I am always looking to add black owned brands to my world, so I’ve been getting into black owned wines and spirits. Here are some of the brands I’ve tried so far:

WINES

I usually have a glass of wine with our Monday Night Reality Recap Live, so I’m always looking for new brands to try.

• Black Girl Magic Wines: I love this brand. All of the wines are just straight forward and delicious. My favorites are the Rose, Red Blend, and the Sparkling Brut. I love that Target carries a variety of Black Girl Magic Wines and sometimes there’s a few dollars off in the Target app.
  
• Sun Goddess: This is Mary J Blige’s wine brand. I really like the Sauvignon Blanc – it is crisp and refreshing. I am not a fan of the Pinot Grigio – it’s just a bit too acidic for me. Available at Total Wine
  
• Maison Noir Wines: I love love love the OPP – Other People’s Pinot (Noir). It is lovely and complex. I haven’t seen any of the company’s other wines at Total Wine, but I’m on the hunt!
  
• HONORABLE MENTION – 19 Crimes’ Snoop Dogg Cali Red: I don’t know if this REALLY counts but Snoop’s face is on the wine so I have to assume he’s getting a coin. Listen. The wine is really good, affordable, and readily available. Nothing too crazy – just pop by your local Target and grab some. They often have coupons if you buy multiple bottles of 19 Crimes wines (yes you can mix and match)

I really want to try Stuyvesant Champagne next – it is high on my list.

SPIRITS

I’m looking for more good black owned spirits. So far, I’ve only tried a couple.

• Ten To One Caribbean Dark Rum with Uncle Nearest Bourbon Cask Finish: Look this is NOT cheap but my God is it good. Great for sipping as it has a smooth and slightly sweet finish. Bonus – it’s finished in Uncle Nearest Bourbon Casks, another black owned Spirits company.

• Brough Brothers Bourbon: I’m a bourbon drinker at my core. Brough Brothers is light, which makes it great for mixing but honestly, not my favorite for sipping. Still worth a try.

Check out the old fashioned cocktail I mix up in the beginning of this video!

I’ll be updating this post as I find more great black owned wine and spirits brands to try. In the meantime, let me know in the comments if there’s a brand you love and subscribe to our newsletter for updates!

FINISHED BOOKS:

Here’s what I read in 2022 ranked the same way I did last year:

Top 2

• Seven Days In June – Tia Williams: Tia Williams could write a coloring book and I would read it. I just love her writing. I absolutely loved this book of unrequited love returned. It also reminded me of the intensity and brevity (minus the trauma) of my first love, so I was all in.
• The Sex Lives of African Women: Self-Discovery, Freedom, and Healing – Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah: This book was SOOOOOOOOOO good. The sex and relationship stories of women all across the diaspora were fascinating. It was comforting to read about other people with similar views about relationships and instructive (in part) on how to live those views out. I will give a trigger warning – there were stories about sexual abuse and at times I had to step away.

Really Good

• The Taste of Ginger – Mansi Shah: I believe this was a free Prime First Reads book. I usually use the First Reads to try a new genre or read something I wouldn’t find on my own. Because I was into Indian romance novels last year, I thought I would give this book a whirl. It was such a rich and interesting read that was more about Indian culture and first generation immigrants than any one love story. I highly recommend it.
• The Dating Plan – Sara Desai: This is another of the Indian romance novels I love. It had all the elements – meddling Aunties, a culture clash, and a woman determined to date in her own way.
• The Trouble with Hating You – Sajni Patel: Another Indian romance novel. This one had a few heavy bits, including sexual abuse (tw) and HEAVY misogyny. But I still liked it a lot because of the way it started – with a literal run-in of our couple.
• While We Were Dating – Jasmine Guillory: I read everything Jasmine writes. She’s a black woman and former attorney – right in my wheelhouse. Boy meets celebrity girl and makes her feel normal. Very cute with a few plot twists.
• Have We Met – Camille Baker: I really liked this book for a couple reasons. It starts with tragedy but ends with the main character finding community in an unusual way. I also REALLY loved the introduction of LGBTQ+ characters and differently abled characters in a very casual way. The characters were just existing in the world together that didn’t other them. It was just a lovely read. I’m already looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
• The Bollywood Bride – Sonali Dev: Indian romance – Two long lost lovers find their way back to each other at their shared cousin’s wedding (they are NOT related. A paternal cousin and maternal cousin – two different trees). Very cute with a bit of tragedy for color.

