All of this wine is transported by trucks, trains, planes, steamships, stopping along the way and reloading somewhere at distributors, importers-exporters or retailers before they reach their final destination - the consumer's home or the restaurant's cellar.

Transportation of wine remains one of the main sources of emissions of harmful gases into the atmosphere, which increase the greenhouse effect. It's no wonder why environmentally conscious wine producers have long been looking for an alternative to conventional glass bottles. Competitive glass packaging must be affordable, easy to recycle, easy to dispose of or reuse.

For wines that are meant to be consumed quickly, glass is not the optimal material. Initially, glass containers were intended for refilling, although today glass bottles of wine are thrown away after their first use. It cannot be said that because of this they began to massively abandon glass containers. They just took a different path - in every possible way to reduce the weight of the bottles. But at the same time, alternative packaging options appeared - small barrels like beer kegs, plastic bags inside a cardboard box (bag-in-box), plastic and aluminum bottles, cardboard packaging, plastic bags and more. True, they all have one common drawback - the wine can be kept in them for a relatively short time, no more than one year, after which its quality may begin to deteriorate. The Wine Spectator magazine tried to identify the advantages and disadvantages of different types of wine packaging. And here's what happens:

Glass bottles

Glass has a lot of advantages, which affected its widespread use as a wine container. It perfectly preserves wine for decades, preventing foreign odors, foreign particles, and oxygen from penetrating into it. Glass is made from affordable, cheap and plentiful components: sand, soda, lime, broken glass. Glass bottles can be recycled back into containers an unlimited number of times without creating waste or by-products.

But, on the other hand, glass requires a lot of energy to make it. This type of packaging has a lot of weight. A standard 750 ml bottle weighs 480-575 g. A champagne bottle already weighs 900 g. For some countries, glass containers have another drawback. To protect the wine from ultraviolet rays, the bottles are given a color, usually green. Britain, which imports far more wine than it produces, is accumulating a surplus of green glass, which is very difficult to turn clear. For example, to use it for soft drinks that require colorless glass containers.

Modern technologies allow the production of lighter glass bottles (no more than 300 g of weight) with less energy for their manufacture. Today, in developed countries, 23% of glass bottles are recycled, which is not much.

Carton boxes

Introduced in the 1970s, hermetically sealed bag-in-boxes are by far the most serious alternative packaging today. With capacities ranging from 1.5L to 5L for retail (or restaurant) use, it is more efficient, taking up significantly less space in transit and storage than the equivalent volume of bottled wine. The cardboard box is fully recyclable. The plastic bag along with the faucet is partially recycled. Disadvantage - not suitable for long-term storage of wine. Already once opened wine in such a package should be drunk within 2-3 weeks. And the shelf life of intact packaging is not more than a year from the moment the wine is poured into a plastic bag.

For a long time, bag-in-box wines were perceived by consumers as low quality. This stereotype began to change recently, when sufficiently high-quality wines began to be poured into such packaging. For restaurants where wine is sold by the glass, large plastic bags (up to 10 liters) are supplied, already enclosed in a real barrel of the appropriate size. As the package is emptied, it is thrown away, and a new one is placed in the same barrel.

Cardboard tetra packs

This type of packaging is characterized by a high ratio between the weight of the wine and the packaging where it is poured - 96:4. For a glass bottle, for example, this ratio is 60:40. Tetrapacks, as a rule, are available in 1 liter or 500 ml. Thanks to their flat surface, tetra packs can be stacked tightly and for the same amount of wine, one truckload of empty tetrapacks equals 26 truckloads of empty glass bottles. As a packaging for wine, they were first used in the United States in 2004. The packaging is 70% recycled paper. Layers of aluminum foil and polyethylene make such packaging hermetic and prevent air from entering the wine, protect it from light and pollution. It is recommended that the storage time of wine in a closed tetrapack is no more than 12-18 months.

Plastic bags (pouch)

In fact, it is a very dense plastic bag but without an outer cardboard box. In a similar type of bag, but much smaller, poured, for example, mayonnaise or ketchup. They are produced in various capacities (up to 3 liters), with and without a tap to prevent oxygen from entering the wine. The storage time of wine in a closed bag is not more than a year. Due to the fact that the plastic bag is quite flexible, durable and quick-cooled, it is especially convenient to take it to the beach, to the pool, or on a hike. For the first time such packaging was used in 2008. The main advantage of this type of packaging is its extraordinary lightness. 10 such empty bags occupy the volume of one glass bottle.

aluminum packaging

There are so many drinks in aluminum cans today, so why can't they be used for wine as well? They do not fight, cool quickly, block light from entering. Aluminum is also highly recyclable. For example, in the United States, the percentage of aluminum recycled is much higher than that of glass and plastic bottles. Francis Coppola's California winery produces sparkling wine in 187 ml aluminum cans with a plastic straw attached to them. Prosecco is also poured into a similar container of a slightly larger size. Recommended shelf life - no more than 6 months.

