A can for every occasion

By: Ben MacPhee-Sigurdson  Posted: Last Modified:

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Whether you’re headed to the cottage, a campground or are looking forward to spending some time on the beach, lugging glass bottles around can be a hassle (or, depending on where you’re heading, just plain not allowed). But with so much wine, sangria, pre-made cocktails and more available in cans and other alternative packaging, I figured I’d put a few to the taste test to see what was worth a try.

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Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/07/2017 (3278 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Whether you’re headed to the cottage, a campground or are looking forward to spending some time on the beach, lugging glass bottles around can be a hassle (or, depending on where you’re heading, just plain not allowed). But with so much wine, sangria, pre-made cocktails and more available in cans and other alternative packaging, I figured I’d put a few to the taste test to see what was worth a try.

While not tasted this week, the best canned-wine option in our market remains Oregon’s Underwood winery; their Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir are in our market at private wine stores, and retail for around $11-$12 per 375ml can.

 

Boozy pre-packed, pop-themed drinks are all the rage right now, with hard root beers, cream sodas, lime rickeys and the like taking over more shelf space all the time. The Crazy Uncle Hard Cream Soda (Toronto — $3.45/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) features “all natural flavour” that includes “real vanilla bean” and “lightly caramelized cane sugar.” It’s reddish-gold in colour, and aromatically it’s certainly got that vanilla-driven cream soda aroma. It’s quite sweet on the palate, and while the flavours are tried-and-true cream soda a couple of ice cubes tames the sweetness to acceptable levels for grownups. Decent stuff. ★★½
Boozy pre-packed, pop-themed drinks are all the rage right now, with hard root beers, cream sodas, lime rickeys and the like taking over more shelf space all the time. The Crazy Uncle Hard Cream Soda (Toronto — $3.45/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) features “all natural flavour” that includes “real vanilla bean” and “lightly caramelized cane sugar.” It’s reddish-gold in colour, and aromatically it’s certainly got that vanilla-driven cream soda aroma. It’s quite sweet on the palate, and while the flavours are tried-and-true cream soda a couple of ice cubes tames the sweetness to acceptable levels for grownups. Decent stuff. ★★½

