Box Wines
A wine blog with news and reviews of affordable wines

Price: $19
Maker: Killer Juice Vineyards, Ripon, California
Varietal: Merlot
Packaging: 3-liter box, twist spigot
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8.6 out of 10

Killer Juice Central Coast Merlot 2006 is another in one of my favorite series of box wines, the Killer Juice/Angel Juice lineup. This medium-bodied Merlot has a juicy flavor, mostly blackberries, with some vanilla and plum. Its finish is long, with black pepper and robust tannins.

Killer Juice now has a website, though at time of posting it consists of only a splash page.

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

I’m catching up with Lost - Season 4 and DVD, and was surprised to find a wine box make a guest appearance. The Sawyer character (James Ford) pours a glass from what looks like a 5-liter box of Dharma Initiative Red Wine.

It’s a bit anachronistic - while all of the Dharma project imagery dates from some 1960-ish time period, the wine shown is a modern box with an even more contemporary push-button spigot. Still, it’s kind of fun to see box wines portrayed in a semi-positive way (the only wine available!) on a popular TV show. No details, though, on whether the generic-looking red wine is a merlot, a cabernet sauvignon, a so-called “hearty burgundy,” or perhaps a Dharma meritage…

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

Who knew The Onion was into red wine?

Health experts have long known that drinking red wine can have such positive benefits as reducing blood vessel damage, lowering the risk of heart attack, and preventing harmful LDL cholesterol from forming. But researchers at the Northwestern University Department of Preventive Medicine have recently found that the consumption of four to six glasses of red wine, most notably at dinner or a family function, may be linked to totally going off on one’s mom.

According to a study published Monday in The American Journal Of Medicine, a previously unknown ingredient in red wine has been shown to cause a marked improvement of vocal clarity and emotional acuity—while reducing overall inhibition—after only four glasses.

Read how red wine may, or may not, improve relations at your holiday get-togethers: Study Finds Link Between Red Wine, Letting Mother Know What You Really Think.

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

The New York Times quotes Bloomberg News in Italy Joins the Boxed Wine Rebellion by Mike Nizza:

Italy’s Agriculture Ministry said that some fine Italian wines that receive government quality guarantees will be allowed to be sold in boxes.

I find this encouraging, if a bit odd. When I was last in Italy, there seemed to be no regulation against some wine shops dispensing directly from a large stainless steel tank into a recycled 1.5 liter water bottle (or, presumably, any other container provided by the customer). That’s hardly ideal storage and preservation technology. Why the Italian government would worry about the well-proven performance of today’s boxed wine packaging isn’t clear.

In any case, this is one more indicator that box wines are moving upscale and becoming better accepted.

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

Price: $19
Maker: F.W. Langguth Erben GmbH & Co. KG
Varietal: Riesling
Packaging: 3-liter box, push-button spigot
Alcohol: 10.5%
Our Rating: 8.2 out of 10

It’s taken us quite a while to get around to tasting Blue Nun Riesling, a non-vintage German wine that has been marketed in the U.S. for decades. This was in part because I tend to lean toward red wines, and in part because I’ve avoided man of the ever-present supermarket boxed wine. This Riesling has pear and pineapple flavors, with a hint of citrus in the finish. It’s relatively sweet and simple, and lacks the crisp, acidic finish that might tone down the sweetness.

This wine will appeal quite readily to those who aren’t regular wine drinkers - its fruity sweetness won’t offend at all. In fact, “inoffensive” is a good way to characterize Blue Nun Riesling. As such, it might be a good choice for a picnic white or similar uses.

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

We tasted Killer Juice Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 and liked the wine. We were also impressed by Killer Juice’s use of the packaging to enhance the shelf appeal of the wine.

In a typical supermarket or wine shop, the customer is presented with a staggering array of wines. Boxed wines in particular may be a challenge, since many consumers associate the concept with ultra-cheap product from brands like Franzia. Killer Juice does several things to stand out beyond the wine’s attractive black packaging.

Their first step is far from unique - they put a big gold emblem on the box to promote the Cab’s winning a gold medal at the 2007 Critics Challenge International Wine Competition. Other wineries do that, but most don’t. Particularly for a boxed wine, a prestigious-looking award is a vote of confidence that could turn an uncertain wine shopper into a buyer.

