Eminently drinkable with food or on its own, berry and floral aromas lead to raspberry, strawberry, and cranberry fruit with a nice acidic backbone followed by a touch of spice.

For $9.99, it provides nice value and a great red wine option for warmer weather.

3.5 out of 5 Bellies 

96% Grenache, 3% Syrah, and 1% Mourvedre with 14 months in barrel.

14.9% ABV

 
BBP© 2012

March 30–This day in history enigmatic and eccentric poet Paul Verlaine is born in 1844.
So, in remembrance of the brilliant bearded Verlaine, we’ve attempted a translation of Verlaine’s Nevermore II.

The fact is beards look good on pretty much any man. But it’s also true that pretty much nobody loves a double chin. Especially looking at a double chin while a fat man talks. The jowls just are not attractive. Don’t get me wrong, there are a few select people who love this look. And the world of chubby chasers lost one member when bat shit crazy Kim Jong Il went to that great buffet in the sky.

We’re not saying, “Damn you, fat dude!” What we are saying is put some drapes on the windows. Cover that jiggling jello deposit of flesh. We’d rather see food stuck in your beard than Doritos  stuck in the flaps of chin.

Furthermore, the beard acts as a swamp cooler (as we’ve discussed previously) that utilizes the moisture from a nice adult beverage as well as the prevalent sweating fat people naturally do, and turns it into a nice little evaporating breeze retreat.

And finally, the beard turns shrieks of, “Look at hideous obese man!” into cries of adulation, “Oh my God! He is so handsome! Is that Brad Pitt?”

Do us all a favor, yourself included, and grow a beard, Fat Man.
BBP© 2012

Cherry upfront but finishes with unique, but not unappealing, ruby grapefruit-blood orange flavors with a touch of spice.

Residual sugar level is a bit high, but this seems to be the growing trend. As a result, the sugar accentuates the body of the wine, but the acidity cuts the flabbiness.

Cherry & plum on the nose.

Smooth, but not complicated.

Medium body and finish.

$4.99 provides a nice everyday value, but nothing to forego that monthly deposit into your kid’s college fund. After all, do you really want to plonk down all that coin just to delay their acceptance by 4 years that they really are average. Unless they’ve receive a full scholarship. And even then, all they’ve done is delay their servitude. But they’ve spared your wallet.

A respectable 4 out of 5 Bellies.

Happy Days! 

BBP© 2012

Lent has long been an arena of questions. Like, “Why would you give up swine, beef, and beer?”

Why not soybeans, grappa, and Nicholas Cage movies?

“I’m going to deprive myself in remembrance of the Lord.”

I’m not so sure the Lord wants you to deprive yourself, so much as to stop being a materialistic hateful bigot.

If you are giving something up for Lent, I don’t give a shit. Unless it involves kidnapping, murder, or something else horrific, sorry if I don’t give you a pat on the back for not drinking Coke. Feel free to keep it to yourself.

I’m sure you think it is a sacrifice, but the starving kids in Sudan just don’t agree. If we’re talking about emulating Christ, let’s see if you can fit through the eye of a needle.

But if you’re thinking of upping the ante. By God, do tell.

This is why I’ve tried to be true to the spirit of Lent by testing boundaries, so to speak. That is, instead of taking away a vice or an overindulgence, I seek out a new “sin” or indulgence every lent.

One that heretofore I’ve not tested myself in. There might be few left, but I’m not saying a Dorian Gray-esque  approach involving extreme lewd acts and murder.

If you don’t curse, why not start, just for Lent? Let a F**k fly. Shock your wife. Shock your co-workers. Shock yourself.

Overly concerned about your body image, why not see if you can pack on 15 lbs?

Spending hours training for marathons instead of quality time with the family,try to pick up smoking?

A bit of a teetotaler, and never experienced alcoholism, go on a bender in the name of the Lord and test the boundaries of red wine (although the gospels never differentiated whether Christ turned the water into red or white wine. This is a damned serious matter.)?

Which is why, in the spirit of Lent, and exploring who I am as a bearded and bellied human being, I’ve taken to gambling.

The raw activity of being caught within split-second upon split-second, feverishly watching as Tony Parker releases a free throw shot, the arc and spin of the basketball as it approaches the rim, and then “Ah, FUCK!” that miss just cost you the spread, and you had $50 dollars on San Antonio winning by 3 1/2 points.

Or conversely you had the Mavs and shout with jubilation.

The glory and the defamation of life. The practicality (or lack thereof) of fate drawn down to wagers. And the crackling of a second.

What’s the fine money line between someone like Romney being born into wealth and the crazy homeless guy being drafted into Vietnam and being declared a second-class citizen ever since?

I prefer to dabble in those questions of theology with minimal (usually) bets placed through what the kids call the interweb or intraweb or something to that effect. Or is that affect. Nobody gives a shit anymore, so why should I.

