In my never-ending quest to keep an open mind about wine and spirits, and never be a snob, I recently accepted samples of canned wine to review. Yes, you read that right, Eve has reviewed canned wine, just for you. And lest you think that I judged said wine based on the vessel alone, keep reading, I almost did!

Bubbly Rose

On the can, a pretty pink, read that the wine by Le Petit Verre was made with organic grapes from Mendoza, Argentina. Fit in my hand just right, though I set it down so as not to warm it up too much. I drank from the can, so didn’t evaluate the color of the wine. The small bubbles added a slight effervescence, while the nose, again from the can, was bruised peach and wet stones. The flavor reminded me of Jolly Rancher hard candy, the strawberry and watermelon, though the wine was not sweet. There was a nice finish, due to the bubbles, with both the fruit and minerality weighing in. This is what people call a great “picnic” wine as it would pack well, I enjoyed it by my pool, sans ice. (After I had my sample I poured the remainder in a wine glass for my husband to enjoy indoors. The color was a pretty peach, almost a salmon, and the nose remained the same with the addition of a pretty talcum powder aroma.)

Malbec

I chilled this wine slightly as it was a hot day. I tried to sample it from the can and didn’t care for it – the aroma or flavor. I quickly poured it into a wine glass, and waited a few minutes for the wine to open up. It’s a great deep purple color, and very opaque. Aromas included plums, black cherry, dark chocolate, tree bark and a rich earthiness. Having a second taste – it was a completely different experience than from the can and I’m not positive that the idea of a red in a can itself turned me off – it was dark, plums and prunes, smoke, char, pipe tobacco, and a long dry finish. This wine, unlike its bubbly pink predecessor, was more serious. This wine isn’t for a picnic, but instead for a nice mix of BBQ beef or pork.

Le Petit Verre News Release

Le Petit Verre (French for “The Small Glass” and a playful nod to the French origin of the Bousquet family) debuts with two options: a Malbec, of course, and a Bubbly Rosé, each presented in 250-ml cans (SRP $13 per four-pack / $3.50 per individual can), available in major markets nationwide. Both types are dry and check in at 12.5% alcohol. Though a vintage is not stated on the cans, fruit is from the 2021 harvest.

The 100% certified organic fruit for the Le Petit Verre duo comes from the Tupungato Valley, a high-altitude sub-zone of Mendoza’s Uco Valley, known for producing fruit with an abundance of aroma, flavor and freshness thanks to significant day-night temperature fluctuations and the intense Andean sunlight.

The canned wine category is booming. Sales are driven not just by millennials; consumers of all ages are gravitating toward the convenience, portability and portion control offered by the new-format packaging. The smaller 250-ml size also provides faster cooling — always a plus.

“Wine-in-a-can fits neatly into today’s active lifestyle, with consumers opting for wines that are ‘easy,’ both in terms of packaging and content. They are also interested in products that are healthier and more transparent, and the organics category offers that.” — Labid al Ameri, president, Origins Organic Imports

The medium-bodied, mono-varietal Le Petit Malbec reflects its upper-Uco Valley origins. This quality Malbec offers fig and berry aromas, mushroom notes, and well-rounded tannins.

Le Petit Bubbly Rosé, a lively blend of 50% Pinot Noir, 30% Syrah, 10% Pinot Gris and 10% Viognier, features strawberry and red berry aromas with orange zest notes.

Le Petit Verre Malbec and Bubbly Rosé: SRP $13 per 4-pack / $3.50 per can
Available in major markets nationwide from Origins Organic Imports

About Origins Organic Imports: Miami-based Origins Organic Imports is owned and run by husband-and-wife team Labid Ameri and Anne Bousquet, also the owners of Argentina’s leading producer and exporter of certified-organic wines. With Origins Organic, Ameri and Bousquet are dedicated to introducing U.S. consumers to a growing roster of well-priced, high-quality certified- organic offerings from around the world, in addition to those from their own estate.Eve Bushman has a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET), a “certification in the first globally-recognized course” as an American Wine Specialist ® from the North American Sommelier Association (NASA), Level 1 Sake Award from WSET, was the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video (over 16k views), authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and has served as a judge for the Long Beach Grand Cru and the Global Wine Awards. You can email [email protected] to ask a question about wine or spirits.

Source: http://evewine101.com/2022/08/05/le-petit-verre-canned-wines-from-argentina%ef%bf%bc/