A couple of Januarys ago, I spent a nice sunny day in my outdoor workshop doing some carpentry. I was helping a friend build a fancy Adirondack chair for her own patio. After we finished our work, she insisted on paying me with a huge pan of some delicious homemade dinner, and a box of wine. The food was a major score, since this girl can cook like a demon. But the box of wine turned out to be even more profitable, because she had opened my eyes to a whole new world of wine buying that has saved me hundreds of dollars since then. And now I am pleased to pass those profits on to you. The wine she brought to me was called a “Bota Box”. As you can see from the picture, it comes in a stylish and hipster-friendly box made of unbleached recycled cardboard. The most interesting part of the box is that picture of FOUR wine bottles down in the corner. That’s right – one of these boxes, which is shorter and easier to carry than a single wine bottle, contains an equal amount of the good stuff to four 750mL bottles.

The benefits are many, and there are no drawbacks. This Bota Box wine, as well as several of its competitors like my current favorite “Banrock Station”, is some really good stuff. The quality is comparable to what you’d find in $10-$15-per-bottle wine in my own area, which translates to what Antimustachians would pay about $35-45 per bottle for in a restaurant. I’m not a wine snob, as that is a highly unprofitable affliction to develop. But I can still appreciate the difference between the very cheapest bottles and the midrange stuff most of us buy. (As you might expect, I have also experimented in the ultra-cheap zone, but unfortunately the sheer badness at that end of the spectrum forced to move back up a little). But the Bota Box costs about $20 per box, which translates to $5/bottle. Banrock has been on sale in my area recently, so I picked up a couple boxes at $13 each (regular price $18, which means I am getting great wine at $3.25/bottle*. This is a significant find for party people.

I know of many young couples who consume a bottle a week between them at $10 a shot. buy wine equipmentUsing my usual rule of compounding (multiply a weekly expense by 752), this burns up $7520 every ten years.  best white wine bcSwitching to the boxes at my current sale price saves them $5076 of that amount. buy white cloud wineIn other words, you could cut your wine bill by almost 70%, even without having to cut down your drinking!best port wine price Having the wine in a box also adds novelty to a party. best wine with grilled salmonYou set it up on a shelf, and when you’re ready for a refill you push the red button and watch wine rapidly flow into your glass. best wine 30 dollars

There are no downer moments when you realize the bottle is empty after just one round, and there is no forced extra drinking to “Kill the Bottle”.  buy cheap wine by the caseIt’s like having great red wine permanently on tap.what's the best red wine kit The other benefits are practical as well: These boxes stack efficiently and don’t have the extra weight of glass, so they are ideal for road and camping trips. best uk wine magazineYou can whip one out even in a public park where glass is prohibited. The container lasts forever when left closed, and still over a month at room temperature after opening, because the wine is stored in a vacuum-packed foil bag so it is never exposed to oxygen. And finally you save a good percentage of the natural resources normally used to melt,  form, ship, and recycle four glass bottles.

At the end of your drinking, you’re left with an ounce or two of recyclable cardboard and a very tiny quantity of collapsible plastic. It has been over a year since my friend showed me this new trick, and I haven’t felt the need to buy a single glass bottle of wine since then. I hope it enhances your weekends as much as it has mine! * Only people with access to Trader Joe’s can beat this level of value, and alas, TJ’s does not yet exist in Colorado. Also, we haven’t fixed our liquor laws to allow alcohol sales in standard food stores yet. Biggest drawback of the state, in my opinion. But at least there are still nice privately-owned liquor and wine stores everywhere.We’ve just revealed the full Top 100 of 2016! Each year, Wine Spectator editors survey the wines reviewed over the previous 12 months and select our Top 100, based on quality, value, availability and excitement. This annual list honors successful wineries, regions and vintages around the world. Here you’ll find every Top 100 list back to the debut year, 1988.

Since then, new regions, grapes and styles have appeared on the list, but the classics are still going strong. Enjoy browsing more than 25 years of the world’s top wines! For detailed profiles of the 2016 picks, check out the complete Top 100 Wines of 2016 package in the Dec. 31, 2016, issue of Wine Spectator, on newsstands Dec. 13. (Note: In 1998, some wines share the same rank, as the list was divided into top reds, whites and dessert wines.)Enjoy wine, but never sure which bottles to buy? Want to discover more new bottles? Wine clubs are a hassle-free way to get decent and often interesting wines at discounted prices, delivered to your door at regular (or irregular) intervals. Factors to consider are whether the cases and wines fit with your budget, as well as whether the club offers a money-back guarantee if you’re not happy with any of the wines. Also check whether the club charges for delivery, which can cost more than a bottle of wine itself. Try to find a club with flexibility in terms of how often you have your wine delivered, and you may also want to opt for a club that allows you to change individual wines within cases.

