SkyMall Monday: O to Go Portable Wine Glasses

by Mike Barish on

Going out for a lavish meal with friends is one of the great pleasures in life. Elegant food, good company and, of course, delicious wine make for a wonderful night out. However, some people take their wine very seriously and anything that takes away from their vino experience can ruin the evening. The last thing anyone wants is for one of their friends to storm out of the restaurant because the glassware is substandard. Here at SkyMall Monday, we know a thing or two about wine glasses. That’s why we appreciate that SkyMall is tackling the problem of wine glass disappointment. Never again will you have to worry about a lackluster wine glass destroying any chance enjoying a night out. The next time you’re painting the town red, don’t trust restaurants and bars to know what you require. Take care of yourself – and your wine – with the O to Go portable wine glass.Obviously, not every event is suitable for wearing your wine glass around your neck. Still, why should you slum it with someone else’s glassware? You like to be in total control of your life, including your alcohol consumption. No one knows how to let your wine breathe better than you do. That’s why you need to carry around your own wine glass in a protective yet portable tube.

Think that restaurants have adequate wine glasses? Believe that carrying around your own wine glass is a sign of pathological behavior? Well, while you drink your beer from the bottle, we’ll be reading the product description:

Have you ever ordered a good bottle of wine at a restaurant only to find that the glassware is lacking? Now, bring your own Riedel glass with the new O to GO, an easy and convenient way to carry your glass anywhere.

Man, if I had a nickel for every time that happened. Am I right, ladies?

The O to Go is perfect for red wine or white wine. Sadly, if you plan to drink champagne, no flute in a tube is available. In that situation, it’s best to ask the sommelier for a Solo cup.

Keep it classy!

Check out all of the previous SkyMall Monday posts HERE.

SkyMall Monday: Wine Glass Holder Necklace ACTUAL REVIEW

by Mike Barish on

When we last profiled the Wine Glass Holder Necklace, it was way back in May 25, 2009. Times were simpler then. Our movies were in 2D and Michael Jackson was alive but mostly ignored by people who would later profess to be obsessed with him. I miss those halcyon days of yore. That’s why I purchased the Wine Glass Holder Necklaces from SkyMall. Produced by the fine people at Wine Enthusiast, the Wine Glass Holder Necklace allow you to carry your glass of wine whilst eating, shaking hands and engaging in general party attendance. Just like in the old days. To put the lanyards to the test, I left the SkyMall Monday headquarters and brought them with me to my girlfriend’s cousin’s wedding in Boston. What did we learn? Plenty. Or nothing. It’s hard to say. We drank a lot of wine. Anyway, let’s take a closer look.

%Gallery-89118%I’m not much of a jewelry man. Gold chains and extraneous rings just make men look like gigolos or owners of laundromats. But the Wine Glass Holder Necklace is functional. My girlfriend, Jordana, sauntered around the party with her glass of white wine secured comfortably below her bosom. I shuffled around slightly less confidently with my glass of red wine nestle against my man chest.

Perhaps if I was a model with a perfectly straight gait, I would have been less neurotic about having such a stain-causing liquid so close to my tie. But I was never able to fully relax and just bust a move. As long as that red wine was hanging from my neck like Andy Rooney’s jowls, I was never able to drop it like it was anything more than tepid.

This paranoia led me to never fill my wine glass more than halfway. Which meant more trips to the bar. Which meant more judgmental looks from my girlfriend’s parents. However, both Jordana and I were able to stuff our faces at the buffet without fear of dropping our forks, brie or forkfuls of brie. In that respect, the Wine Glass Necklace served with honor. With our hands free, our mouths were full. We were able to shake hands with the wedding party while maintaining a death grip on our plates. And, perhaps most importantly, we could high five when the desserts were brought out.

Was it difficult to dance with wine glasses around our necks? Yes. Would I recommend the Wine Glass Holder Necklace for any event that features a limbo competition? Heck no. Can you remove red wine stains from silk? I sure hope so.

