WBW #31: Trove 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon (California)
Wine Blogging Wednesday is upon us again people and this time around, that means wines in non-traditional packaging.
I’ll admit is-as open as I was to the theme, I had my reservations. First of all, I’ve never had a bag-in-box wine that I’ve found even gulpable. Second, I was worried that we’d lose a lot of our wine geek participants.
I guess we’ll find out in the next day or two if some of our more "high class" WBWers stuck with us and expanded their horizons a little bit. I hope they do and I hope they found some interesting wines, even if they are more interesting as curiosities than they are as something worth drinking.
I actually had a much harder time finding a boxed wine than I expected. I didn’t want to choose Franzia or Almaden for WBW. I knew I wouldn’t like those. And a local wine shop that used to have single serving boxes of Bandit Trebbiano didn’t have them anymore when I went there.
So, after stopping at three shops, I came upon this three-liter box of 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon from Trove. It cost me $22, which when you consider that it holds the equivalent of four regular bottles, is a pretty good deal.
IF the wine is good.
And you know what…I wouldn’t call it "good" or something I’d normally rave about, but it was much better than I expected.
Is it simple? Yup. But you know what? It’s not offensive in the least and you can even taste just a little bit of varietal character. Lots of red berries, especially cherries, throughout, fruity but not Australian or overdone. Very little oak and rather juicy, medium body.
I’d serve this at a big bash attended by people who enjoy wine but aren’t geeks. It seems like a perfectly fine wine to serve at a big BBQ in the summer where burgers and grilled chicken are the primary fare.
I’ll have to try this one. This is not the first positive review I’ve seen. I must admit, I’ve been reluctant to buy any Trove wines since the first one I tried. It was the Merlot, and it was absolutely vile. Only suitable for marinading steak and maybe, just maybe, spritzers. (I’ve yet to find anything I would pour down the drain). Surprisingly, 3 weeks after opening, it had mellowed to just drinkable.
Fly by Night Sailor, The Boxed Wine Spot blog
Glad to see a drinkable wine; mine too. Hope others join us in this quest
I’m very disappointed. Why is this being reviewed here? Four words - additives, preservatives and ying-yang - you make the sentence…
You know, I tried a couple of different types of wines for this WBW. After a lot of searching, I hit an eclectic selection at one store and I couldn’t decide (so I bought 4)! Our favorite was a bag-in-box called Rain Dance from South Africa. I’d describe it just as you described the Trove. It’s not complex, but neither is it aspiring to be. And maybe that’s where boxed wines have their niche. Rain Dance is a wine I’d recommend to my have-a-glass-every-now-and-then mom, who couldn’t tell a difference between a pinot noir and a pinot gris. But she’d appreciate the simplicity of the box.
Aw come on Rich…it’s for WBW…all in good fun!
Maybe if someone on the Island were doing ANY sort of innovative packaging I could have stayed local!
Kudos to you! I was kind of nervous about trying the Trove.. something about the box gave me pause, so I steered away. Glad to know it falls into the “easy party wine” category and not the “gawdawful” category. :}
Don’t think I can be classed as one of the ‘high class’ regulars but I found this WBW very interesting and challenging (in so far as trying to find something drinkable/interesting) but this theme certainly made me think ‘out of the box’.
Isn’t ying-yang one word?
I just popped the spigot on a Trove Merlot, and it seems quite drinkable. I think these wines are all about expectations - if you want an inexpensive, everyday wine or something broadly accessible to serve at a party, you shouldn’t be disappointed. Thanks for your help with WBW #31 - it has been a blast!
-Roger