Behind the Cork™ -- Sandy Giovese Vino Rosso

Sandy Giovese Vino Rosso ($32)

Amy Ezrin, the founder of Sandy Giovese wines, was training to be an opera singer and lived in Italy for eight years. During this time, she found that she was an OK singer but was really good at speaking Italian and tasting wine. So, she got into the wine business.

She jokes that her alter ego was Sandy Giovese, which is a play on the name of one of Italy’s greatest red grapes, Sangiovese.

This Sandy Giovese Vino Rosso might seem to just be a fun and whimsical box of wine. But, it’s actually a seriously good wine that also happens to be a tremendous value.

Sandy Giovese Vino Rosso is organically farmed and produced from 85% Sangiovese (the grape that is famous for Chianti wine) and 15% Trebbiano.

Vino Rosso is medium ruby in color with jammy aromas of red fruit and herbal notes. On the palate it has the classic Sangiovese flavor of red cherries. It’s medium bodied with medium acidity and finishes light and refreshing.

If you are still on the fence with respect to box wine, here’s your reason to hop off and pick one up! This one is 3 liters of really nice wine for the price of a couple of bottles. And, it’ll last for weeks (if you have enough restraint!). All this make the Sandy Giovese Vino Rosso a great fit as the Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week.

And, look for Rosie Giovese Vino Rosato (Rosé) also in the 3 liter box! Cheers!

Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Sample Provided by Sandy Giovese Wines (via Savona Communications)

Ever Wonder? Is Box Wine Any Good?

In recent years, box wine has become quite popular. But, a lot of wine drinkers are still on the sidelines wondering if box wine is any good. So, let’s take a look.

It turns out that that box wine was actually developed and patented in the 1960s. Box wine in the 70s, 80s and 90s tended to be inexpensive (‘cheap’) wine. Then, in the early 2000s ‘premium wines’ in a box began appearing that were very well received and really started knocking down the stigma of boxed wine.

Today there a lot of really good wines available in boxes. And, they’re great values.

Sure, you can’t ‘lay down’ a box wine in the cellar and expect it to age like a bottle of wine, but there are several advantages to boxed wine over bottled wine. An open box of wine will last up to six weeks compared to three to four days for an open bottle of wine. It’s also easy to store, keep in the refrigerator or take it to an outdoor outing. And, it can be a great value. A typical box of wine is three liters (3000 ml) which is the same as four 750 ml bottles of wine. You’ll pay a lot less for most box wines than for four bottles.

So, everyone’s taste in wine is different, and I’m certainly not going to tell you that all box wine is going to please your palate. But, the quality of box wine has definitely improved to the point where you should give it a try. It just might become one of your ‘regular’ wines that you keep around for everyday enjoyment. Cheers!