With the months of scorching heat and almost-unbearable humidity hopefully behind us, we can start to plan for the cooler months ahead. This means our blissful indoor/outdoor Coachella Valley lifestyle resumes, with all the wonderful outdoor activities starting to ramp up.
For some, this is the time to dust off the irons, re-string the rackets and lace up the new sneakers. For others—like, oh, I dunno, your local sommelier—this is the time to find the perfect wine for all those places glass bottles aren’t allowed.
It’s been a while since I reviewed the glass-alternative wine options out there, and I have to say: Things are just getting better and better.
During the pandemic, when supplies of everything were limited, glass bottles became especially hard to find. Winemakers started taking any kind of bottle they could get their hands on, while others looked for alternative vessels that are perhaps more sustainable, recyclable and easier to access. The result: Some of our favorite wines are now offered in single-serve cans, half-bottle-sized cans, and party-perfect large-format boxes. Yes, boxed wine is back—and it’s absolutely fabulous!
Here are some of the best wines out there—with no corkscrew required.
Brothers Jesse and Aaron Inman started Lucky Rock Wine Co. in 2013 after years of working in the wine business. Their unique childhood—growing up in a bus with their gold-mining parents on the banks of the Klamath River in Northern California—gave them a first-hand understanding of the rewards that soil can give you. It was when they relocated to Sonoma County that they found their passion for pinot noir and began their journey into winemaking.
For years, I have loved their sauvignon blanc and pinot noir bottlings—so when Jesse paid me a visit with both wines in 250-milliliter cans, I couldn’t wait to try them. We sampled the wines from the bottle and from their can counterparts, and trust me when I say there was zero difference. In fact, as a nod to Jesse’s favorite movie, Tombstone—it’s printed right on the can—“You’re a daisy if you do.” In other words, if you can tell the difference, you’re pretty special.
Bodegas Artadi is known as one of the greatest wineries in La Rioja, Spain, producing the best bottlings of Tempranillo in the world. Juan Carlos López de Lacalle is the owner and winemaker behind Artadi, as well as another project, called Ah-So, from the family’s vineyards located in Navarra. This is the world’s first estate-grown, estate-canned wine. In fact, to ensure quality, the Lopez de Lacalle family purchased a canning line, which is instrumental in maintaining freshness from the vine to the can. They make a white, a red and a rose, all made from 100% Garnacha (grenache), all cultivated organically, and hand-harvested from 25-year-old vines. Every one of the Ah-So wines are delicious, and the attention to quality is evident.
We sampled the wines from the bottle and from their can counterparts, and trust me when I say there was zero difference.
Famed wine-importer Michael Skurnik began his journey into making wine in 2009. He called up his friends and colleagues from around the Central Coast of California to help him craft wines that are balanced and fruit-forward, easy-drinking and affordable. Boy, did he ever succeed! As with the wines from Lucky Rock, in a blind, head-to-head taste test, I couldn’t tell the difference between the canned versions of Michael’s wines, made under the name The Pinot Project, versus the bottled offerings. He makes a pinot grigio from Washington state, a California pinot noir, and a rose from the south of France.
If little cans aren’t gonna fit the bill, may I suggest a liter or three of something delicious out of a box? Don’t panic. This is not your mama’s Franzia. No, no … what I’m talking about is beautifully crafted wine, sealed airtight, that can last up to six weeks after you open it—but I guarantee it will be consumed much faster than that.
I recently discovered Juliet wines from the Central Coast of California. The company was founded by a couple of boss babes, Allison Luvera and Lauren De Niro Pipher, who set out to develop eco-friendly wines of unwavering quality with beautiful packaging. Juliet is produced at a Certified California Sustainable Winery in the Santa Barbara region, where the wines are handmade in a low-intervention style (meaning no artificial additives are used), using high-quality grapes sourced from the best vineyards in the Central Coast. The result is wines that are clean, fruit-forward and so refreshing!
Not only is the outer packaging stunning—it looks like it could grace the shelves of Neiman Marcus or Saks—it’s also 100% recyclable and made entirely from renewable materials. Each box of Juliet is 1.5 liters (a magnum) and contains 10 scrumptious glasses of wine. My favorites from are the rose made from grenache, with beautiful notes of freesia, wild strawberries and white pepper; and the sauvignon blanc, with aromas of Meyer lemon and Asian pear. I recently took the rose to a baby shower (for the non-pregnant attendees, natch), and the feedback was unanimous: This boxed wine is a total winner!
If you find the great outdoors calling and want to imbibe a little something while hitting the links or hiking around, the pop of a can top, or the ease of tapping open a box, might just be your answer. Plus, I’ve been told by some people that a can of wine is pretty handy in a movie theater if you have to endure the latest Disney movie.