Plastic bottles

They are also called PET because they are made from polyethylene terephthalate. On the store shelf, many perceive them as ordinary bottles. Nevertheless, such packaging still has serious image problems, since it immediately evokes associations with ordinary water, which is sold in large volumes in such packaging.

These bottles are based on materials that are not biodegradable, but are recycled into the same plastic bottles or floor coverings. They allow more air to pass through than glass, so they are not ideal packaging for protecting wine. The shelf life of wine in such packaging is from 6 months to two years before oxidation of the wine becomes a noticeable problem.

Kegs

After several not-so-successful attempts to start using a similar container for wine, made in the 1980s and built on the principle of selling wine (even quality) by the bottle, this "concept" has again aroused increased interest in the last few years. Typically, such containers, made of stainless steel, hold a volume of wine comparable to 26 bottles and are well suited for restaurants where wine is sold by glass or decanter. The wine turns out to be cheaper, the problem with the disposal of empty bottles disappears. In addition, in such a barrel, the wine is not subject to oxidation - under the protection of an inert gas, the wine will remain fresh for up to two months with an already open and incomplete barrel, and up to a year with a sealed one. The empty barrel is returned to the wine producer, washed, sterilized and refilled. The life span of such packaging is up to 30 years. It is economically justified that empty barrels travel no more than 600-700 km.

Paper

This container appeared on the market only at the end of last year and resembles an ordinary bottle in shape, but is made of thick paper with a thin plastic layer inside. This container is very light, highly recyclable and biodegradable. True, it is still difficult to say how much the wine industry will like the new bottles, how much it will accept them? From the point of view of the image, it does not yet carry negative associations like “wine in paper means low quality”. Again, the form here is offered close to the classic bottle.

The global wine industry now has a huge choice of which containers to use. Each manufacturer chooses for himself the closest and most suitable packaging according to his wishes and ideas. Of course, the best wines of the left-bank chateau, as well as those of the right-bank ones, are unlikely to abandon the use of glass bottles in the next decade. But their owners, and, most likely, the buyers of these products, probably just didn’t have to lift a box of wine up the stairs on their own recently. At least on the second floor.

Age limit: 18+

Surely many of you do not even pay attention to the shelves with wine in the so-called tetra-packs - cardboard boxes. The capacity of such a box is usually two or three liters, sometimes one liter. Such wines are inexpensive, and among most people there is an opinion that one trash is sold in tetrapacks - all sorts of mumbling for those who just want to get drunk and forget.

In fact, this is not so. More precisely, not quite so. Tetra-packs sell not only terrible wine, they also sell quite decent economy-class wine - and the contents of these boxes do not differ from the contents of glass bottles of a similar wine of the same brand. The box, in fact, is a convenient container for both the manufacturer and the consumer. It is cheaper than a bottle, lighter, it cannot be broken, it is more transportable (one large box will contain more parallelepiped boxes than bottles). But one of the main disadvantages of any "boxed" wine, of course, is the aesthetic factor.

However, wine in boxes is not intended for aesthetes. It is rather for those cases when the level and taste of wine is not the main thing; for large companies, for picnics, barbecues and similar events. At the same time, wine in a tetrapack can be quite decent - although I admit that you can’t expect anything outstanding from it.

I looked into four supermarkets: Auchan, Seventh Continent, Perekrestok and Pyaterochka. Yes, indeed, most of the assortment of wine in cardboard boxes is something incomprehensible, from the “better not to buy” series. This is Vinogor at 200 rubles per two liters and other products of Russian "winemakers". Most likely, this is junk imported wine, which is imported to us at 40 cents per liter - in some cases it is still diluted with sugar to become semi-sweet.

But I found a couple of decent copies. Isla Negra turned out to be in Auchan - this is a simple but famous Chilean wine (from the series “you can drink, but it’s boring”), which is sold there for 650 rubles / 3 liters. For comparison: a bottle of 0.75 liters of Isla Negra costs a little more than 250 rubles in Auchan. The savings are almost 350 rubles - a lot! By the way, Isla Negra is also sold in alcohol stores, where it costs 1000-1100 rubles for a 3-liter cardboard bag. An ordinary bottle is 310-320 rubles, that is, the savings are not very significant.

