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

Price: $10
Maker: Vina Ventisquero, Rancagua, Chile
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, natural cork
Alcohol: 14%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Root:1 Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 comes in a rather striking painted bottle which shows a grapevine with a long root trailing deep into the earth. The graphic and name are meant to emphasize the wine’s claim to fame, that the grapevines aren’t grafted onto different rootstock as most vines are. The wine has a rich aroma that’s not fruity- rather, it offers leather, spice, and vanilla notes. The flavor is well balanced - fruity notes of plum, cherry, and blueberry start things off, and lead into a long-lasting pepper and cinnamon finish. The tannins are smooth and not overbearing. This is a nicely structured red that would pair well with grilled meats or other fare demanding a robust wine.

Winewaves considered this wine an “outstanding value.” Purple Lips liked the packaging and low price, and rated it a B+.

Root:1 Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 is a stylish wine that would make a nice bottle to bring to an upscale cookout.

Just had a chance to taste some interesting wines at a local tasting, and I thought I’d share some fragmentary notes:

Kunde Sauvignon Blanc 2005. Melon and peach notes, slightly acidic finish.
Frei Brothers Chardonnay 2005. Not your usual Chardonnay. Strong vanilla flavors, with a moderately astringent finish. Definitely not an over-oaked chard.
Bridlewood Viognier 2005. Another quite different selection. Tropical notes, not too dry, and clean on the palate.
MacMurray Ranch Pinot Noir 2005 (Sonoma Coast). I found this to be an unusually pleasant Pinot Noir - it offered big, bold plum, berry, and cherry notes, and a smooth finish. I tend to complain that some Pinot Noirs are a bit thin (or subtle, if you prefer), but this one is neither thin nor subtle. Recommended.
Gloria Ferrer Carneros Merlot 2002. Strong berry nose with some woody/leather notes, big rounded flavor featuring a great balance of blackberry and cherry, oak, and spice leading into a long finish. This was a big, well balanced Merlot, and my favorite of the evening.
Bridlewood Syrah 2004 (Central Coast). A nice, well-balanced Syrah with blackberry, oak, and black pepper flavors.
Frei Brothers Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. We finished with this rich cab. Lots of dark berry and oak complexity, with a long finish. Highly drinkable.

The big winner for me was the Gloria Ferrer Carneros Merlot; I liked the Frei Brothers Cabernet Sauvignon and the MacMurray Ranch Merlot quite a bit, too. This was quite an unusual tasting - I liked all of the wines, and every red (including Red Rock Merlot, not described above) were wines that I’d buy.

Price: $9
Maker: Graceland Cellars, Santa Rosa, California
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, artificial cork
Alcohol: 12.9%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Last night was the first warm evening in months, so we fired up the outdoor grill for the first time to make some burgers. This seemed like a good occasion for a fun red wine, so we uncorked a bottle of The King Cabernet Sauvignon 2003, also known as “Third Edition.” We have to admit, we were a bit suspicious of a novelty label like this. As it turns out, we had little to fear. The nose is powerful and pleasant, a mix of juicy berries, herbal notes, and pepper. The flavor is also juicy, with plum and cherry notes balanced with a bit of oak and soft tannins. The finish has a pleasant touch of acidity. This wine isn’t big and complex, but its structure and simple fruitiness will make it a crowd-pleaser. We’d love to bring out a few bottles of this at an informal outdoor party, where its label will be a conversation starter and its flavor will satisfy most wine drinkers.

Graceland Cellars appears to be the major collectible label offering from Signature Wines. We were familiar with Signature from their offering of small run private label wines for weddings, corporate gifts, and special occasions. In addition to Elvis-themed wines, they also have deals with Ducks Unlimited and various colleges and universities. It looks like a key strategy in marketing these wines is to label each year and varietal in a different manner to encourage collectors to buy them all. Not a bad strategy, though as drinkable as The King Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 is, we’d hate to see it gradually turn to vinegar on someone’s shelf. Enjoy the wine, save the bottle.