Ideally, the wine club will have a good range, ideally hand-picked by a renowned wine expert. Finally, remember that a case of 12 bottles doesn’t always include 12 different wines – we found one company that offered just three different wines in their cases of 12. 1. The Wine Society: Wines from £5.25; cases from £65, The Wine Society For £40, you get a lifetime share in Britain’s oldest wine club, and £20 of that is credited back to you on your first order. After that, you can buy as little or as much as you want of the 1,500 wines . All its wines are good value and service is outstanding. Delivery is free for a case of 12 bottles or order of £75 or over, otherwise there’s a £5 delivery charge. For new members, the minimum quantity is six bottles for the first six months. 2. Tanners: Cases from £90, Tanners The Wine in Time club has no registration fee, tie in or delivery charges and the award-winning cases include old and new world styles and wines which reflect the changing seasons – such as the Tanners Claret and a Chianti DOCG from Duca di Sasseta, great for colder, dark nights.

There’s a choice of six different cases each month on either the silver or gold level, although you can just opt for bimonthly or quarterly cases. 3. Berry, Bros & Rudd: From £60 a month, Berry, Bros & Rudd These wines, all selected by the company’s eight Masters of Wine, are top drawer. Members receive a case of 12 bottles every other month . You get tasting notes and food pairings, as well as access to exclusive tastings and dinners. There’s a 10 per cent discount on anything you buy online and the welcome pack is a wine-bible in itself. 4. Naked Wines: Six-bottle cases from £35.94, Naked Wines Monthly £20 payments, which are put towards your wine orders, help fund independent  winemakers. Meanwhile, Naked takes over the selling aspect for these wineries, offering members 25 to 50 per cent off retail prices. You get a free bottle every month when you order a case of 12 wines, along with invitations to tastings to meet the winemakers. 5. Taste4: £20 for first four wines, then £35 per month, Taste4

New comer Taste4 aims to encourage wine novices to be more adventurous with bottles. They send four  every four weeks, with free delivery. The wines we tried were first-rate, while the descriptions were accessible and we liked the history and pairing tips you got with each bottle. It feels more like you’re getting good recommendations from friends. 6. WineTrust: From £96 per case, WineTrust WineTrust’s founder John Valentine works with Masters of Wine to ensure members get quality bottles, including a good mixture of consumers’ favourites, as well as new and often unusual areas and grape varieties, all at a fair price. All members get a mixed case of wine every month, two months or quarterly. Whether for everyday drinking or special occasions, we found the wines to be excellent. 7. Averys: Cases from £99.99, Averys Averys has two wine plans. The Signature Collection is like other wine clubs, in that you get a case of 12 wines (plus one free), mainly including new wines or customer favourites, for £99.99.

The other is Claret Club, in which cases cost from £105 and include 12 bottles of some of the tastiest clarets around . With both deals, you get wines before the rest of Avery’s customers do, and you also 10 per cent off future orders. There’s good flexibility, but a £7.99 delivery charge (or unlimited delivery service for £24 a year). 8. The Wine Company: Cases from £99, The Wine Company Club manager Robin James is almost always on hand during office hours to provide advice on the wine, including food matches, and his knowledge alone makes membership of this club tempting. The wine itself high quality, seasonal, and you get helpful tasting notes. Delivery is quarterly and you get discounts on in-store wines, as well as tastings and dinners. You can skip, delay or cancel anytime. 9. Marks & Spencer Wine Club: Club Classic £75 per case; Club Reserva £99 per case, Marks & Spencer Sign up to either Club Classic (everyday wines) or the more extravagant Club Reserva, and you get a 12-bottle case delivered every three months, saving 25 per cent on usual prices.

Plans are flexible – you can swap or skip a case - and wines are varied, the tasting notes are comprehensive and you get discounts, including for wine in store. 10. Rude Wines: From £99.99 per quarter, Rude Wines This club provides a mix of wines from independent producers around the globe. There’s a good mix of the classics and lesser-known, like Peruvian bottles. Customer service staff are trained experts and the wines are endorsed by leading industry personalities. Membership gets you a preselected case of 12 bottles. 11. Laithwaites: Cases from £52.68, Laithwaites This is the biggest home-delivery wine merchant in the UK, yet it remains family-owned and many of the wines — 1,500 of them from 22 different countries — come courtesy of smaller producers. You can pay anywhere between £52.68 and £242 (depending on your wine plan) for an introductory case, with which you get two crystal glasses. From then, it's 12 cases delivered at intervals of your choice, all the way from biannually to monthly.

There's flexibility to change, pause or stop at anytime. Delivery is £7.99 for each case. 12. Virgin Wines: £95.88 per case, Virgin Wines Membership for the Discovery Wine Club is £59.88, which includes a case of 12 wines, either mixed, red or white. Then, every three months (and again at Christmas), you get a new case for £95.88, which gives customers a discount of at least 20 per cent. The wines are varied and you can fine-tune your case, or skip them and get your money back if you don’t like the wine. 13. Monopole: From £15 a bottle, Monople Membership here is not about entry level wines. Instead, Monopole deals with special wines, mainly Old World, with the exception of South Africa, with a price range of around £15-£40 per bottle and a fine wine range above that. There are some serious names behind this set-up, including Thierry Tomasin (of Angelus restaurant and then Le Gavroche), which helps explain how it manages to find such great European producers – and although annual membership is costly at £500 (less if you introduce other members), this is redeemable if you spend over a certain amount.