Vendange California Cabernet Sauvignon Tetra Pak

Wine snobs stand aside for a minute as we’re about to hit up our first review of a “boxed wine.” The Vendange California Cabernet Sauvignon cost us about $3.99 and is in a small Tetra Pak form factor and holds about three glasses of wine (500ml).

Still reading? Okay, so I’ve got your attention. First, let’s just dispel the ideas that a boxed wine has to be utter garbage, I’ve had plenty of really horrid glass bottled wines and Vendange isn’t one of them. Yes, you heard me, this is a fine wine for under $4.00 for three glasses. Granted, it won’t go over well serving to a bunch of guests for dinner as the “ambiance” is a bit misleading.

However, I challenge you to pour it into a nice red wine glass and have a few folks blind taste it. First, they’ll notice the wine is actually red, a bit clear near the outer edges but its a solid effort in terms of color. I’ve had bottled wines that were rusty brown and didn’t taste all too great, again, this isn’t one of them.

The nose of the Vendange Cabernet Sauvignon has a great mineral scent, a bit rustic and dirty — unexpected for a red wine in a box. Sour black cherries, and dark fruits can found in the bouquet.The initial attack is crisp dark fruits with a cherry transition on the mid-palate to a sour tannic finish. The finish well stick with you for a minute or so, drying out your mouth and leaving you with hints of stone and mineral deposits.

Overall, this isn’t the most complex wine, you’ll taste the fruits and find it a lighter bodied red wine but it does what it does well: cheap wine with earthy tones. Consider the fact that this is a boxed wine from California and you’d think sweet fake fruit flavor… you’d be wrong.

This is an impressive little Tetra Pak wine. The term might be trendy, but the taste is more classy than initially expected.