At the end of the day, it takes a lot of confidence to wear your wine glass around your neck. You have to trust that you won’t spill on yourself. You have to trust that strangers won’t think you’re insane. And you have to trust that your girlfriend’s parents respect you for reviewing SkyMall products. But if you have that trust, then you’ll have two free hands and a glass of wine. And that, my friends, used to mean something. Back in the good old days.

I give the Wine Glass Holder Necklace two thumbs up. Because I can. Because both of my hands are free. [Author’s note: I stole that line from my girlfriend but I gave her a Wine Glass Holder Necklace so I consider us even.]

Check out our gallery of Wine Glass Holder Necklace pictures above or by clicking here.

Check out all of the previous SkyMall Monday posts HERE.

SkyMall Monday: Anniversary Gift Card Giveaway

by Mike Barish on

Get the champagne on ice, don your finest party hat and put out a cheese plate, because today we are celebrating the ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF SKYMALL MONDAY! On October 13, 2008, Gadling charged me with delivering to you, our dear readers, one SkyMall product review per week. Did I want that responsibility? Yes. Do I enjoy doing it? Of course. Should I be celebrated for it? Absolutely. But you know who else should reap the benefits of our weekly SkyMall dalliances? You! So, to celebrate the first anniversary of SkyMall Monday, we’re giving away a $100 gift card to…SKYMALL!

First things first. Let’s take a walk down memory lane and look at some of the best products featured in SkyMall Monday over the past 12 months. From massive travel pillows to motorized coolers to umbrellas built for two, I’ve reviewed plenty of amazing gear that you most certainly now own. And to make things interesting, we have a poll to decide which SkyMall Monday was your favorite.

After the jump, a look back at some of our favorites and your chance to win that $100 SkyMall gift card.

  • SkyRest Travel Pillow – Do you like sleeping on planes and being an asshole? Then why not block everyone sitting next to you from using the restroom while you sleep on a giant wedge of cheese balanced on your lap.
  • Baseball Bat Pepper Grinder – You love baseball. You love seasoning. You feel insecure about the size of your penis. You own this.
  • Wine Glass Holder Necklace – As the old saying goes, “Keep your friends close and your functional alcoholism closer.”
  • The Double Umbrella – One of the first SkyMall Mondays remains one of my favorites. What better way to avoid the rain and show everyone from your old high school that you’re not Most Likely to Die Alone? (Note: It appears that SkyMall no longer sells the Double Umbrella. This is a travesty!)
  • Cruzin Cooler – If your cooler had sex with a go-kart and gave birth after the typical ice chest gestation period of four months, the doctor would slap this bad boy on the ass, fill it with Schlitz and ride it down to Daytona Beach.

Now for the fun stuff. Vote for your favorite SkyMall Monday in our poll below and leave us a comment letting us know how you voted. Read the legal muckety muck for more details, but one very lucky commenter will be picked at random to receive a $100 SkyMall gift card!

%Poll-35295%
To enter the contest for the chance to win the $100 SkyMall gift card:

  • Simply leave a comment below telling us which SkyMall Monday you voted for.
  • The comment must be left before Friday, October 16, 2009 at 5:00PM Eastern Time.
  • You may enter only once.
  • One winner will be selected in a random drawing.
  • This random winner will receive a SkyMall gift card worth $100.
  • Click here for complete Official Rules.
  • Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, including the District of Columbia who are 18 and older.

Special thanks to Joey O’Donnell and all the folks at SkyMall for the gift card and for having a sense of humor.

Check out all of the previous SkyMall Monday posts HERE.

SkyMall Monday Classic: Wineglass Holder Necklace

by Mike Barish on

In honor of Gadling’s celebration of all things wine, we’re re-posting a classic SkyMall Monday that originally ran on May 25, 2009. There are other wine-related products on SkyMall, but none deserve the appreciation that this one merits. It also happens to be one of my favorite SkyMall products of all-time. Enjoy and cheers!

