Friday's Unscientific Poll: Wine in a can: Y/N?

[nanila]

Maybe I just don't get out enough (or maybe this is a USian thing), but one of my friends pointed out these single-serving wines to me on our trip to Huntington Gardens when I was in California. I...did not muster up the courage to try either the rose or the sauvignon blanc. Also, it was scorching that day and all anybody wanted was water until it started to cool off around 5 PM, and then we went hunting for beer (see: Brits in hot weather).

Poll #18882 Wine in a can

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 49

View Respondents

So...wine in a can?

View Answers

What fresh hell is this?
32 (65.3%)

Sure, why not.
17 (34.7%)

Comments

[cosmolinguist]

I mean, I'd probably try it to see what it was like. But yeah, I can't think of any problem wine in a can could solve that, say, beer wouldn't solve much better.

[nanila]

Yes, I will definitely try it sometime, probably on a hot summer day when I've already had a gin and tonic or two from a can. :P

[slemslempike]

Hmm, maybe it's just the camera angle, but the single serving cans look significantly larger than the single serving mini bottles, and therefore I would happily go for the wine can.

[nanila]

Aha, the bargain-hunting approach! Alas, I didn't check the volumes on either, but I suspect you might be right about the can containing more.

However, I'd argue that sauv blanc and rose are pretty "neutral" in the sense that if you chill and open and drink them immediately, the container is pretty irrelevant. But I would balk at the idea of drinking the neighbouring pinot noir (in the mini-bottle) from a can!

[cactus_rs]

I'm reminded of my friend Kelly's comments after stopping at the alcohol tent while we were both at a music festival: so much money for such a pitiful serving of mediocre wine. At least with the cans, you're not at the whim of the person manning the tent who's probably been told to be skimpy with the pouring.

[nanila]

This is true! Wine in a can is a great idea for festivals. Especially since the design of those cans pretty much looks like a soft drink, which is a bit naughty of the marketers.

[lorigami]

also, a lot of places don't allow glass bottles. Or, won't recycle the bottles.

[st_aurafina]

I would be so into wine in a can. Probably the rosé more than the sav blanc, though.

[nanila]

Yep, I'd opt for the rosé as well. As long as it is nicely chilled, it's probably fine from a can.

[legionseagle]

The local Tesco do G&T in cans which I approve of for eg picnics or rail journeys. Don't see why wine should suffer for it, if it's an OK wine to begin with.

[nanila]

I think I'd be quite cautious drinking, say, a shiraz or a rich chardonnay from a can. Sauv blanc and rosé are probably fine.

G&T in a can, though: Two enthusiastic thumbs up!

[lilysea]

I don't drink alcohol (zero judgment on people who do, I just have multiple health issues and medications that make it a bad idea for me personally), and if I did drink alcohol I would still stay away from wine because sulphites-commonly-used-as-preservatives-in-wine and red wine are both migraine triggers,

but I am okay with this as long as the metal doesn't adversely affect the taste.

At least the cans are recyclable, won't break like glass (and are thus less of a safety hazard), and aren't contributing to the planet's massive plastic-in-the-ocean problems.

[cmcmck]

I don't drink the stuff so I don't know what I think but I was of the understanding that wine needs to breathe hence the cork in the bottle?

[nanila]

I suspect that this is true for complex and well aged wines, yes. However, I think sauv blanc and rosé are pretty "neutral" in the sense that since you chill and open and drink them immediately, the container is pretty irrelevant. I wouldn't want to drink a nice cabernet from a can, though.

[quoththeravyn]

I have had wine from a box (with a plastic bladder inside). The finest cardbordeaux.

[nanila]

"cardbordeaux": Thank you, that is a fine portmanteau and the first laugh I've had today!

[fred_mouse]

I was poor enough, and ignorant enough, that we served 4L cask wine at my first wedding...

[lorigami]

omg. best. term.

[maellenkleth]

One word: 'Froglet' (at Marks & Sparks)

[nanila]

O.O OH YES! I can't believe I forgot about wine-by-the-plastic-cup. I have actually had one (on a train journey, naturally). It was acceptable as an accompaniment to the fancy salad I treated myself to that evening. :D

[maellenkleth]

The red Froglet is my go-to beverage whenever I am in Neath (where the culinary choices are limited!). Actually not half-bad although a wee bit spendy for my budget.

[mummimamma]

We have a couple of these one-serving wine units here as well and they are perfect for picnics (when you need to pace yourself, and not drink the whole bottle....) or to bring on a hike, to enjoy at the top (I'm Norwegian, there is always a top).
And aluminium and/or paper is lighter than glass (always remember to bring your rubbish back home).. And more alcohol per unit than beer (lighter to carry for 25 kilometres)

[fred_mouse]

My mother used to buy her wine in sachets, which were either 1 glass or 1.5 glasses. She claimed it was because she only used it in cooking, but I have no idea what it was like (I don't actually remember it being used in cooking, but I also don't remember her drinking it).

[forthwritten]

Not something I've seen before but for cheap unaged wine it's a good idea! Much easier to transport than one of those little glass bottles (lighter and unlikely to break), and it looks like a more generous amount too.

[redsixwing]

Nah. (But mostly because I probably wouldn't like the flavors on offer. I'm picky about wine.)

[antisoppist]

My problem with it is more that it looks like it is in a fridge and I don't like cold drinks. Canned G&T is my drink of choice, from a local supermarket, when stuck in a hotel on work-related business, so I am not opposed on principle and I appreciate the one drink sized option.

[ironymaiden]

I have indulged in a can of carbonated wine with an attached straw and it was perfectly okay.

[davidgillon]

I won a can of wine at the quiz we were at last week (they really pushed the boat out for prizes). It was a Hungarian (or Bulgarian?) pinot grigio. The can was Red Bull sized, and the back informed me that it contained sulphites and that it was 'sparkling (via injection of CO2)'.

I'm not saying it was bad, but my reaction to kicking the glass over was "oh, good!"

I've had reasonable cheap red out of a box, and tried a similarly sized pouch of 'Mojito' that while not a patch on a proper Mojito was perfectly drinkable, but that can was just bad.

[cxcvi]

Just because you can...

[shirou]

I'll admit I have a hard time accepting wine from anything other than a bottle. White wine, if refrigerated, is good for a couple days after opening; red wine can be kept even longer. Sparking wine, however, has to be either consumed or tossed. My wife and I sometimes enjoy cocktails that call for sparkling wine, and we can't drink an entire bottle just the two of us, so we end up wasting a lot. Enter the can.

Here's what we buy (absurdly hi-rez image that your browser will hopefully resize):
http://media.wholefoodsmarket.com/public/upload/images/press/Trends/2._CannedWine_-Presto_Can_2.jpg

They try to make it look elegant, but there's no getting around the fact that it's a can.

[ayebydan]

I'd try one. I mean if it is wine I am there but. Californian wine? That is more likely to put me off than the can. Not my jam so much :P

[conuly]

Once a moderately jolly wizard camped by a waterhole under the shade of a tree that he was completely unable to identify. And he swore as he hacked and he hacked at a can of wine "What bloody idiots put wine in tins?"

[fred_mouse]

This had me laughing a lot. Particularly as I tried to work out which of the two traditional tunes for Waltzing Matilda it fits to better (I'm in favour of the Qld version).

[conuly]

It's a Pratchett quote, from The Lost Continent.

[fred_mouse]

Oh! Doh.

[conuly]

(Except in the quote it's beer.)

[fred_mouse]

:}

[highlyeccentric]

No poll option for 'i can't see any logical reason why not but still... nope'.