At the Crossroads, they found Cono Sur Tocornal wine for 1000 rubles/3 liters. It also happens in alcohol stores, for example, in Fragrant World. At the price of an ordinary bottle just above 300 rubles, the savings come out at 250-300 rubles. And this wine, like Isla Negra, can be drunk without any fear, it is quite decent, although, again, unpretentious and boring. But not a murmur.

In addition, in tetrapacks, for example, Galitos wine from Portugal, which is quite decent for its price segment, is also sold.

In general, I would not disdain any wine in cardboard boxes. If you need a lot of “economy class” wine, then tetrapacks should be considered as an option: with them you will not only save money, but also benefit in terms of practicality (you won’t break it, and one 3-liter box of wine weighs much less than 4 bottles of 0.75 - not to mention the fact that it is much more compact).

As for the countries, it is best to choose Chile in this case. Russian wines in tetra-packs are often, unfortunately, the same “mumbling”, often semi-sweet, nasty, and in some cases, perhaps dangerous to health, even if consumed in small quantities. Chile is more reliable in terms of quality, although Chilean wines can be disappointing, especially for discerning lovers (see for more details).

In addition, Spanish, Italian, French and some other wines are sold in tetrapacks. As a rule, in our supermarkets, these are low-level and clearly mediocre wines, so you shouldn’t take them (maybe there are exceptions from time to time, but ...). Portuguese wines (Galitos, mentioned above, for example) can have decent value for money, but are very rare in Russian stores.

If you are going to a country house or a picnic, it is difficult and inconvenient to carry bottles with you. Recently, wine in boxes with a capacity of one to five liters is gaining more and more popularity among buyers. What kind of wine is sold in bags and how does it differ from what is in bottles.

Usually fortified and dry table wines are poured into bags. Vintage and collectible wines are not sold that way.

Packaged wine does not differ in quality from the same bottled wine. Usually table wine is bottled in liter bags and in 3- and 5-liter bags with an inner bag. This bag is made of foil and polyethylene - this way the wine is stored longer.

All materials from which the package is made must meet the requirements of the Russian Ministry of Health. Liter bags, as a rule, are produced without an inner bag and are less common than three- and five-liter ones.

There are no statistics on counterfeit packaged wines, but as far as we know, they are not counterfeited as often as bottled ones.

For picnics, barbecues or parties, wine bags are ideal.

Bag in box - a combination of the wisdom of the ancestors and modern technology.

High quality wine is a very gentle drink. It has many enemies (factors) that can worsen and sometimes completely destroy its quality. The wine must not be exposed to microorganisms, sunlight and atmospheric oxygen.

In the fight against microorganisms, winemakers use the sterilization of bottles and corks by chemical or thermal methods. The harmful effects of sunlight can be reduced by using tinted green or brown bottles. However, it is not possible to completely avoid the undesirable effects of oxygen, since in the neck of the bottle, after corking, there is always a small amount of air, the oxygen of which is absorbed by the wine and diverges for its oxidation.

Wine cannot remain for a long time (for a long time already one day) in an uncorked bottle, as it is infected with microorganisms contained in the air, oxidized by air oxygen and loses the aromatic substances that determine its recognition. The indicated problem has one solution - you need to drink the wine.

In 1954, an original method for preserving the quality of wine was proposed and patented. The prototype of the invention was a wineskin, which, according to the Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language S.I. Ozhegov, means: "a bag made of animal skin for storing wine and other liquids." Bag in box is an original packaging with unique consumer properties that allows you to maintain the high quality of wine both during its storage and during its use.

Bag in box has the following advantages:

Good alcohol is a universal gift that can be presented to a man and a woman, a friend and work colleague, a business partner and a doctor. In order to like the gift, it is desirable to know about the taste of the recipient, but the quality wines of famous brands, as a rule, do not raise objections. Wine in a box is an ideal option for decorating such a gift: there is no need to look for a suitable package or special packaging, the manufacturer has taken care of this.