Price: $11
Maker: Greener Planet
Varietal: Shiraz, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon blend
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, natural cork
Alcohol: 13%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Our hopes were limited when we tried Greener Planet Shiraz - Merlot - Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 - what can one expect from (apparently) a bunch of French environmentalists? As it turns out, one can expect a rather tasty red wine made from”organically grown grapes.” The nose is blackberry and spice, with cedar and leather notes in the background. On the palate, this wine is smooth, rounded, and well-structured. Juicy berry flavors combine with spicy oak and a hint of chocolate to create a nice balance and medium finish. We found this wine improved considerably after breathing.

We tried to learn more about Greener Planet, but didn’t have much success. The bottle suggests one visit greenerplanet.com, which is actually a spammy parked domain. (Oops, it’s always a good idea to actually register the domain before you print the labels!) Even the origin of the wine is cryptic - the label reports, “Bottled by: 11N129 at F11160″. That certainly helps… at least we know it’s a product of France.Perhaps this is all a PR move by Wal-Mart (we found this wine at Sam’s Club, and haven’t seen it sold anywhere else) - they can add it to the list of “organic” products they offer.

Whatever the origin of this wine, it’s a good buy and would make a great gift for your left-leaning friends. It’s the perfect wine to enjoy while watching Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth. And, if you’re going to present a bottle to Ann Coulter or Rush Limbaugh, be sure they know it’s a gag gift.

Price: $7
Maker: Viñedos Errázuriz Ovalle S.A., Chile
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, natural cork
Alcohol: 13%
Our Rating: 9 out of 10

Veo Grande Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 tells you immediately that it’s no ordinary Cab. The nose is full of smoky wood, and it almost climbs out of the glass on its own. The flavor isn’t average, either - it’s a well-balanced mix of blackberries and cherries, oak, herbs, and chewy tannins. The spicy finish goes on and on.

Viñedos Errázuriz Ovalle S.A. make the Veo Grande Cab and, on their website, claims to be the single largest family owned vineyard and winery in Chile.

The Wine Commonsewer tasted the 2004 vintage, concluding “It’s not a sleeper but it’s a good budget wine that you can enjoy with a Southern Italian meal or grilled beef.” Tom & Melody said, “It is delicious after decanting. I love it! A dark, bitter chocolate finish. Lovely!”

Overall, we liked this wine a lot, but we’d caution readers that it’s a bit quirky and not your typical cab - try it if you are looking for something different.

Price: $8
Maker: Dog House Winery, Santa Rosa, California
Varietal: Merlot
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, screw cap
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Don’t let the screw cap and cute label put you off - Dog House Checkers’ Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 is a big, fruity, crowd-pleasing cab. Its nose is a mix of dark berries, spice, and tobacco. The flavor is fruit-forward and not particularly dry, with cherry, berry, oak, and chocolate notes. There’s black pepper in the lingering finish. Complexity is medium - Dog House cab no one-note wonder, nor is it likely to send serious wine drinkers into ecstasy. This is the kind of wine to bring to a barbecue, or to serve to a group of wine drinkers with varied palates and levels of sophistication.

We tried Dog House Maxie’s Merlot a week ago, and liked that wine too - perhaps a bit more, even. Still, both are highly accessible, inexpensive red wines with plenty of payback. Others have commented favorably on the Dog House Cab. The Easy Wine Drinker comments, “Nice, smooth, a bit on the sweet side for a Cab, but overall a nice, affordable bottle of juice… A good party wine / house wine.” The Naked Vine says, ‘The big blackberry jam nose on this wine gives way to a slightly oaky red with some nice background tastes of licorice. The finish is very gentle for a cabernet sauvignon — not terribly tannic with some lingering smoky flavor. Very easy to drink — the Dog House would be a good “transition cab” for people who enjoy mellower reds like merlot and are interested in giving drier wines a try.’

To see some of the media comments on this wine, visit the Dog House Winery website.