The second thing Killer Juice does is even more clever. Many wine shoppers may have difficulty assessing the value of a box of wine. For one, boxes are deceptively compact - a three-liter box doesn’t look like it holds the same amount of wine as four 750ml bottles, even though it does. Many box wine makers print the equivalent number of bottles, or even use little bottle pictures to illustrate the capacity of the box. Killer Juice goes a step farther, and prints “Contains 4 Bottles of Killer $10 Wine” on three sides of the box.

This message communicates more than quantity. It says something about quality to the consumer - a $10 bottle value suggests wine that is better than plonk, and might actually be pretty good. In one fell swoop, Killer Juice establishes an equivalent bottle value, and highlights the big savings their package offers.

Will these small enhancements make Killer Juice boxed red wines fly off the shelves? Probably not. But they will help, and as the glassy-eyed wine buyers stares at the shelf laden with boxwines, they could tip the balance.

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

Price: $19
Maker: Killer Juice Vineyards, Ripon, California
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Packaging: 3-liter box, twist spigot
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

It’s been two years since we tried Killer Juice Cabernet Sauvignon, and the 2006 vintage of this boxed Cab is a more than worthy successor. The nose was mild, with ripe berry and woody notes. This Cab had a big, rounded cherry flavor with oak and black pepper in the finish. Crisp tannins contributed to a nice balance overall.

At the 2008 Twin Cities Food and Wine Experience, Killer Juice Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 took the “Best Value Cabernet Sauvignon” award. That may be a bigger accomplishment that it might seem to be at first glance - the other varietal winners of value awards were all bottled wines. I’m sure the Killer Juice makers were very pleased by this result.

This wine hasn’t received a lot of blog attention, but How I Eat gave it high marks for everyday drinkability. The Wineauxs declared the 2005 vintage “simple and inoffensive - great for burgers and pizza.” We go along with these reviews - if you are looking for a very drinkable boxed red wine that you can put on your counter and enjoy every day, Killer Juice Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 is a fine choice.

(Our previous tasting: Killer Juice Cabernet Sauvignon 2003.)

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

Price: $22
Maker: Boho Vineyards, Ripon, California
Varietal: Merlot
Packaging: 3-liter box, twist spigot
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Boho Central Coast Merlot 2006 may well be the nicest boxed Merlot we’ve tried. It has blackberry, clove, and leather aromas. On the palate, it offers juicy cherries and chocolate notes, leading into a long oaky finish with chewy tannins.

Boho seems to be a young brand with an environmentally conscious personality. The packaging is a natural brown cardboard box, and there are a host of slogans proclaiming the winery’s green orientation: “Protect The Wine, Protect The World;” “Better Wine - Better Value - Better Environment;” “Respect for the Earth - Passion for Handcrafted Wines - Value for Money.” Some might say this is sloganeering overkill, but this Merlot speaks for itself. I think that the packaging may appear a bit downscale to some buyers, but most who take a minute to study the box will no doubt get what Boho is trying to say.

We think Boho Central Coast Merlot 2006 is an example of what boxed wines can deliver - it’s juicy and flavorful, finishes well, and offers convenient packaging and a fine value. Now, if they could only get rid of the twist spigot… like most of these closures, it will release a drop or two shortly after pouring. Don’t let that discourage you from giving this Merlot a try.

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

NBC’s Today Show did a frothy piece on the increasing quality and acceptance of boxed wines today. Much of the segment involved a couple of the hosts trying to guess whether they were drinking box or bottle wine. They actually guessed correctly most of the time, but it was hardly scientific. Here’s the video:

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb

Price: $19
Maker: Black Box Wines, Madera, California
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Packaging: 3-liter box
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

The last time we tried Black Box Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon (the 2005), we didn’t care for it much. Rating it only 7.5, we speculated that perhaps we had a bad box. Happily, the 2006 we tried is back to the level we saw in the 2004 version. Oaky berries feature in the mild aroma of this wine. It is medium-bodied and quite juicy, with plums and currants blending with cocoa notes and well-structured tannins.

This wine has restored our faith in Black Box as a purveyor of decent wines. Black Box Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 isn’t a great wine, but it’s pleasant and drinkable. One oddity we found was some sediment in the bottom of this box. That’s something we haven’t encountered in many box wines, which are usually young and clear. It didn’t affect the flavor at all, and we probably wouldn’t have notice had we not gone to extreme measures to drain the last glass from the box. The other oddity was that the usually reliable push-button spigot had a “dribble” problem. Twist spigots often show that issue, but this is one of the first push-buttons I’ve encountered that let go an extra drop or two after the glass was poured.

Tweet This Post
Add this post to: del.icio.us - Digg it - Stumble it - Furl - Yahoo MyWeb