Sounds like you have more choices than I do, not surprisingly since you
live nearer to wine country.

I like the Franzia Merlot for 19.00/box better than anything else I can
find in bulk, which comes out to $4 a litre but it's good. Not so much
their or any other cab, which are shuffled off the shelves far younger than
a cab should be drunk/drinken/drank/consumed.

Agreed that the "Black Box" and similar 3 litre are not worth the money. I
can say that so far I don't care for anything I've found in the smaller
boxex. As far as South America, that would be the ultimate--a big square
box of Malbec, which seems to go as well with tasks like engine assembly
and Westy kitchen removal and reinstall as a Pinot Noir does with an oil
change. THAT in my opinion would be a more useful product than Palcohol.

Anyhow, as far as the bottles go, I don't like to carry glass when I camp.
That, and the fact that the REAL wine drinkers, the French, take their
collapsible jugs to the hypermarche for plain old drinkin' stuff. They get
it several gallons at a time for home consumptions. Bottles there are for
guests and special occasions, and, of course, a diesel injection pump
rebuild. Americans think that if it's good, it has to be in a bottle. Not
so!

Best,

Jim

On Fri, Apr 25, 2014 at 11:43 AM, Stuart MacMillan <stuartmacm@gmail.com>wrote:

> Good idea.  I've settled on the cheapest I can find, the Peter Vella line.
> $13.99/five liters (6 1/2 750ml bottles) around here, equivalent to
> $2.15/bottle.  They are running a rebate now of $4 a box up to four boxes,
> or $1.50/bottle .  Can't beat that.
>
> The reds (Burgundy & Merlot) are, as they say, "quaffable," which means
> they
> are light and uncomplicated.  Their Chardonnay is also decent, but I prefer
> their reds.
>
> Next up is Trader Joe's "two buck Chuck," (Charles Shaw brand) which is
> actually $2.50/bottle here in Washington.  I wish Joe would put it in a 5
> liter box and sell it for $12, but part of their thing is to offer products
> with an "affordable cachet," and the bottle is part of that.  But, they got
> their start in California offering a gallon jug of Chardonnay at an
> affordable price back in the late '60s.
>
> Their Shiraz is a nice wine, definitely a cut above Vella's reds. But with
> Chuck I prefer their Pinot Grigio, which is a very nice summer wine.  The
> wine is made by Bronco Wines in California, which is run by Fred Franzia of
> the Franzia wine family.
>
> Joe is now offering some box wines from South America at the same price
> point as the Vella line. I am working my way through them.
>
> There are several brands of boxed 1.5 and 3 liter local varietals available
> here, but they tend to work out to $7 to $10 a bottle.  Often I've found
> better under $10 bottled wines then those.
>
> Stuart
> Wine guzzler
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jim Felder [mailto:jim.felder@gmail.com]
>
> You sound like me. Anyone up for a discussion on the best boxes wine? There
> certainly is bad and good out there.
>
> Jim
> >
> > I'll stick to my 5 liter boxes of wine.  Quantity, not quality on my
> budget.
> >
> > Stuart
> >
> >
>
>