Interesting

• Girl Gurl Grrrl – Kenya Hunt: I’m not sure what I expected, but it took me a while to get into it. The chapter on motherhood is excellent. I’ve rarely heard the topic discussed so candidly. Ditto for the complexity of womanhood in the black church and evolving spirituality. Also, as I came to know from reading the book, Kenya Hunt is from Chesapeake, VA, so she’s one of my people.
• House of Gucci – Sara Gay Ford: Chile this book was so much. It really should have been 2 books – 1 book about the Gucci family and another about the Gucci Family business. Yes they were heavily entangled, but the author went into EXTENSIVE detail about the business deals in a way that most people would find boring. Now, I am a business girl, so I loved the details but whew! My biggest complaint is it had no regard for time. It kept jumping backward and forward. One of the Guccis died 100 pages or so before his cousin that died in the same year. Honestly, the book was all over the place and I don’t even know if I recommend it because it was so hard to follow. However I found the contents both frustrating and fascinating. And it made me want to see the Lady Gaga movie.
• Faking It – Elisa Lorello: I read this on vacation and was so intrigued. It made me think more about writing, love, and making good decisions, even when they aren’t easy. A surprisingly interesting read.
• Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape – Jenna Miscavige Hill: This book was A RIDE. Whew. I love cult stories and i was riveted. Jenna grew up in scientology so she saw a number of shifts over the years and endured untold amounts of abuse at its hands. I flew through this book because I was so incredibly fascinated by the inner workings of Scientology and from a family member of David Miscavige no less.

Meh

Nothing WRONG with these books but nothing terribly right about them either

• 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do – Amy Morin: The book started off talking about grief, loss, and the lessons in it, which I was very interested in. But it got very preachy and anecdote heavy and I loss interest about 1/3 of the way through.
• Everything Must Go – Camille Pagan: I’ve read most of Camille Pagan’s books but the last 2 haven’t been quite as good as the first ones. At least one character in each of her books has a major medical issue, which usually draws you in and eventually makes you cry. In this one, the mother has Alzheimer’s. The perspective alternates between mother and daughter. Her mother’s perspective about losing her memory is by far the most interesting part. The subplot was very chaotic and way too much, which is why the book is in the Meh instead of the Interesting category.
• More Than Enough – Elaine Welteroth: Here’s the thing – I think I’m about 10 years out of the target market for this book. I would give this to a 20-something that is early in her career or even a teenager so that she can be inspired about what life can become. However, for me… I was bored. I did catch some nuggets toward the end but overall this book personified the Hustle Culture I am working so hard to divorce.
• Happy Is On Hiatus – A.C. Arthur: This book hit all the stereotypes of a Type A middle aged woman starting over. It had an affair, resulting in a baby, a divorce with a change of heart, a new business, nosey church people, and a best cousin friend. It was fine.
• Mom Jeans and Other Mistakes – Alexa Martin: I liked the relationship dynamics at play in this book. The core of it was a biracial friendship. Both had overbearing mothers on two opposite ends of the spectrum. The dissolution of one of the main character’s relationship, though stereotypical, really pulled at the heart strings. I’m not sure how I feel about influencer culture reaching into my reading, but it does quite a bit in this book. It was a nice light read but nothing to write home about.
• Real Men Knit – Kwana Jackson: This one just took too long for the main characters to get together. It was clear almost immediately what was going to happen and it took SOOOO long to get there. I do kinda want to read the next to see what happens to one of the main characters’ brothers.

Hmmmm…

• Queenie – Candice Carty-WIlliams: I read this book because the author contributed to “Girl Gurl Grrrl.” Ummmm… I know this book was critically acclaimed… but maybe I wasn’t the intended audience. It was a little heavy on the trauma for me. Queenie manages to pull it together at the end but WHEW it took so long and so much to get there. At a point it the level of trauma didn’t seem to serve the story. I still don’t know how I feel about the book.

Do Not Recommend

• All Are Welcome – Liz Parker: This was an Amazon First Read. It was just so drawn out for a relatively simple story. I was so ready for this book to be over. It was a book about WASPs and all their issues with the “isms.” There were 2 brides, an alcoholic mother, drug addict friend, hurricanes, and a meddling ex. I probably would have enjoyed it if it was 150 pages shorter.

I’m not gonna hold you – I didn’t make it through much of my intended reading for last year. Here’s what I didn’t get through, and may or may not read in 2023.

FICTION

Fiction is so important for my imagination and it runs my numbers up. I blow through fiction.

• The Temple of My Familiar and Possessing the Secret of Joy – Alice Walker: I so enjoyed reading the Color Purple last year and I want to finish the series.
• Southern Belle Insults Series – Jasmine Guillory also has a series of shorts with Keke Palmer based around Keke’s HILARIOUS Southern Belle Insults videos on IG. They are free with Prime and include narration by Keke Palmer. I feel like this will be perfect for travel.

NONFICTION

• Digital Minimalism – Cal Newport: I’m working to calibrate my social media usage. Taking 2 days a week off of Instagram specifically really helps me reset. I also want to write a lot more in 2022, so I want to focus on consuming high quality, thought provoking content. I’m hoping this book helps me put some of these thoughts into action.
• Thinking in Bets – Annie Duke: I listen to the Behind the Brilliance Podcast hosted by a very interesting black woman named Lisa Nicole Bell. She mentioned this book and I feel like I’m ready. (I started this book and am over halfway done, so it will be on my 2023 list with a review!)

SELF IMPROVEMENT

I’m thinking a lot about solidifying my finances and starting with some big investments this year. It seems fitting to start with two popular money books, both written by black women.

• We Should All Be Millionaires – Rachel Rodgers (this one is free with Prime right now)
• Get Good with Money – Tiffany Aliche

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