Box Wine FAQ
Why is reducing wine packaging waste and emissions important?
Like you, we care a lot about what we drink and its impact on the world. We spend a lot of time thinking about organic farming, waste reduction, and other ways to care for the planet as we make and drink wine. And the final step, the packaging, actually has the greatest impact on the environment and needs to be part of the conversation. As with any packaging waste, best practices are always, in order of importance: (1) Reduce, first (2) Reuse that which can’t be reduced (3) Recycle as a last resort.
Isn’t a glass wine bottle recyclable?
Unfortunately, even if you put the glass bottle in the recycling bin, that glass is probably not even being recycled. Only 27% of glass is recycled in the US. Recycling is expensive and resource intensive. Materials often have to be shipped overseas to be recycled. Even a bottle that is recycled is only usually up to 70% cullet or recycled glass. The rest is virgin material. Not to mention the fact that glass recycling is a highly energy intensive process.
What’s the advantage of boxed wine?
Where do we start? A box of wine holds 4 bottles of wine, is very lightweight (easier to carry home from the store), and is a much better value for you, the drinker. It lasts longer once open so you have more time to enjoy it. It’s also way better for the planet. One 3L bag-in-box has 1/10th the carbon footprint of a 750mL glass bottle. The box is 75% recycled cardboard, breaks down neatly, and amounts to less waste than a newspaper.
The last time I had boxed wine, it was gross. Are there any options that taste good?
Absolutely, boxed wines have come a long way. There are boxed options for every palate.. We’ve made some delicious boxed wines that have been praised by the New York Times, Bon Appetit, Wirecutter, and more. Give one a try and you’ll be pleasantly surprised! We work exclusively with esteemed growers in wine regions with pedigree. All are small and maintain a human scale. These growers farm, make wine and run their businesses with sustainability top of mind. These growers intentionally work with us because of our commitment to environmental responsibility from vine to packaging.
My customers are reluctant to give boxed wine a try. How can I convince them?
It’s all about education! Let them try some boxed options and start a dialogue about the eco (and cost) benefits of the wines. Habits and systems take time to change, don’t give up! And if you need some delicious boxed options, we’ve got you covered.
Does boxed wine still include plastic?
Yes, every box of wine includes a plastic liner. The plastic is BPA free and food grade safe. Please note that not all plastics are created equal. The term plastic refers to a synthetic material that is moldable and is made from a wide range of organic polymers. There is no doubt that the plastic topic is controversial. Plastic’s pervasiveness stems from its convenience and we do live in a society where convenience rules. Would a plastic free world be a better world? Sure! Is this realistic in modern day? No. The key is to rethink how we deploy packaging materials in general, reusing as much as possible and managing waste responsibly; and isn’t responsible waste management and convenience an oxymoron? Plastic winding up in oceans and destroying habitats is not actually a plastics problem, it’s a waste management problem. Side note: We would upcycle the plastic liners if we could get them returned to us, but there seems to be limited interest in returning something versus throwing it in the trash. Once again, convenience is running the show. Moving from a linear to a circular economy is the real issue more than the plastic itself.
Shelf Life
With rare exceptions, like honey, strangely, most consumables have a shelf life. I personally prefer to consume things that do not necessarily have an extended shelf-life. What did they put in it to make it last so long? Does bottled wine have a longer shelf life than box wine? Maybe. What’s going to curtail wine’s shelf life is exposure to oxygen, leading to both oxidation (on a spectrum, think flat and un-fresh fruit aromas like bruised apple to the smell of sherry or vinegar) and other off aromas depending on how much bacteria is present in the wine. Wine in a bag experiences a higher oxygen transfer rate than a bottle, which limits its shelf life. Natural wine in bottle, with little to no SO2 has a similar shelf life to box wine. Under the right conditions, technically correct filling equipment and cool temperatures for transportation and storage, box wine has a shelf life of approximately 12 months from its fill date. Care should be taken at retail and restaurant to note the fill date on its stock as a quality control measure to ensure freshness, As an analogy, box wine should be treated similar to craft beer.
Sulfites
Sulfites are naturally occurring sulfur based compounds. Sulfites are naturally produced in the fermentation process and are also added as a hygiene step in winemaking to reduce the risk of microbial contamination and oxidation. We love balancing minimal intervention and best practices for hygiene because this makes sense to us. Our box wines do have sulfites. The level starts at roughly 30 parts per million free SO2 at filling and by the time it gets to the shelves it is likely closer to 20-25, with continual reduction over time as it binds with the oxygen present. I would never consider myself a sulfite advocate but sulfur is present in all living things, including our bodies. I am not sure when no/low sulfur became an objective quality attribute in wine?
Sugar
Sugar free has become a sell point for wine these days.
Growing up in the 80s this makes me think of the nutrasweet, Diet Coke era (gag).
I now tease that it is diet poison, because it kind of is, but I digress. . .
Calling wine sugar free feels ridiculous so let’s shine a light on this an explain, with facts and clarity. It feels like those promoting sugar free are touting their wines like they are some guilt free, feel good choice, similar to the term ‘natural’ wine. It’s as if all the other wines are loaded with sugar or are ‘unnatural’. None of this is true or scientifically correct as wine is not like a manufactured soft drink and I am not sure what is really ‘natural’ about alcohol when it really comes down to it, but again I digress. . .
Fine wine is produced from fermented grape juice. Fermentation naturally occurs in the presence of yeast and sugar (from the grapes), and with alcohol as a bi-product. If a quality wine does contain residual sugar, it’s because the fermentation has been arrested before all the sugar ferments and converts to alcohol. A wine with residual sugar will naturally have lower alcohol than if the sugar fermented to dry. Make sense? Our box wines are always bone dry and therefore sugar free. Why??? This is a quality control measure to reduce the risk of the wine refermenting in the bag.
SIDE NOTE ON REUSE & VINTAGE GLASS
Talk about other waste & emission reducing options: reusable bottles and kegs?
Think Milkman. Back in the day, milk was delivered in glass bottles to homes and empties were collected to be sanitized and reused. Zero waste! This is brilliant and embodies the potential of a circular, rather than a one way or disposable economy. This beautiful, zero waste potential exists for wine bottles. Why not!!?? Developing and implementing the infrastructure required to reuse wine bottles is part of the master plan. The circular economy will come to fruition in a phased approach. We’re all about baby steps to big change. Reusable kegs are another fabulous (and very fun) zero waste option. And no, we would not ship our empty bottles back to the country of origin to be refilled. We would transport the wine to us. This is the environmentally responsible future for our inherently global industry.
Vintage Glass
This is our latest initiative to help reduce the environmental impact of wine packaging.
Working hard to develop a circular economy for wine bottle glass for years now, we know the challenges first hand. Our efforts have been big and our impact relatively small.
Since not all wines are suitable for the bag-in-box format (sparkling wine, wine with residual sugar, like the finest Mosel Riesling, and wine intended for long term aging) we have been actively seeking environmentally responsible alternatives to single use glass. Eco-in-Pack is the solution!
Eco-in-Pack is a French company based in Cognac that collects and washes wine and spirits bottles for reuse. Filling our wine in ‘vintage’ glass reduces the environmental impact as follows:
Energy reduced by 76%
Carbon emissions reduced by 79%
Water usage reduced by 33%
2024 La Teuf White
Cui Cui- Cremant To be released