When I used to live in Oakland, CA and they had First Friday's where on the first Friday of the month they would have art walks and food trucks and a big block party happy hour with dancing and live music. I only went a few times but it was nice. I know a lot of other cities have that same kind of thing, or at least they did before Covid. I'm hoping if they start them or have already started them they are being smart about it. Since the pandemic began, I've done all of my partying virtually through Instagram and Happy Hours via Skype or Zoom. But I digress, the point is when I was thinking about my wine blog I thought it would be good for me to have a set day for it. So following the idea of First Friday, I decided to set Second Friday for my wine blog.
In my other post [Here] I talked about why I was changing from bottles to box. This post and the others after this will cover how my adventures exploring in the world of box wine
First I want to say this blog isn’t intended for people who have been on the box wine bandwagon from the beginning. It’s for people who have seen it and scoffed at it and want someone else who’s new to it to try it before they dive in. Also, it’s more focused on economy and logistics than on wine review, because I’m no wine expert.
For my first of this monthly wine blog, I chose Bota Box - RedVolution. It seemed very accessible and had good reviews online. Wine tasting is subjective so just because some like it doesn’t mean everyone will. I’ve tasted enough wines in my time to know what I like and what I don’t and the description sounded like something I would enjoy.
I noted the description mentioned blackberry jam flavors with cocoa and spice, among other things; those are keywords for me when it comes to a wine I think I will enjoy.
My first impression:
I thought the box would be bigger. When I read that each box holds 4 bottles of wine, I thought it would be a huge box and I would have to clear room for it but it’s not much larger than a wine bottle.
I love the information on container about the eco-friendliness of box wine. Which is something I never thought about until recently.
I was very satisfied with the price which was $18.99 at Target, which comes to about $4.75 a bottle. At 13.5% alcohol it’s a little stronger than the average wine I usually buy which is about 12%. And as someone who has never had box wine before I was surprised how easy it was to open. Comparing the size of the empty bag to 4 glass bottles that I can’t recycle (because of the local government’s idiocy here in Florida), that one bag is much less waste and the box is recyclable. In some places the bag might be recyclable too. For me this is a more economical and environmentally friendly choice.
The Taste:
Disclaimer!!! I’m not a Sommelier, just an amateur wine enthusiast and I’ve taken James Suckling’s Masterclass, for whatever that’s worth. This is just my impression of the wine, many other reviews are available elsewhere online too.
It has a nice aroma and nice color, but not deep red. I enjoyed the initial sip but I had expected a little fuller body and more fruit and “lusciousness” from the description. I found after aerating it a bit the flavor was enhanced. It’s not my favorite but it’s good and easy to drink. I think next time I will search for a "dark" wine because I'd like more body and mouth feel.
Fast forward 2 weeks and the wine still tastes good. I did not note any oxidation or off flavors. I am very impressed! I would buy this again.
*The wine glass image above is form Unsplash and not the wine discussed in this blog
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