– in response to the pending move next door of beverage giant Bev-Mo! – and now
offers more choices, more unique offerings, and a large selection of wines in
boxes!
plastic bottles, boxes, aluminum cans, milk-like cartons – we are not limited
to purchasing wine in a glass bottle closed with a natural cork. (For more on
closures, see “Getting Closure: Corks or Screwcaps?”)
do a short review of ancient wine vessels.
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Ceramic Amphorae can
be traced back to prehistoric times. In the Bronze and Iron Ages, Greeks and
Romans transported and stored wine (as well as olive oil, grains, fish, and other
commodities) in these vessels. Pliny, a first century naturalist, wrote
prolifically on contemporary wine-making practices, including how to keep the
amphorae clean in order to keep the wine from being tainted. A trip to the Getty
museum will offer many lively depictions of ancient wine vessels in use.
wood and skin containers. Wood is still used today for storing and aging
wine, and wineskins, which are made from the skin of a goat or sheep, are still
in use in some cultures.
we know them came along in the 17th century, when coal-fueled
furnaces allowed for thick-enough bottles. Prior to that, the bottles were
thin, and usually stored in straw so as not to break, and this is where the
classic Chianti bottle has its roots.
bottle, which many consider to be the best container for wine ever invented. It’s
inert, impenetrable, and available in different shapes, sizes, and colors. Most importantly, it’s traditional, and
traditions are hard to give up.
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Glass bottles have their drawbacks. They are heavy, which
adds to transport costs; they are fragile; they’re rigid, making it harder to
tightly pack and store them; they do not block out UV radiation, so fluorescent
lighting can cause chemical decomposition in the wine (a problem in supermarkets);
and once opened, a bottle will have space for air, which can oxygenate the wine
(not good) unless replaced with an inert gas (who wants to be bothered doing
this, right?).
an easy way to carry a large quantity of wine – up to 20 liters – and to draw off
one glass at a time, over an extended period of time, while keeping the wine
relatively fresh. First popularized in Australia, the idea is to have a plastic
bag inside the box collapse to avoid the ingress of air. The problem is that
the plastic is not as impermeable to air as glass, so the shelf life is
relatively short, give or take 9 months. That’s “shelf life,” not “life after
opening,” remember, so it would be wise to check the packaging date when purchasing.
Who knows how long it’s been sitting on the store shelf.
Box (www.botabox.com), which states on
the package, “Our eco packaging locks in great taste for a month or more by
keeping out light and air.” Each box contains 3 liters of wine, available in 10
different varietals, and ranges in price from about $15-$22.
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Aluminum cans for
wine are much like a beer can, and therein
lies one of their problems, image. But a can holds two glasses of wine, is light,
strong, impermeable, and can live on a shelf for about 9 months.
Blanc de Blanc Effervescent White
Wine from Francis Coppola. Slick packaging includes a hexagonal foil-covered
box containing four one-serving cans with a plastic straw attached to each – an
adult Sippy cup (or not so adult!). I bought this one at The Wine House (www.winehouse.com), on sale for $12.99, but
it can be as much as $20.
These are like the fruit juice and milk containers we all are familiar with,
and are low-cost, provide a good oxygen barrier and reasonably good shelf life.
Tetra Paks are the only packaging that is truly aseptic.
(www.calnaturale.com) Cabarnet
Sauvignon, from Paso Robles, California, made with organically grown grapes. I
loved what the packaging says, “No awkward tools are required to open our
package. Simply unscrew the cap, pour a glass and ENJOY!” I guess they consider
a corkscrew an “awkward tool”!
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Wine is also available in plastic bottles. You will find these quarter-bottle sized bottles
on airplanes. They are lightweight, but not impermeable to oxygen and therefore
have a very short shelf life. I have not
found any for sale in local markets.
foresee moving away from them any time soon, but I applaud the new wine
packaging, especially when the intent is to provide a more eco-friendly and
convenient alternative to glass bottles.
bottle, and many will disparage the new-fangled packaging. But, as ReddCollection’s
Michael Carpenter says in this nice video (http://tinyurl.com/nctpofz) (as seen on The Young Turk Network, http://www.tytnetwork.com) when asked
about bottles, pouches, and boxes, “If it makes you happy, enjoy it!”