Wine in a box – some is bad.

I was very impressed by the Black Box Merlot.  The wine lasted about 4 weeks and was good.  It was a little tired of it by the end but it never spoiled.  Most bottles will spoil in three or four days.  My next experiment was with Stonehaven Shiraz and Trove Merlot.  The Stonehaven was pretty bad and the Trove was just OK.  Fortunately, most boxed wine is inexpensive so it is no big loss to pour them down the drain.

Wine From a Box – Not Bad

I am not a wine snob but I can barely drink the average $10 bottle any more. Most of the reasonably priced Merlots and Cabernets are just too harsh. But last week, I discovered I like even cheaper wine more. The Black Box Merlot costs $25 and is equavalent to four 750ml bottles of wine. I bought it on a whim at Safeway because of the bag, not the box. You see, the wine is stored in a bag. As you drink it, the bag shrinks around the wine and leaves no space for air. I drink one glass a day and bottles are usually starting to turn bad by my last glass. Not so with the bag-in-the-box. I have been drinking it for almost two weeks and it still tastes perfectly good.

The wine is not too strong for my taste and is a good every day wine. It exhibits aromas of leathery plums and cinnamon-spiced oak…just kidding. Let’s just say it is a great wine for the price.  If I were to serve it to guests, I would put it into a decanter and they would never guess it came in a box.