I like to drink. There’s nothing wrong with that. Many of us enjoy a drink or six from time to time. But I also like to eat. When I’m at a cocktail party or a bar, I’m sure to be found enjoying some hors d’oeuvres or or a rack of ribs. And I love to meet new people. There’s nothing more enjoyable than mingling with a crowd and doing elaborately choreographed handshakes with new friends. But, well, I only have two hands. And if one holds my drink and the other holds my food, well, you see where this is going. Thankfully, this week SkyMall Monday solves the problem of being a personable, yet gluttonous, alcoholic. Our favorite catalog has once again foreseen that we are not capable of managing our own lives, so they’ve taken care of everything by allowing us to look fashionable while staying socially lubricated with the Wine Glass Holder Necklace.

Look, we can’t be troubled to put our wine glasses down while we interact with people. We have memories to repress and social anxiety to quell. That’s why this gadget is so ingenious. We should have been wearing our wine glasses around our necks all along. The fact they we don’t have an extra hand extending out of our chests suggests to me that evolution may be a pretty lame theory. I know that I want my red wine precariously dangling around my neck and swinging to and fro as I slalom between people to make my way to the carving station.

Think I’m being too serious about this situation? Your lack of faith in me is really beginning to cause problems in this relationship. But I’ll meet you halfway and let a neutral party explain to you why this product is so amazingly necessary. Take it away, SkyMall product description:

Keep your hands free at parties by keeping your wine close at heart! This clever little clip with adjustable strap holds a regular-size stemmed glass to your chest, giving you the freedom to snack and socialize as you sip!

Red wine is good for your heart and now it’s close to your heart! See, it’s only natural that we hold our clothing-staining beverages not in out hands but right in our chests. So drink, eat and network all you want at parties because now you’ll have your hands free to indulge. And the best part? It comes as a set of two, so you and your enabler sponsor can mingle together.

Check out all of the previous SkyMall Monday posts HERE.

SkyMall Monday: Wine Glass Holder Necklace

by Mike Barish on

I like to drink. There’s nothing wrong with that. Many of us enjoy a drink or six from time to time. But I also like to eat. When I’m at a cocktail party or a bar, I’m sure to be found enjoying some hors d’oeuvres or or a rack of ribs. And I love to meet new people. There’s nothing more enjoyable than mingling with a crowd and doing elaborately choreographed handshakes with new friends. But, well, I only have two hands. And if one holds my drink and the other holds my food, well, you see where this is going. Thankfully, this week SkyMall Monday solves the problem of being a personable, yet gluttonous, alcoholic. Our favorite catalog has once again foreseen that we are not capable of managing our own lives, so they’ve taken care of everything by allowing us to look fashionable while staying socially lubricated with the Wine Glass Holder Necklace.

Look, we can’t be troubled to put our wine glasses down while we interact with people. We have memories to repress and social anxiety to quell. That’s why this gadget is so ingenious. We should have been wearing our wine glasses around our necks all along. The fact they we don’t have an extra hand extending out of our chests suggests to me that evolution may be a pretty lame theory. I know that I want my red wine precariously dangling around my neck and swinging to and fro as I slalom between people to make my way to the carving station.

Think I’m being too serious about this situation? Your lack of faith in me is really beginning to cause problems in this relationship. But I’ll meet you halfway and let a neutral party explain to you why this product is so amazingly necessary. Take it away, SkyMall product description:

Keep your hands free at parties by keeping your wine close at heart! This clever little clip with adjustable strap holds a regular-size stemmed glass to your chest, giving you the freedom to snack and socialize as you sip!

Red wine is good for your heart and now it’s close to your heart! See, it’s only natural that we hold our clothing-staining beverages not in out hands but right in our chests. So drink, eat and network all you want at parties because now you’ll have your hands free to indulge. And the best part? It comes as a set of two, so you and your enabler sponsor can mingle together.

Check out all of the previous SkyMall Monday posts HERE.