uncorked@mts.net

Twitter: @bensigurdson

Sticking with the ginger theme, the Bacardi Oakheart and Ginger (Brampton, Ont. — $2.85/473-ml can, Liquor Marts) features, according to the can, “1 year aged rum, spice flavours and ginger ale;” an examination of the ingredients reveals that there is, in fact, both cinnamon and nutmeg in here. It’s pale gold in colour, and those spice notes take a back seat to a pronounced vanilla note aromatically. That vanilla note is front and centre on the medium-sweet palate as well, dominating most of the ginger ale and spice flavours. ★★
Sticking with the ginger theme, the Bacardi Oakheart and Ginger (Brampton, Ont. — $2.85/473-ml can, Liquor Marts) features, according to the can, “1 year aged rum, spice flavours and ginger ale;” an examination of the ingredients reveals that there is, in fact, both cinnamon and nutmeg in here. It’s pale gold in colour, and those spice notes take a back seat to a pronounced vanilla note aromatically. That vanilla note is front and centre on the medium-sweet palate as well, dominating most of the ginger ale and spice flavours. ★★
The Black Box 2015 Pinot Grigio (California — $8.99/500-ml TetraPak package, Liquor Marts and beyond), meanwhile, brings bruised-apple, melon, floral and dish-soap notes on the nose. On the light-bodied palate the flavours are pretty simple and slightly muted, with apple and melon flavours seeming a bit tired. ★★
The Black Box 2015 Pinot Grigio (California — $8.99/500-ml TetraPak package, Liquor Marts and beyond), meanwhile, brings bruised-apple, melon, floral and dish-soap notes on the nose. On the light-bodied palate the flavours are pretty simple and slightly muted, with apple and melon flavours seeming a bit tired. ★★
A far better option is the Dom Simon Sangria (Spain — around $15/1.5-L bottle, private wine stores). The first ingredient is red wine and it’s Spanish — both good signs — and aromatically it brings basic spice and citrus-rind notes typically found in sangria. It’s medium-sweet and not carbonated, and the sweetened red wine and modest spice notes are pleasant. With some fresh fruit and a splash of club soda this sangria, which comes in an orange juice-sized plastic bottle, would be loads of fun; it’s not bad as is. ★★★
A far better option is the Dom Simon Sangria (Spain — around $15/1.5-L bottle, private wine stores). The first ingredient is red wine and it’s Spanish — both good signs — and aromatically it brings basic spice and citrus-rind notes typically found in sangria. It’s medium-sweet and not carbonated, and the sweetened red wine and modest spice notes are pleasant. With some fresh fruit and a splash of club soda this sangria, which comes in an orange juice-sized plastic bottle, would be loads of fun; it’s not bad as is. ★★★
Iced tea is a summer stand-by; the Snapple Spiked Peach Tea ($3.25/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) is a vodka-based drink “made from tea leaves” (says the can). There’s a peach candy note that dominates on the nose here; that tea note comes through more on the fairly sweet palate, but those peach candy flavours are still front and centre. This is another one where the addition of a couple ice cubes brought the sweetness under control. ★★½
Iced tea is a summer stand-by; the Snapple Spiked Peach Tea ($3.25/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) is a vodka-based drink “made from tea leaves” (says the can). There’s a peach candy note that dominates on the nose here; that tea note comes through more on the fairly sweet palate, but those peach candy flavours are still front and centre. This is another one where the addition of a couple ice cubes brought the sweetness under control. ★★½
Sangria’s always nice in the summertime, but making a batch of the stuff to take to the beach or campground isn’t always practical. The Smirnoff Red Sangria ($2.99/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) is a “premium vodka beverage” that lists no ingredients you’d find in sangria (“natural flavours” is as close as it comes). It’s looks somewhat sangria-ish (perhaps thanks to the ingredient “colour”), but smells a bit like a grape slush. It’s slightly carbonated, sweet grape-y, boozy pop; no amount of chopped up fruit would result in this tasting anything like sangria. ★
Sangria’s always nice in the summertime, but making a batch of the stuff to take to the beach or campground isn’t always practical. The Smirnoff Red Sangria ($2.99/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) is a “premium vodka beverage” that lists no ingredients you’d find in sangria (“natural flavours” is as close as it comes). It’s looks somewhat sangria-ish (perhaps thanks to the ingredient “colour”), but smells a bit like a grape slush. It’s slightly carbonated, sweet grape-y, boozy pop; no amount of chopped up fruit would result in this tasting anything like sangria. ★
While there are plenty of three- and four-litre boxes of wine available, there are a few smaller-format options that also exist in our market. The Big House NV “Birdman” Pinot Grigio (California — $4.29/250-ml can, Liquor Marts and beyond) is very pale straw in colour. It’s a fairly simple white, with decent red apple, pear and floral notes on the mainly dry, light-bodied palate. ★★½
While there are plenty of three- and four-litre boxes of wine available, there are a few smaller-format options that also exist in our market. The Big House NV “Birdman” Pinot Grigio (California — $4.29/250-ml can, Liquor Marts and beyond) is very pale straw in colour. It’s a fairly simple white, with decent red apple, pear and floral notes on the mainly dry, light-bodied palate. ★★½
There are all sorts of cocktails and pre-mixed drinks in a can these days, and the Cabana Coast Moscow Mule(Toronto — $3.70/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) is one of the tastier options. Typically a Moscow mule is a blend of vodka, ginger beer and lime juice; here we’ve got carbonated spring water listed as the first ingredient, with vodka, “natural ginger flavour” and “natural lime flavour” in the mix. It’s pale straw in colour, and the ginger certainly shows up aromatically. On the medium-sweet palate there’s more of a candied ginger component going on that’s not quite as Moscow mule-ish, but it’s still tasty with a couple ice cubes. ★★★
There are all sorts of cocktails and pre-mixed drinks in a can these days, and the Cabana Coast Moscow Mule(Toronto — $3.70/473-ml can, Liquor Marts and beer vendors) is one of the tastier options. Typically a Moscow mule is a blend of vodka, ginger beer and lime juice; here we’ve got carbonated spring water listed as the first ingredient, with vodka, “natural ginger flavour” and “natural lime flavour” in the mix. It’s pale straw in colour, and the ginger certainly shows up aromatically. On the medium-sweet palate there’s more of a candied ginger component going on that’s not quite as Moscow mule-ish, but it’s still tasty with a couple ice cubes. ★★★

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