Which Boxed Wine Tastes the Best?

Is there anything more reminiscent of your college experience than boxed wine? Cost effective, lasts in the fridge for a month, and you don’t even need a bottle opener to get to the wine; it really doesn’t get any better than that!

But can boxed wine graduate from its college reputation? Many wineries are turning to more cost effective and eco friendly packaging, and boxed wine is a great option. We’re now seeing boxed wines on the market with higher price points, but the question is, are they worth it?

​The only way to find out is to taste the wine, so I did exactly that! I set up a blind tasting between five different boxed wines to find out if the higher end boxes were worth their price points. 

The Contestants

1. Bota Box Cabernet Sauvignon, $16.99 ($4.25/bottle)
   
2. La Vieille Rouge, $28.99 ($7.25/bottle)
   
3. Gratsi Old Country Red, $45 ($11.25/bottle)
   
4. Really Good Boxed Wine Cabernet Sauvignon, $65 ($16.25/bottle)
   
5. Boxt Profile 5, $74 ($18.50/bottle)
   

The Process

​I tried my best to choose the style of wine from each of these producers that would be similar enough to the others as to not influence the tasting. To ensure this was a purely blind tasting, I asked my husband to pour the wines into numbered glasses. Only he knew which wine corresponded to which glass. Then I simply followed my wine tasting process with each wine and kept notes along the way. 

Two important things to keep in mind for the blind tasting:

• All of these wines had significant amounts of tannin which means my palate fatigued super early. Due to this, the wines that had the most powerful and bold flavors likely scored higher than those with more delicate flavors.
• I conducted the tasting in the afternoon and wasn’t up for being drunk by 2pm so I did use the spit technique with the wines. In my honest opinion, not consuming the wine may have prevented me from experiencing the full flavor of the wine.

The Ratings

​Without further ado, here’s how each wine ranked!

The Winner: Boxt Profile 5

​Look: Deep Purple
Aromas: Cinnamon, Vanilla, Plum, Fig, Raisin, Lilac
Structure: Med+ Body, High Tannin, Medium Acidity, Dry, Med+ Alcohol
Verdict: I scored this wine an 8 out of 10, primarily because it was one of the only wines I was truly excited about. I enjoyed the dark fruit and vanilla aromas along with its sharp acidity. My main complaints were that the alcohol was a bit much and it could have been a bit more flavorful on the palate for how intense the aroma was.

Second Place: La Vieille Rouge

Look: Medium Ruby
Aromas: Boysenberry, Fig, Olive, Blackberry, Green Bell Pepper
Structure: Medium Body, Med+ Tannin, Med+ Acidity, Dry, Med Alcohol
Verdict: My main note for this one was that it tastes like it smells. I rated it a 7 out of 10 because I enjoyed it, but the bell pepper note was a bit strong to my liking. Overall, I’d consider it a friendly,  middle of the road boxed wine.

Third Place: Really Good Boxed Wine

Look: Medium Purple
Aromas: Craisins, Potting Soil, Fresh Herbs, Smoke, White Strawberries
Structure: Med- Body, Med+ Tannin, Medium Acidity, Med+ Alcohol, Dry
Verdict: This one definitely had some complexity to it, but it received a lower rating (6 out of 10) because it was just too grippy in texture and green/under ripe in flavor. It felt like the grapes needed to ripen just a bit more and then it would have been perfect. However I will say this one tasted fruitier than it smelled.

Fourth Place: Bota Box Cabernet Sauvignon

Look: Medium Ruby
Aromas: Strawberry, Plum, Leather Funk, Potting Soil, Basil, Burnt Popcorn
Structure: Medium Body, Med- Tannin, Medium Acidity, Dry, Medium Alcohol
Verdict: Here’s the thing, I liked so many things about this wine. The red fruit aroma was almost savory in a way, mixed with some sort of herbal component which was fun. But as soon as I caught a whiff of the burnt popcorn/smokey smell, I just couldn’t get past it. It overwhelmed the wine for me. I had to rate it a 5 out of 10.

Fifth Place: Gratsi Old Country Red

Look: Medium Garnet
Aromas: Cherry, Nail Varnish, Woodsy, Mint…maybe
Structure: Medium Body, Medium Tannin, Med+ Acidity, Medium Alcohol, Dry
Verdict: The best word to describe this wine is medicinal. Overall, the wine was very closed off both in terms of aromas and flavor. Everything seemed muted, except for this very medicinal, minty cherry kind of flavor. Some of this may be personal preference as I’m not a fan of mint, but overall I was not impressed. I rated it a 4 out of 10.

​Boxed wine has definitely come a long way from our Franzia slapping college days. Each of these wines (except for maybe fifth place), I’d be totally content enjoying a glass of if they were offered to me at a party or get together. And honestly, many people wouldn’t be able to guess that the wine came out of a box if they were simply handed a glass.

There are more and more quality winemakers choosing to experiment with boxed (and even canned) wines and I think that’s awesome. Glass bottles are traditional, but they’re costly to ship and harder to recycle. I encourage you to do some research and consider trying a boxed wine for yourself!

If you’re wanting to do a blind taste test of your own, check out my wine tasting guide to help you in evaluating each wine or consider booking a private tasting with me to make it into a fun activity with friends and family!