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Black Box Wines

Has anybody tried these? They are really good. I popped into the liquor store a while back for a nice wine for dinner and they were giving away samples. I was really impressed and grabbed a box for $20 (1 box=4 bottles). Since then I've tried the Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonay and I really like them. The Chard is particularly nice because I don't drink much white wine but it's there in the frig, fresh and cold if I want a glass or need some for cooking. The plastic bladder that holds the wine keeps it from oxidizing and it's supposed to last for four weeks but around here that's not a problem.
I would have never thought about buying wine in a box but...
 
I now buy Black Box wine on a regular basis. Great value, good wine. Comes out to about $4.50 a bottle. Wine in a box really helps reduce bottle recycling. For everyday wine drinking, it's hard to beat.
 

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My brother taught me that wine's only worth buying if it's in a box or has a handle.

Your brother's Michael Broadbent? :lol:

Seriously, there is no reason why wine costs a much as it does, why great wine is priced so absurdly, and, most importantly, why great wine can't be produced and sold at a low cost.
 
I worked in the Napa Valley as a tour guide when I was going to Grad School. I had people all the time ask me what was the difference between a good wine.

The response I almost always gave was, if you like the wine it is a good wine. If you don't like the wine, it is a bad wine.
 
Your brother's Michael Broadbent? :lol:

Seriously, there is no reason why wine costs a much as it does, why great wine is priced so absurdly, and, most importantly, why great wine can't be produced and sold at a low cost.

Supply and demand. For example, Bordeaux is only so big. Once the wine is out, its out you can't just make more of it. Enough people want it that often prices can be set as high as the winery wants because there are people who pay.
 
aslong as you´re not making kalimoxo, which is one of the nastier drinks in existance, you may be excused for buying boxed wine,
 
Though I have around 600 bottles in the basement, there is always a box of Black Box Cabernet available for a daily go-to wine.

I think that it is quite good.
 
Seriously, there is no reason why wine costs a much as it does, why great wine is priced so absurdly, and, most importantly, why great wine can't be produced and sold at a low cost.
I agree - there is no reason why a good bottle of wine should cost more than $10 - $15. A great bottle should cost no more than $40 - $50.

If you go to France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, there are local stores that sell very good table wine for next to nothing. If you go to the winery or local wine shops, you'll find incredible bottles at very reasonable prices. I remeber seeing great Brunellos from excellent vintages at very reasonable prices - the same wines were at least thre times the price back home - you can't tell me shipping and taxes add that much - there's clearly a huge mark up involved. It seems that in North America, there is a view that inexpensive wine is bad and that you've got to pay big bucks to get a decent bottle of wine. Since a lot of people believe that the higher the price, the better the wine, vendors are happy to oblige.

Now, when you're talking an extrordinary vintage or a wine that has been aged for several years (assuming of course that its a wine that is worth aging, has been stored properly and isn't past its best before date), that's when it makes sense for prices to be high.

There's also a huge amount of hype in wine - Bordeaux gets a lot of press and there's a certain amount of cachet associated with it - so the price goes up accordingly.

The great thing about wine is that there are lots of great values out there if you're willing to experiment and learn about different regions, styles, etc. When you do find that great value wine, just quietly pick up a case or two and keep it under your hat - no need to spread the word, as that can only cause the price to go up :wink:
 
In Australia we call it "cask' wine. In fact, it may have been an Aussie invention:001_rolle.Popular in the '70s and '80s but much frowned upon now. You can get some decent stuff but most of it is poor quality. I hyave to agree though that as an everyday drinking wine, the half decent stuff is good value. The only problem is walking into a nice BYO restaurant with it looks cheao ans nasty.
 
My older brother is a sommelier (and he really really REALLY knows his stuff) and he recently told me that there are a FEW decent boxes out there. I don't remember which ones specifically, but he tells me they were designed from the get-go for smaller upscale bars and restaurants which might not go through a ton of house bottles and needed to save storage space.

I tried one of them (I want to say it was a syrah, but I could be wrong) and it was pretty good as I recall.
 

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Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
It's one thing to pay through the nose for a wine from a top producer from a vintage that has become legendary, but the prices fetched by some of these nouveau boutique wines strain the limits of credulity.
 
It's one thing to pay through the nose for a wine from a top producer from a vintage that has become legendary, but the prices fetched by some of these nouveau boutique wines strain the limits of credulity.
That pic made my jaw drop and mouth water!

