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Not so long ago I told you about Crimean wines and remembered that some of the wines that I saw in the Massandra factory store were packed in tetra-pack boxes. My wife then told me that it was some kind of strange store, that normal wine would never be sold in such a package.
For the sake of experiment, I took one such box and a similar wine in a bottle. “Merlot” it was, if my memory serves me right. I tried it and didn’t notice any difference. Then I decided to complicate it – I poured two glasses, one from the box, the second from the bottle and gave it to my wife to taste. She didn’t notice the difference either.
Today I will try to explain a little to you what is the difference between wine in bottles and tetra packs.
Tetrapack wine packaging technology
Now more and more wines are appearing on store shelves not in bottles, but packaged in tetra-packs. This happens for a variety of reasons.
The most important is the combination of weight and form of packaging, which can significantly reduce transportation costs. And also a significant difference in cost, not in favor of glass.
For conservative skeptics, it is immediately necessary to make a remark: wine is poured into a bottle and a tetrapak is poured from the same container. Yes, these are cheaper drinks without any troubles such as long-term aging and blending.
But, nevertheless, this is real wine, and not “diluted grape skin powder”, as many skeptics claim.
Of course, we are talking about wine, and not about wine drinks, powdered swills and other surrogates.
The very process of bottling wine into tetra packs is called “antiseptic”, that is, the wine undergoes additional filtration and heat treatment. Blockage of packages is carried out with the help of special high-tech equipment.
When it comes to storage, tetrapacks are out of competition here. Let’s remember the main law of wine storage: no sunlight and access to atmospheric oxygen. Bottle proponents solve these problems by using dark glass and tight corks. As for the tetrapak packaging, things are much better here:
The packaging itself is opaque, which completely eliminates the effect of sunlight on the contents.
The packaging is multi-layered and consists of an inner layer of food-grade polyethylene, which guarantees tightness and sterility and, moreover, is not affected by tartaric acids.
The middle layer of foil prevents the penetration of foreign odors, light and air, and the cardboard gives the package strength.
Is there a difference between bottled and tetra-packed wine?
By the nature of my activity, I often heard the question: “Is it true that wine in bottles is higher in level than in tetra-packs?”. There is no single answer to such a question.
If we take, for example, elite varieties, then they simply do not spill into cardboard packaging. This is primarily due to the aesthetics of consumption. A buyer who can afford such wine will not save on packaging.
As for middle-class wines, there is practically no difference in taste between bottled and packaged wines.
How to choose wine in tetra packs
When buying wine in a package, it is recommended to pay attention to three main criteria:
- Manufacturer country. If we talk about producers, then at the moment decent packaged wines are bottled in Chile, Argentina, Italy and Australia. As for Russian producers, one can only advise on the basis of personal experience, for example, I really love the wines produced by Massandra.
- The date of bottling. To date, there is too little information about the storability of packaging and the chemical processes that take place in packaged wine. It is reliably known that the storage of a drink in a tetrapack for 1-2 years did not lead to any negative consequences. However, when choosing in a store, it is better to take what is fresh.
- Price. Try to choose not too cheap drinks. If you need additional savings, you can take a bag-in-box container with a 2-3 liter tap.
I recommend to pay attention to such wines in boxes:
- Vegas del Rivilla Vegas del Rivilla;
- VINAIO D’ITALIA VINAIO D’ITALIA;
- Monastery old-timer.
What to look for when choosing bottled wine
Finally, a few words about how to avoid low-quality wine in a bottle:
- We carefully look at the label. If we notice the word wine material in the composition, then we have a surrogate that has nothing to do with real wine.
- Sort. The label of a quality wine should indicate the grape variety from which it was prepared. For example, “Natural wine Pinot noir, Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon.” If the label says only “natural red wine”, then its quality is most likely rather mediocre.
Personally for myself, I made the following conclusion. For “technical” needs, that is, marinades, stews and flambés, packaged wine of the budget and medium price category is quite suitable. For example, Cabernet, Isabella or Merlot “Legend of Crimea”.
For personal consumption, it is better to choose one or two varieties to your taste from more expensive varieties, provided that the manufacturer is well known to you, and the goods in the store are certified.
Italian wines showed themselves very well: Beccaccia Rosso or Sangiovese-Merlot (Merlot Sangiovese). But for guests at celebrations, serving wine in bags is considered bad form.
Excessive alcohol consumption is harmful to your health. Take care of yourself!
What wine do you prefer? Have I been able to dispel the myth about the low quality of wine in tetra packs today?