I don’t speak French, but I have learned to translate one very important sentence: “I would like a glass of your house red wine, please!”
As you likely know, the house wine is almost never disappointing in Europe. When I saw this can of House Wine sitting on the shelf at Total Wine a few weeks back, I chuckled at the witty name and knew I had to give it a try.
I’ve had my eye on the canned wine business for a while now, and I’ve tried a few brands of wine in a can. Some were surprisingly good, others were a total disappointment. (Click here and here to read my posts about those experiments!) In both cases I was left hoping that one day there would be a canned red wine that stood up to the quality of some canned whites and rosés (I’ve always found those to be the more enjoyable canned wines). The canned reds I’ve tried until now were mostly Red Blends and all featured overly-fruity and jammy flavors without much nuance. They were too sweet, and couldn’t compare to some bottles I could buy for the same price (or less!).
Needless to say, when I picked up this can of House Wine, I was not only struck by the name but also by the fact that it was a single varietal, Pinot Noir, in a can. Pinot Noir of all varietals! Those who have already geeked out watching Somm 3 (which I highly recommend) will understand when I say that Pinot Noir is widely regarded as one of the most finicky grapes out there.
This particular Pinot Noir reigns from Valle Central, Chile, and is distributed by Original House Wine in Walla Walla, Washington. I flipped open my Wine Folly book to learn more about Pinot Noir production in Chile and learned that it is far from the most common varietal associated with Chilean wine production. Original House Wine winemaker Hal Landvoigt prides himself on creating unpretentious wines for the American market through his experience sourcing grapes from around the world. It seems like this can of House Wine Pinot Noir is meant to do just that.
In my mind, this canned wine experiment was either going to re-write the script for canned reds, or be an utter disaster.
Here it goes!
I crack open the can. Somehow, I’m still surprised when there’s no carbonation behind that aluminum lid. I naturally expect a cold, crisp beer, not a dark, red wine!
I pour a splash into my glass. Upon first smell, there’s nothing special about it. I swirl, smell again, and take a sip. I’m pleased to find it is more flavorful than I expected, so I pour a full glass and proceed to conduct my photo shoot. This gives the wine about 20-minutes to open up.
As I sipped on the House Wine Pinot Noir while cooking dinner, I was pleasantly surprised by the flavors that emerged. There was definitely a hint of spice to it, and was fairly rich for a Pinot Noir. It didn’t have jammy or ripe-fruit flavors at all (that’s an automatic win in the canned wine world for me!). The aroma improved over time, too, and developed scents of herbs and spices as it opened up.
If someone poured me a glass of the House Wine Pinot Noir and told me it came from a bottle, I never would have second-guessed them. While this may not be your special occasion wine (and, to be fair, I don’t think it is intended to be that), this will easily make any wine lover happy as a casual weeknight sip.
The benefits of canned wine are many, such as portability, portion control, and not having to worry about finishing an entire bottle in a limited amount of time. To find a canned wine worthy of taking on outdoor adventures or sipping mid-week makes the idea of wine in a can even more appealing!
The Details:
ABV: 12.5%
100% Pinot Noir
$4.99/can at Total Wine