You learn a lot about yourself in the Nile of kismet monies wagered, balanced and weighed, then reweighed and rebalanced, second after second, your fears and desires revealing themselves repeatedly.

Your feelings of triumph quickly followed by fears of failure. The realization of both instantaneously, and then refashioned.

I’m not saying mortgage your house, or jeopardize your life–family, personal, or public–but just as people test themselves with physical feats of strength, why not try it mentally (and yes, physical stress also equates to mental and spiritual, but kick it up a notch.) Hell, if you want to maintain your do-gooder status make it a point of trying to compliment people you despise. Why do you despise them anyway?

So ultimately, dear friends, I encourage you to gamble, to sin, but to do so righteously, with a finger on your pulse and an eye on the prize. And the line on the Miami Heat just dropped a point. Booyakasha!

And yes, the past weekend was good. Although Detroit caused a bit of a scare before covering the spread with a push in the last seconds.

God bless them! And God bless us, everyone!  And I think Jesus just winked a wink of approval.

And yes, God hates my message so much, He ensured that I won.

BBP©2012

Jackpot! While the Quixote winery and Trader Joe’s went through the trouble of relabeling Quixote’s Petite Syrah with a Trader Joe’s label, they apparently couldn’t be bothered to put the bottles in an anonymous box since the container says in giant letters “QUIXOTE.” Quixote Petite Syrah sells for $60. Relabeled under the “Lance and Windmill Petite Syrah” label, the same bottle goes for $15.

The ’05 offering garnered 93 points from Wine Spectator, so the story is a little bit of WTF. Was someone out fighting windmills in the Stags Leap District and found liquid gold at a huge discount? Or the winery is still sitting on its stellar ’05 offering.

The 2006 Lance and Windmill offering is brilliantly rich with gobs of blueberry. Dark and inky, it coats the glass. Leather and floral hints on the nose. Well integrated tannins support the fruit, carrying it through for a long finish and preventing the richness from carrying over into a flabby mess. Not picking up too much of the black pepper that I love in PETs , but it is stain your tongue deliciousness.

14.4% ABV
22 months oak treatment

$14.99 @ Trader Joe’s

At this Quality to Price Ratio: 4.5 out of 5 Bellies

“When Don Quixote went out into the world, that world turned into a mystery before his eyes. That is the legacy of the first European novel to the entire subsequent history of the novel. The novel teaches us to comprehend the world as a question. There is wisdom and tolerance in that attitude.”–Milan Kundera

BBP© 2012

Delegate Kathy J. Byron Virginia Republican. After previously condemning “the government intrusion into health care,” Byron introduced the bill that requires women to undergo a mandatory ultrasound before undergoing an abortion.

Runner-up: Bob McDonnell, a critic of TSA’s security measures an invasion of privacy, endorses the idea of rape victims having an ultrasound via a long cold foreign object. Nothing says, “Privacy, compassion, and small government” like putting someone in a precarious state under more mental strain. And for people afraid of TSA security measures, Lick a Dick. So you’ve backed off the invasive procedure after learning it would violate Virginia sex crime laws. You’re like a kid who has asked one parent for ice cream, been denied, and moved on to the other parent.

And the fucking argument that it will prevent abortions is bullshit. People wanting to get rid of an unwanted pregnancy will always try to find a way. Just like if people want a drink, they’ll always  find a way. See any study on Prohibition or take a look at our take on Government Intrusion.

If you’re against abortion. Fantastic. Good. Great. Continue to purchase crappy bumper stickers while you funnel money and hate in an attempt to change a law that will never be amended (and even if it was it wouldn’t end abortion) instead of maybe using your funds and time to love the unwanted and lonely children that are already here. Hint: there are starving kids around the world, kids dying from very preventable diseases, and you fucking want to bring more of them into the world so you can ignore their cries. And fact: saying you’ll pray for them is about as effective as telling a monkey to stop throwing shit and being flabbergasted when he fails to follow orders.

Kathy Byron: for your hypocrisy and ignorance of the kids already here, you are the Beardless Prick of the Week.
Beards & Bellies Press™ 2011©

This wine is testament to the playfulness and versatility of Paso Robles, as well as the impressive offerings of the 2010 vintage.

And TJ’s Refosco is a rarity in domestic wine offerings, as Refosco is the odd man out in most Italian wine offerings.

Potentially a lethal tannic beast, Trader Joe’s Refosco contains 25% Merlot to harmonize the remaining 75% Refosco juice.

Rich black cherry, plum, and rhubarb with back notes of spice (the bottle states, ‘hints of thyme”).

Developed tannins lead to a long finish with enough acidity to balance out the fruit and pair well with most meals.

Pretty damn delicious.

Well worthy of 4 out of 5 Bellies

13.3% ABV

$6.99 @ Trader Joe’s

BBP© 2012