My older brother is a sommelier (and he really really REALLY knows his stuff) and he recently told me that there are a FEW decent boxes out there. I don't remember which ones specifically, but he tells me they were designed from the get-go for smaller upscale bars and restaurants which might not go through a ton of house bottles and needed to save storage space.

I tried one of them (I want to say it was a syrah, but I could be wrong) and it was pretty good as I recall.
I can see this. There nothing worse (not literally of course) than ordering up a glass and it tastes like the bottle's been open and out in the sun for three days.

I agree - there is no reason why a good bottle of wine should cost more than $10 - $15. A great bottle should cost no more than $40 - $50.

If you go to France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, there are local stores that sell very good table wine for next to nothing. If you go to the winery or local wine shops, you'll find incredible bottles at very reasonable prices. I remeber seeing great Brunellos from excellent vintages at very reasonable prices - the same wines were at least thre times the price back home - you can't tell me shipping and taxes add that much - there's clearly a huge mark up involved. It seems that in North America, there is a view that inexpensive wine is bad and that you've got to pay big bucks to get a decent bottle of wine. Since a lot of people believe that the higher the price, the better the wine, vendors are happy to oblige.

Now, when you're talking an extrordinary vintage or a wine that has been aged for several years (assuming of course that its a wine that is worth aging, has been stored properly and isn't past its best before date), that's when it makes sense for prices to be high.

There's also a huge amount of hype in wine - Bordeaux gets a lot of press and there's a certain amount of cachet associated with it - so the price goes up accordingly.

The great thing about wine is that there are lots of great values out there if you're willing to experiment and learn about different regions, styles, etc. When you do find that great value wine, just quietly pick up a case or two and keep it under your hat - no need to spread the word, as that can only cause the price to go up :wink:
Two-Buck Chuck is a great value and the story is great. Rothschild is producing some really good red wines out of Chile in the $15-$20 range. When I was in Italy on business a couple of years ago, they turned me on to some local wines that were incredible and in the $10-$20 range. They said we keep them here for us; we don't export. Good stuff.

Though I have around 600 bottles in the basement, there is always a box of Black Box Cabernet available for a daily go-to wine.

I think that it is quite good.
600? All I can say is wow. I've got nowhere near that many.
When my wife and I got married, I'd whip up a nice dinner and she would crack open a bottle for dinner each night and say wow this is pretty good. After about three weeks, I said you realize those wines in the $30-$50 a bottle range don't you? She's an accountant by the way and accounts for every cent. After I picked her up off the floor... she went back to an "everyday wine" for dinner unless it was a really nice weekend meal or she asks first :lol:
The BlackBoxWines are great for everyday.
:biggrin:
 

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Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
That pic made my jaw drop and mouth water!

I have a couple more. :001_rolle

full


full


full
 
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The reason that the wine is so expensive is because it CAN be.

DECENT vineyards have limited capacity for production, and they price their wines according to their fair-market value. This sometimes means that they price in the idea that their wine will become more desirable over a few years, as well.

You can find EXCELLENT wines for 20 dollars. A 20 dollar bottle of wine is completely reasonable in my book, too. If you're looking for an everyday kind of wine, go into a reputable wine shop and start tasting. Many places will sometimes have cheap tastings, where they focus on low-end wines. Those are the kinds that you'll buy by the case to have onhand.
 

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Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
Not only can an inexpensive wine be decent, it can be better than wine two, three, or more times its price.

I've had numerous bottles in the $15-20 range that were much better than popular and overpriced "estate reserves". The Languedoc Roussillon area of France produces a sea of terrific and reasonably priced wines, and even among the "big boys" there are always overachievers that are every bit as good as the more storied châteaux.
 
Not only can an inexpensive wine be decent, it can be better than wine two, three, or more times its price.

I've had numerous bottles in the $15-20 range that were much better than popular and overpriced "estate reserves". The Languedoc Roussillon area of France produces a sea of terrific and reasonably priced wines, and even among the "big boys" there are always overachievers that are every bit as good as the more storied châteaux.

ABSOLUTELY true.

more expensive does not equal better. It's VERY easy to find good values.

If you want to try some very interesting wines - go for Spanish vineyards. No kidding - Spain is making some of the most interesting wine out there, and usually at a great value.
 

ouch

Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
ABSOLUTELY true.

more expensive does not equal better. It's VERY easy to find good values.

If you want to try some very interesting wines - go for Spanish vineyards. No kidding - Spain is making some of the most interesting wine out there, and usually at a great value.

And some of the cheapest. Look for wines from Jorge Ordonez for value that's nothing short of amazing.
 
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