Person dispensing boxed red wine into glass.

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Many would agree that Bordeaux, France is the wine capital of the world, and the U.S. is home to plenty of wineries everyone should visit at least once. But as one of the world's top producers outside of Europe, Australia is no slouch in the wine department. The Land from Down Under even gave the drinking world one of its most enduring innovations: boxed wine.

On April 20, 1964, South Australian winemaker Thomas Angove filed a unique patent for an improved liquid container. Angrove had been seeking a way to not only sell his vineyard's wine in bulk, but to make the wine last longer once it was opened. A standard wine bottle holds 750 milliliters, whereas Angrove's polyethylene bags held 4.4 liters.

The original design required opening the box and snipping off a corner of the bag. Our modern version, with its airless-flow tap that allows the box to remain closed, was invented in the 1960s by Charles Henry Malpas, another Australian businessman.

Boxed wine lasts longer than bottled and is more environmentally friendly

Bags of white wine in cooler.

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While it may get a bad rap for being cheaper and inferior to glass-bottled wine, the truth is that boxed wine has many benefits. Like the traditional wine bladders of old, the liquid-filled bag within the box collapses as it's emptied. A bottle fills that vacated space with air, oxidizing and spoiling the wine within days. Bag-in-box wine may not have as long of a shelf life as glass bottles before it's opened, but it can last up to six weeks afterward.

Glass is a highly recyclable material. However, manufacturing glass requires a lot of energy, and its significant carbon dioxide emissions contribute to climate change. Glass is also heavy and requires more energy to transport. Using lighter packaging alternatives like bag-in-box wine decreases the environmental impact of the wine industry.

Bags also hold more wine than a single bottle, and the rectangular box is more easily stacked and stored than round-edge cylinders. The cardboard box is also recyclable, and according to Reddit, the plastic bag is highly reusable. People report repurposing them into storage for water, alcohol, and even motor oil.