Really Good Boxed Wine

So word on the street is “Really Good Boxed Wine” is really good box wine.  We wanted to give it a try to find out…it’s available on their website, in a number of varieties. We chose the Mendocino-Smith Devereux collaboration series–Merlot/Syrah red blend. Most of the time IMO you can’t go wrong with a red blend. This is one of the premium wines out there available in a box, going for $65/box (that’s just $16.25 a bottle), not to mention the lower carbon footprint! 

I’m in a monthly wine tasting group where we watch a video course on a particular wine and/or region and taste the same wines the master sommelier is discussing. Very sophisticated, right? I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to have a blind tasting of a box wine as an opener to see what the gals thought, objectively.  

In order to pull this off they couldn’t know it was from a box. I sneakily poured the wine in a decanter before they showed up. This, it turns out, was most definitely necessary to open up the wine and improve the flavor.  Another alternative to decanting is to use the Box-Ae-Rator--a wine aerator created just for box wine.

Everyone received a tasting pour of the mystery wine.  They began to swirl, sniff and determine notes of varying aromas. “Smells leathery”, said one.  “I get berries on the front”, proclaimed another….all in all they were enjoying what they tasted.  Though not as complex as other wines we generally are trying at this gathering (box wine often isn’t very complex, as it cannot be aged like bottled wine), they decided it is a great “everyday” wine, or perfect to serve at a party. I asked “OK, how many give it a thumbs up?”, I asked.  All eight of them did! Keep in mind these are gals who have refined taste in wine and would otherwise skip over the box wine aisle altogether. 

Now it was time for the big reveal. I brought out the box of “Really Good Box Wine”, to their astonishment.  They really couldn’t believe it was from a box!  I think I may have converted some folks that evening. 

All in all we give it 4 taps--would be great for a party wine or everyday house wine.