• Wine Askaneli Brothers, Rkatsiteli Qvevri, gift box. Orange dry Kakhetian wine. Askaneli Brothers has been making wine for many decades. Today it is one of the leading Georgian brands, its products are exported to the USA, Russia, France, Canada and other countries of the world, and receive awards at international exhibitions. An amber-colored drink with a bright fruity bouquet, in which notes of quince and baked apples are clearly felt. The taste is velvety, the aftertaste is light and pleasant.
• Wine Navarro Correas, "Coleccion Privada" Malbec, 2018. Dry red wine from Argentina is made according to traditional technology from Malbec grapes. Before bottling, alcohol is aged in oak barrels for six months, thanks to which the ruby ​​wine acquires rounded tannins, aromas of plums and violets, and a light fruity aftertaste.
• Brunel de la Gardine , Cotes du Rhone AOC, 2018. French dry red wine made from grenache, mourvèdre, syrah. Dark pomegranate drink with a bright fruity aroma. Rounded and well balanced taste, spicy aftertaste.
• Gran Cruz Colheita, 2008, wooden box. Aged Portuguese port in a gift wooden box. Amber wine made from Touriga Nacional and Malvasia grapes. The taste is complex and rounded, with notes of nuts and dried fruits, sherry and ripe fruits in the aroma, the aftertaste is long and pleasant.
• Graham "s 40 Year Old Tawny Port, gift tube. Portuguese port wine in a gift tube. A 40-year-old sweet wine will be a valuable gift for true gourmets. The class of the drink is confirmed by amber color and a greenish tint around the edge of the glass. The wine has a fresh and rich aroma, complex taste and rich aromatic bouquet.

From dozens of wine brands presented in WineStyle stores, you can choose products from different price categories. The lower price limit for a bottle of wine in a gift box is from 1107 rubles.

I have seen all sorts of wines in my life, even in tetrapacks, but I saw with a tap for the first time this year. I liked the idea and the taste of wine so much that now I want to try the whole line.

Isabella was the first to taste wine, it was red. I liked that in the morning my head does not hurt, although earlier after drinking one glass any wine in the morning I felt worse than ever.

Isabella ended rather quickly, the parents offered to bring other wines from the same manufacturer. Now I have fallen in love with semi-sweet white table wine Muscat.

Volume big: 3 liters.

Price: 2200 tenge (~440 rubles).

Manufactured by order of Lenta LLC in accordance with GOST 32030-2013.

The peculiarity of the packaging is that a tight plastic bag with a faucet is hidden in the box. Everything is sealed and I have never received a defective package. Wine pours out to the drop only if you pull out the bag.

You need to press the faucet from below with two fingers - the valve opens and the wine is poured into the glass. It is not very convenient that the faucet is too low - you can’t substitute a glass if the box is in the middle of the table, but the box has a handle by which you can lift the wine for bottling. And you can pour wine from the edge of the table, substituting a glass from below.

On the packaging you can find information about the composition with a description of the color and taste of the product. If someone understands all the flavors, then such a description will be understandable. I need to try everything myself to say whether I like it or not. I liked everything, except for the sulfur dioxide in the composition. You don't feel it, but you know about it.

Muscat wine has a beautiful golden color. If you carbonate, it will turn out to taste and color like champagne.

In glasses, this wine looks very similar to apple juice, so take the children away during the feast or warn them not to take anything themselves.

Taste and morning after drinking wine.

The taste is pleasant with sourness and at the same time with a little sweetness. It is easy to drink, soft, not at all disgusting. There is no astringency, because it is a semi-sweet wine. In principle, the word muscat itself speaks for itself better than I am trying to describe here. Anyone who likes such wines should like it.

The aftertaste pleasantly pleased - it is not necessary to drink or seize wine. Almost any appetizer is suitable for this wine.

The aroma is very light, nutmeg, sweet-sour.

How does wine behave in the body?

I won’t talk about the harm of wine, as well as the consequences of its excessive consumption - I won’t dissuade anyone and I won’t even try - everyone has their own head on their shoulders.

I drink wine in moderation only when there is any reason. The manufacturer recommends that an open package be consumed within 10 days, but it takes me months to use it. my husband prefers beer and all the wine goes only to me.

During this time, the wine does not change its properties, color or taste.

After the first sip, the wine hits the head almost immediately, especially if it is drunk on an empty stomach. Intoxication passes rather quickly and without drowsiness.

If you drink a glass, then intoxication lasts almost an hour. Then everything goes back to normal again. Those. crystal clear consciousness, no drowsiness or headache.

For me, this is a bit of a strange state, because. before, after any bottled wine, I passed out immediately after dinner - I yawn all over or lie down to lie down because of a sore head.

But it is the Lenta wine that does not cause such side effects, and in the morning, even after a good evening intoxication, you feel able to work.

If you are wary of such wines, then I can say with confidence that it has been tested on myself, the wine is worthy.

For those who love muscat semi-sweet wines, I definitely recommend it. It is especially convenient to buy in such a package for a large company - cheap, high quality, tasty.

I wish you all a pleasant feast and congratulations on all the upcoming holidays!