So of course you don’t want to judge a book, a person, or a wine by its cover, but we all do it to some extent. It’s a fact of life. (If you believe you don’t then more power to you.)

We recently bought two bottles over at Trader Joe’s, and I left there, like always, very happy. Great selection and variety for really affordable prices, and sometimes you might get really lucky and find some delicious gems without the outrageous price! Just sayin’…

But on our recent trip over there, we bought two particularly aesthetically pleasing bottles. Mushpa picked the Dearly Beloved I Thee Red Wine, which describes itself as having “aromas of dark cherry plum and spicy vanilla oak [that] vow to pair perfectly with bluberry, black currant and toasted vanilla bean flavors.”

I myself went for the Liberté Cabernet Sauvignon which “delivers an exceptional bouquet of blackberries, autumanl leaves and baking spices followed by opulent flavors of clove and marzipan.” Honestly I don’t know where they got the marzipan notes, but since I am no wine expert I will trust the house, Familia Nueva’s palate.

Both have exceptional art and depending on your style, your attention will go to grabbing either bottle off the shelf. The Liberté has a beautiful label with what I believe is an Alphonse Mucha’s Art Nouveau painting, which I particularly enjoy. When I first saw it, it reminded me of Henri Privat-Livemont poster for Absinthe Robette.

I really really like Art Nouveau…So beautiful!

The Dearly Beloved I Thee Red has an image of a skull formed of leaves and flowers surely influenced by indigenous mexican art which commonly uses skulls and skeletons in order to represent death, life and resurrection (and it is silkscreened onto the bottle!).

I have to confess: I judged both bottles by their beautiful covers. I thought my lady in tan with leaves on her head would deliver a much more satisfying wine than the one with the skull. I’m sorry Mushpa, I apologize I judged your wine too harshly, thinking that for such wonderful art I would have to compensate by drinking a mediocre wine…

Oh how wrong I was!

The Dearly Beloved was spectacular! It filled my nostrils with sweet aromas and when I took the first sip it almost fooled me into thinking it was as sweet as dessert wine! So sweet…until you finish letting it go, and it delivers dearly with a beloved final kick. It had been a while that I had tasted a wine that I truly enjoyed!

And I must say that my Liberté was an alright pick. I am not going to judge it with fancy words because I am not an avid wine connoisseur, but I do have a palate and I know how to taste. I will say that next time I need to buy someone a gift, I would most definitely buy it again for the art! :]

I also ran into this amazing site called the Wine Proof Collective. They keep it real and part of their amazing journey to love and live wine is their Wine Projects, and they get artist and wine makers together to design some of the most beautiful wine labels I have seen! To put it in their own words: “these packages were not made to look good on a computer screen, but rather to be at home in a natural habitat. These wine bottles look best on the shelf, in your hands, in your refrigerator, and on your best friend’s dinner table.” And that, my friends is what art is all about- to keep it close, for your viewing pleasure.

So to all artist, dead and alive, thank you for combining these two wonderful things together! And next time you are shopping for wine, and the bottle is more beautiful than what you expect the wine to be, I say don’t be scared and give it a try. It might surprise you, and if not, you might just have bought yourself a fantastical piece of art!

Cheers y Salud!

-Mensa