspberry were surprisingly good, too. I don’t recommend sampling all the flavors like we did unless your order of the night is a sugar coma. They were great, but because they are so light, you might find yourself tipping them back a little too fast.
To mix things up, Kim’s brand has some interesting recipes on their website. My recommendation: Kim’s Ultimate Mango Mimosa!
After a few palette cleansers, up next up was Cynthia Bailey’s PT Sparkling Rose Moscato.
PT Sparkling Rose Moscato came in with a higher alcohol content and tasted less fruity and sweet than the Viva Moscato. The flavor was somewhere in the middle of a strawberry and raspberry. Cynthia’s moscato is more wine than wine cooler. Bubbly, but a little more ‘serious’.
Hmm..interesting that their wines are similar to their personalities.
Rating: Both are perfect for those who want a sweet sparkling wine that’s light on the alcohol. Grab a few bottles to share with your girlfriends while kicking back and watching a marathon of old Real Housewives of Atlanta episodes. We’re still holding out hope that Nene’s moscato will show up on store shelves one of these days!
THE BOOK: Nene Leakes “Never Make the Same Mistake Twice”
Nene’s book is probably considered an “oldie” already since it came out back in 2009. When it was written, she had just finished season 1 and had signed on for season 2 of RHOA. She wrote the book in Nene-speak, which I love. It’s as if she’s reading it to you – you can picture every finger wag and facial expression.
Nene covers a wide array of events in her past and makes no excuses for them. She shares abuse growing up, getting arrested, stripping, meeting Gregg, how she landed her spot on Real Housewives of Atlanta and more.
Nene wanted to share that there is much more to her than what we see in one hour snippets each week on RHOA. She sums it up well in chapter 10 where she talks about watching herself on the show the first night it aired and how she initially tried to be something she wasn’t (June Cleaver) in the first few days of taping and then gave up and just let the real Nene fly. And we’re grateful for that.
On the other facets of her life: “The truth of the matter is that drama sells. No matter how much people claimed they were embarrassed by my in-your-face personality, they love to hear about my drama. Nobody wants to see me going out and starting a business, or having lunch with my kids, or cleaning the bathroom and cooking dinner. But I do these things. And anyone who says she cares to read about me doing those things is lying. Celebrities with no drama get no play and they don’t last. Period. ”
Nene is wise.
Rating: An honest look back at the events that shaped her life. If you want a peek at what made Nene the sassy, larger-than-life personality she is today, you’ll want to check out this book. At just 228 pages, it’s a quick and easy read.
Join us in September as we mash up MTV and VH1! We’re reading Evelyn Lozada’s new tome “The Wives Association: Inner Circle”, paired with one of the Jersey Shore stars’ beverages. Have you tried any of them yet? Share your recommendation in the comments!
