The issue of alternative packaging came up repeatedly at the Symposium for Professional Wine Writers, which I attended in Napa Valley last week. While opinion was mixed on whether this would be an important issue to follow over the coming year, the moaning was collective when the subject of boxed wines came up. It would not be too strong to say that the feeling toward boxed wines, even among people theoretically keeping up with the business, is similar to how most people felt about screw-cap bottles 20 years ago: a sign of awful wine! This feeling about boxed wines, of course, is largely true not because of the packaging but because most wine that comes in boxes in the United States is in fact awful. Clearly, it doesn’t have to be that way. I had my eyes opened almost 10 years ago, when I received a sample of a boxed chardonnay from France. This chardonnay came from Jean-Marc Brocard, a big Chablis producer who also makes a series of other chardonnays intended to display the qualities of the various soils in which the grapes were grown.

The chardonnay in this box was not Chablis, but it had many of the same pure, transparent qualities that I do love in Chablis. The wine was so good, and I loved the packaging. It was great fun to have the box sitting in my fridge, and to simply pull the spigot whenever I wanted a glass. top 10 wine industry in indiaMy attitude may have been childish, but isn’t every kid’s fantasy to have a favorite beverage on tap like that? best wine knowledge booksAnd with bag-in-a-box technology, which keeps out air, the wine stayed fresh for weeks.what food goes best with port wine So why did I need to have a sample sent to me? buy wine in dc on sunday

Because Brocard’s New York distributor refused to carry the boxed wine, feeling that attitudes were so entrenched that nobody would buy it. Now that I think about it, his West Coast distributor, from whom I got the box, no longer sells it either.best dc wine shops Attitudes are indeed entrenched, and because so much of the wine that comes in boxes is bad, it becomes a cyclical prophecy. wine to give parentsBut consider how attitudes about canned beer have changed. Ten years ago no beer lover in their right mind would drink beer from a can. Because only awful industrial beers came in cans. Nothing was wrong with the packaging – the issue of a metallic taste was solved many years ago when packaging producers started to use a polymer lining on the inside of cans. People in the beer business understood that cans were the best sort of packaging because they offered the most protection against heat, light and air, grave threats to most beers.

But ambitious brewers steered clear of cans because of the perceptions. That began to change in the early part of the last decade when one craft brewer, Oskar Blues,   began to put its beers in cans. Five years ago, one of Oskar’s beers, Dale’s Pale Ale, was our top choice in a tasting of American pale ales. Since Oskar Blues turned to cans, demonstrating that the quality of the product can trump perceptions about the packaging, quite a few other craft brewers have started using cans, according to a recent article in Bon Appetit by Heather John. This seems to demonstrate that if you can it, the beer lovers will come. I do believe if wine producers start putting decent wine in boxes, the wine lovers will come, too. In the last year I’ve seen a few good wines in boxes that give me hope. From the Tank,  a series of wines from the importer Jenny & Francois (cedilla c) Selections, are delicious pours for everyday consumption. / which came in wooden boxes rather than paper or plastic.

These are exactly the sorts of wines that ought to be available in boxes, and they make the best case for the packaging. I am curious about the environmental pros and cons of this sort of packaging. It is lighter to ship then glass, but I don’t know the consequences of using the plastic liner as against glass bottles. A great improvement would to one day make reusable packaging possible. But that would require several additional revolutions. These boxed wines are not so easy to find. You have to search the Internet. I hope far-seeing retailers will make them available, and that one-by-one, acceptance will come. Have any of you had much experience with boxed wines, good ones at least? What do you recommend?As a Premium user you get unique insight into the opinions of some of the most prominent wine critics with new Expert Ratings. Robert Parker and Wine Enthusiast ratings are shown when available, along with the community ratings, so you can instantly get a complete overview.

Learn more about Vivino Premium The most influential and powerful wine critic in the world, Robert Parker gained recognition in the years following the first publication of The Wine Advocate. Today he has tasted a large part of the world's most expensive and prestigious wines and rated these on his 100 point wine-scoring scale. The scale employs a 50-100 point quality scale ranging from unacceptable to extraordinary. Barely above average to very good Stephen Tanzer is a US-based, widely respected wine critic, editor and publisher of international Wine Cellar and wine columnist for Forbes, and Food & Wine. Tanzer has a particular expertise on the wines of Burgundy, Piemonte, California, Washington State, South Africa and Bordeaux. He employs a modern wine rating system on a 70-100 point quality scale. Very Good to Excellent Founded in 1979, Wine Enthusiast is a magazine and website, that is now a world leading guide to the latest wine trends, wine ratings, education, food, travel, and everything needed to enjoy wine to the fullest.

The magazine is published 14 times per year and has a readership of 800,000 consumers worldwide. Wine Enthusiast's 100-point wine-scoring scale: Vinous' CEO and founder and one of the world's top wine critics. From 2006 to 2013 Galloni reviewed wines at Robert Parker;s The Wine Advocate, where he covered the wines of Italy, California, Burgundy and Champagne. Antonio Galloni's 100-point wine-scoring scale:A profound and emotionally moving wine that exemplifies the very best attributes of its kind. These are the world's great, iconic wines.A wine of remarkable personality and breed that is well worth seeking out.A strong wine with true character that provides highly enjoyable drinking.A wine with no flaws, but no distinction.A wine with at least one noticeable flaw. Not worth your time. James Halliday is an Australian wine writer and critic. During his nearly 40-year career of judging and tasting wines in Australia's most important wine competitions, J. Halliday has written more than 40 books on wine and is recognized as an authority of wine.

Halliday uses a 100-point wine-scoring system: Decanter is a British high-end magazine on wine and spirits published on a monthly basis. It specializes in wine industry and vintage news, wine recommendations and reviews. Decanter organizes annual international wine competition 'The Decanter World Wine Awards'. Decanter has a scoring scale based on a five-star system: Outstanding quality, virtually perfect example James Suckling - an American wine critic and journalist, who is internationally known as one of the world's most influential wine critics. ) and is mainly known for his specialization in the wines of Italy and Bordeaux. James Suckling's 100-point wine-scoring scale: and weekly for the Financial Times. J.Robinson is also a co-author of Wine Grapes, a complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties and an advisor for the wine cellar of Queen Elizabeth II. Jancis Robinson's 20-point wine scoring scale: A cut above superior Borderline faulty or unbalanced