What an interesting article that was on box wines in the October 15, 2009 WS! I've never given them any serious thought, even for office parties! So, who's brought one to an offline?

I will put my geek card on the line and say I too was intrigued by the article. My mother is a former box wine drinker so I took more notice of the article than most as I sent her a copy of it. She can get her Fisheye in box format now.

Now...I was at the grocery store yesterday afternoon getting some essentials. I was looking to pick up a cheap 1.5 of some Aussie swill to sip on. The goal was to get my buzz on Friday night.
Well I pulled the trigger on a Bota Box brand 06 Cali Merlot. I couldn't recall the brands in the mag, but figured what the heck, 4 bottles for $14. I've wasted more $$ on lesser things.

Well suffice to say, I didn't get my drink on last night as I couldn't choke down the first glass. No lush overripe fruits. It tasted like inexpensive red wine that had already been open for a day.
No more box purchases for this kid. I'll report back if things improve tonight

The Black Box Cabernet Paso Robles got rated 1 point less than the 2006 Provenance Beckstoffer To Kalon Cabernet (87 vs 88)

Yikes! Did Laube rate both wines?

I'm pretty sure, might be wrong.

The only one I've ever liked is Tefft Cellars Cab-Merlot. Year in and year out it's a decent drinker that works out to around $6-$7 a bottle. It's a WA wine, so I guess they overlooked it.

After that issue came out, I decided to give the Black Box Chardonnay a whirl. Considering the price of about $20 for the box, I found it decent. But, I don't care for most Chardonnay's and I think that it was comparable to many of the $10-$15 ones that I have had. With the price being $4-5 per bottle, it seems like a good idea. I would be interested in hearing someone pour some into a 750ml bottle for a blind tasting to see how it fares against others.

I would think that the whites would have the best chance of showing well in a blind line-up. Will have to try it!

I just bought some 3L boxes of Sonehaven SE Australia Merlot for my Father in Law. He normally buys Gallo for himself and this is a definite upgrade for him. The fact that I found them on clearance for $3 per 3L box (averaged out to 75 cents per 750ml)made him very happy.

VM

I have a few wholesalers in town that focus on wines in every price point. They love wine and they taste before they buy and deliver good qpr. For $7 or $8 they have a cool climate oz Chardonnay, a great Cotes de Casgogne, and an Italian white made of two grapes I am not familiar with. For reds they often have a Chianti or Italian Merlot or something like that at $5 to $8. I realize it is a little more expensive than a box but it is worth it for varieties sake. There is so much out there I cannot commit to 3000ml of box wine.

We picked up a box at Target last month that isn't bad at all. 2008 Wine Cube, Sauvignon Blanc, California. It's on the sweet side, as expected, but has nice kiwi fruit, along with candied orange and better than expected acidity on the finish. Actually a pretty decent buy at $18 for a double magnum, .

I vote for Wine Cube, but i like the chard better than the S.B.