Price: $6
Maker: Alice White
Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon
Packaging: Bottle, artificial cork
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8 out of 10

When we tasted Alice White Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, we were reminded a bit of our review of Alice White Merlot 2004. In our notes for that Merlot, the words “forgettable” and “inoffensive” appeared, and those adjectives seem appropriate for this Cab as well. We just didn’t find much to write home about with this very young offering from Alice White. A mild nose with some cherry and berry notes leads to a medium body with moderate cherry, plum, and spice notes. We didn’t find a lot of structure, and the best thing we can say about this one is that it won’t offend anyone too much.

Cheap reds of this type aren’t generally intended for aging, but somehow we wonder if this Cab wasn’t rushed to market. Based on comments on the 2005, we were at least expecting a big, juicy Cab, but didn’t find it here. For some Aussie fun, check out the Alice White website.

Price: $19
Maker: Black Box Wines, Madera, California
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Packaging: 3-liter box
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 7.5 out of 10

The last time we tried Black Box Cabernet Sauvignon, we were relatively impressed. Black Box is generally highly regarded in the box arena. (Indeed, for a long time they were Google’s #1 choice for “box wines”… no longer, though. ;)) Despite this background, we were disappointed by Black Box Cabernet Sauvignon 2005. The aroma was nice enough, with blackberry and licorice notes. The flavor, though, was lacking - there were plum and oak notes, but the tannins were a bit sharp and there was an unpleasant earthiness. Perhaps we should have been prepared - we bought this box at a large enough wine outlet, but oddly the cab boxes were marked down to $13 (vs. a typical discounted price of $19 and a list price of $24). The other Black Box varietals were normally priced. Did these cab boxes end up stored next to the warehouse furnace for a few days? Or did the wine manager open one, taste the wine, and decide to blow them out quickly? We’ll never know, but our 2005 Black Box cab experience was definitely worse than our 2004 tasting.

We didn’t have much luck tracking down other tastings of the 2005 Black Box Pasa Robles Cabernet Sauvignon. El Catavinos commented, “dark plum with very ripe berry nose and vanilla, fresh fruit-forward flavor,” but since the post was from April, 2005 we’re guessing they tasted the 2004 Cab that we also liked.

Price: $9
Maker: Harlow Ridge Winery, Napa, California
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvginon
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, artificial cork
Alcohol: 12.5 %
Our Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Harlow Ridge Coastal Vines Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 (Lodi) has a nice aroma of ripe blackberries, leather, cinnamon, and smoky oak. The flavor has juicy berry notes, with quite a bit of oak leading to a black pepper finish. It’s a masculine sort of wine, and it’s not bad for a sub-$10 wine.

Apparently, Harlow Ridge Winery is another Fred Franzia venture, formed after his Napa Ridge Winery was found to be violating appellation rules by using grapes from outside Napa Valley. (See Two Buck Chuck creator ups the ante in wine feud.) This is one of the better Franzia wines we’ve tasted - it definitely beats the Two Buck Chuck cab. If you don’t happen to consider Fred Franzia as the devil incarnate (as many California winemakers seem to), try out Harlow Ridge Coastal Vines Cabernet Sauvignon. You may be surprised.

Price: $12
Maker: Penfolds Wines, McGill, South Australia, Australia
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon (89%) - Merlot (11%) blend
Packaging: 750 ml bottle, artificial cork
Alcohol: 13.5%
Our Rating: 8 out of 10

Penfolds Koonunga Hill Cabernet Merlot 2005 is a blend with a heavy emphasis on Cabernet Sauvignon and a light touch of Merlot. The nose is the best part of this wine - it’s pleasant and powerful, with blackberry, leather, licorice, and spice notes. The flavor doesn’t quite match up, seeming a bit thin, combining blackberry, plum, pepper, and oak into a slightly woody/herbal mix. The balance wasn’t bad, and the spicy finish lingered pleasantly. We found the flavor expanded with a bit of breathing, so give this wine some air for best flavor.

Penfolds is a big Australian wine exporter, with their Bin series broadly available. Their website comments about the Koonunga Hill Cabernet Merlot, “It is a full flavoured but fruit driven wine, in contrast to the maturation style of the Shiraz Cabernet.” We’re partial to Aussie Shirazes, and we might look for their Shiraz Cab blend to see what it’s like.