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White Wine? Just Can It
We got our hands on five canned white wines to find out if they’re a clever packaging solution or just an excuse to drink more white wine.
By
Jeremy Berger
Whoops, spilled a little. | Henry Phillips
There’s a ceremonial aspect to drinking wine that seems inextricably linked to 750ml glass bottles stopped with cork. Buy a nice bottle, pull the cork, share it among friends until it’s gone. But it wasn’t always this way: the Romans stored wine in ceramic amphorae and the cork has been challenged by screw tops and synthetics. So it was only a matter of time before Generation Y-ers (the very same who enjoy fine dining in the home of strangers) dealt wine traditionalism a death blow by serving it in a can. We got our hands on these five canned white wines to find out if they’re a worthwhile beverage or, like Go-Gurt, a pointless packaging solution that solves a non-existent problem. Our take? We won’t be swapping a wine rack for a 30 rack, but wine in a can is a good option for picnics, train travel and single servings when you’re eating solo.
Neowines Lavaux Blanc
Best European Canned Wine: The only Old World wine of the lot, Neowines Lavaux Blanc is from the Lavaux region of Switzerland, a UNESCO World Heritage Site comprised of terraced vineyards facing Lake Geneva. It’s 100 percent Chasselas grapes, the most common varietal in Switzerland, which makes for a wine that’s floral and citrusy with noticeable minerality — the driest canned wine we tasted.
Consumed While: Watching the season finale of The Bachelorette with girlfriend.
Best Half-Bottle in a Can: We’ve had Union Wine Co.’s Underwood Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir before — in bottles — and they’re both great-value Oregon wines for the price. They’ve been available in 375ml cans since Feast Portland in 2013 (which we attended). The Pinot Gris is made from grapes sourced from a variety of vineyards (Union Wine Co. is not a vineyard itself), and it shares the characteristics of other Oregon Pinot gris wines: it’s full-bodied and refreshing, with notes of apple and pair.
Best Urban Winery Canned Wine: While most wineries are keen to talk about their beautiful vineyards and extol the virtues of their unique terroir, The Infinite Monkey Theorem rails against it. The Denver-based winery, located in the RiNo Art District, uses Colorado grapes — the state has two major growing regions, The Grand Valley and The West Elks — to make a variety of wines, from Riesling to Orange Muscat to this white wine in a can. It’s a mixture of Viognier and Roussanne grapes (not strictly fro CO) that’s lightly carbonated and refreshing, with a citrus kick.
Best Canned Wine Packaging: Flasq wines comes from the owners of The Ranch Winery in Napa Valley, a “custom crush” facility that provides all the means of production for would-be vintners. The 2012 Chardonnay is a pretty straightforward wine made from Central Valley fruit: it’s big and juicy with notes of tropical fruits and pears, and plenty of acidity. Like the Flasq Merlot, it comes in a tall aluminum screw-top half bottle (two glasses worth), ideal for a picnic or an Amtrak ride.
Best Canned Sparkling Wine: Also the Editor’s Pick, despite the accompanying straw, this canned sparkling wine from Francis Ford Coppala Winery comes in a four-pack of extremely feminine 187ml cans. It’s a blend of Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscat, which yields a bright sparkling wine with plenty of tropical fruit and citrus. It’s not Donkey and Goat Lily’s Cuvee, but in a celebratory pinch, we like it.
Consumed While: Watching the season finale of The Bachelorette with girlfriend.
