Wine Juice Boxes?

Yes, wine juice boxes. How fun does that sound? Today, a friend and I decided to spice up our picnic lunch in the park with a much needed Sunday blues killer—a refreshing glass of wine sipped straight from a cute, single serving juice box (okay, there are three servings but who's counting). I know these aren't new, but they're new to me—a girl who has always turned her nose up at boxed wine.

I was a little skeptical at first, but my little box of $3.50 Vendange Pinot Grigio seemed glorious when paired with the enjoyment of the moment—drinking a juice box in the park while engulfed in the bliss of the warm first-day-of-spring air. I can't say it's the best wine I've ever had, or that I'd serve it at a gourmet dinner party, but in a certain context I'd recommend it wholeheartedly—tailgating before a game, lounging at the pool in summer, and of course, while enjoying an impromptu picnic in the park. Besides Pinot Grigio, Vendange juice boxes come in Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Shiraz, and White Zinfandel varietals, and I'm on the hunt to try a couple of other brands: Three Thieves "Bandit" and Tandem Bordeaux. If you have a favorite kind, let me know—I can always go for a juice box treat, sipped through a straw like old times.