Boxed Wines Strike Back…Again

A few weeks back, I presented for your consideration a column on Killer Juice Cabernet Sauvignon, which happens to come in a box. A number of you found it amusing that anyone would take a boxed wine seriously.

"What are you going to write about next? Mad Dog 20/20?" asked Kevin McGuinness, a regular reader and part-time comedian from Congers, N.Y., who gets this column electronically via accessAtlanta.

Ha. Ha. Very funny, Kevin.

Strong-willed and defiant, I bring to your attention another boxed offering because I really believe in these types of wines. I know many of you would prefer that I stick to those amazing, artisan wines, made in limited quantities with prices typically north of $50. Hard to find and expensive, however, are not qualities I appreciate in my everyday wine selections. I dare say that most of us are wine drinkers and not collectors.

You need inexpensive but tasty wines in your life. Half-empty boxed wines, such as the Black Box Shiraz, can be poured down the drain like flat Dr Pepper without a second thought when they exceed their shelf life. The point is that they are there to fill in the gaps when you need a splash of wine.

For example, my father-in-law, Erwin, has been staying with us the past few weeks, so our nightly bottle of wine is divided by three instead of two. I usually get my second glass while I wash the dishes and make lunches for my two (ah-hem) angelic daughters, Erika and Elise. Well, that glass is no longer there, but I've made do with three or four ounces from Black Box and I have not felt cheated in the least.

So, make fun if you will, but there's a lot to like about widely available, decent wines that cost the equivalent of $5 for a regular 750 milliliter bottle.

• $20 / 3 liters

• Two thumbs up

• Aromas of red berry fruit with a herbal note. It has pleasant, straight-forward flavors of sour cherry and spicy mocha.