Twenty-two judges tasted no less than 180 wines – 91 whites, 41 rose and 48 reds – to decide which will carry the title of Best Bag-In-Box Wine 2023 at the seventh edition of the National Bag-In-Box Wine Competition. The event took place on Thursday, February 16, and was hosted by La Mama Restaurant – National Museum of the Romanian Peasant. The competition is organized by Azoc Star SRL, in partnership with Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box (France) and VITOP (Italy), and is correlated with the Concours International Wine In Box (France).
In a first phase, 60 wines were awarded the title Best Wine Bag-In-Box 2023, of which 30 were white, 14 rose and 16 reds. The jury of the competition, which aims, for the last seven editions, to choose the Best Bag-In-Box Wine , was composed of four commissions, chaired by Catalin Paduraru (Commission 1), Arina Antoce (Commission 2), Marian Timofti (Commission 3) and Sergiu Nedelea (Commission 4).
The top three white, pink and red wines were awarded the title of Best Bag-In-Box Wine and Gold. Here are the nine winning wines (the list contains, in order, the name of the producer, the commercial range, the description of the wine, the year and the volume) in the three categories.
White wines:
Rosé wines:
- AGRO INDUSTRIAL CERES, CRAMA HERMEZIU. BUSUIOACA DE BOHOTIN, SEC, DOC, 2022, 3L;
- AGRO INDUSTRIAL CERES, CRAMA HERMEZIU. BUSUIOACA DE BOHOTIN, DEMIDULCE, DOC, 2022 ,3L;
- VINURI DE COMRAT, VINURI DE COMRAT. ROSE, DEMISEC, 2020, 10L.
Red wines:
Also, the four committee chairmen, together with the president of the competition, Catalin Costiniuc, analysed and decided which are the three wines (one white, one rosé and one red) that will bear the title of President’s Wine 2023.
The jury of 35 members tasted again the 60 wines that won the title of Best Bag-In-Box Wine, which was to decide the Most Popular Bag-In-Box Wine. The jury members were divided into two commissions – coordinated by Daniel Vranescu, from Cotnari, and Corina Loredana Moroianu, from Vinuri de Macin.
Following the judging, three wines (one white, one rosé and one red) were chosen to receive the title of Most Popular Bag-In-Box Wine 2023, the winning wines also being awarded Gold.
The full list of winning wines can be found on the organisers’ page.
Following the evaluations of the National Bag-in-Box Wine Competition, the organisers awarded 66 diplomas, the criterion being the score awarded by the jury. Of these, at least ten wines will be selected and submitted to the Concours International Wine In Box, which will take place in the French city of Toulouse on 28 March 2023.
Also, as a reward for obtaining a high score in the competition, the organiser will enter the wines that have received awards in the VINARIUM International Wine Contest, which will take place from 25 to 28 May 2023.
For Romanian wineries, taking part in international competitions is a way to increase their visibility worldwide. In previous years, the list of winners of the international contest in France included Romanian producers.
Using bag-in-box packaging has seen a continuous increase in the wine industry, as it is the most recyclable (70-85%) and has the smallest carbon footprint.
About Azoc Star
Azoc Star is a member of the Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box division and handles operations in Eastern Europe (Bulgaria, Georgia, Moldova, Romania etc). The Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box division owns nine factories worldwide, is the European leader for bag-in-box solutions, and its Vitop tap is the world’s number one tap for bag-in-box bags.
Bag-in-Box packaging is ideal not just for wine, but for all liquid and semi-liquid products, with capacities ranging from 1.5 litres to 1,000 litres. The bag-in-box system offers food products an increased shelf life of up to several weeks after opening.
