For the third year in a row, alcohol licensee Star Trek Wines returns to the scene with a pair of franchise-inspired special releases — and for 2021, the company is fulfilling a three-year-long journey to replicate one of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s signature alien drinks.
When we talked to the Star Trek Wines team back in 2019, they told us that they’d been researching Cardassian Kanar bottles for months, trying to sort out if and how they could replicate the twisted glass design to bring the reptilian beverage to the masses, and after a long struggle it’s finally reality — Cardassian Kanar is the first of two new 2021 wine releases.
CARDASSIAN KANAR RED WINE BLEND
Utilized in both Star Trek: Deep Space Nine & Star Trek: The Next Generation, the story of Kanar is intimately connected with the rise of the Cardassian Union and the strong bonds which hold the Union together.
In its quest for authenticity, the Star Trek Wines/Wines That Rock team conducted a rigorous multi-year search for an original Cardassian Kanar bottle, a unique ‘serpent-shaped’ vessel, originally utilized in the 1950’s through the 70’s in Europe. With only a handful of the original bottles found, the team at Star Trek Wines/Wines That Rock rendered the few remaining bottles in 3D for accuracy and worked with a specialized facility in Southern Italy to recreate and forge an identical replica, resulting in one of the most fascinating bottles in the Galaxy.
Also replicated in a 3D rendering, this ornamental headpiece will be included with every bottle of Kanar. Rather than a traditional cork, the Kanar bottle also features a unique glass bottle seal complete with a glowing Cardassian logo. For the Kanar, our award-winning winemakers crafted this delicious, premium red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Sirah and Petite Verdot resulting in a dark, rich wine with notes of ripe blackberries and juicy blueberries, velvety tannins, and a long, delightful finish.
Along with the fantastic bottle, the Kanar will be labeled with Cardassian-style graphic labels, and a bottle tag featuring the orange and red glass design from Quark’s Bar — complete with ‘liner notes’ on the in-universe history of Kanar by Star Trek novelist Una McCormack.
It also includes two different stoppers; the bottle will ship with the glass seal in place, but will include a metal stopper as well. We got to check out the bottles at the ongoing 55 Year Mission Convention in Las Vegas:
The second release for 2021 is from the icy moon of Andoria: a blue-hued Andorian Blue Premium Chardonnay which honors the antenna’d aliens, with a lovely bottle adorned with a stamped metal United Federation of Planets seal.
ANDORIAN BLUE PREMIUM CHARDONNAY
Third in a series of United Federation of Planet wines, the 2021 Andorian Blue Chardonnay features one-of-a-kind hand-numbered bottles, elegant silk screen designs and a special United Federation of Planets metal medallion affixed to the front of the bottle. Since the original Star Trek Series, blue spirits have long played a role in the Star Trek universe.
The Andorian Blue Chardonnay, a premium Chardonnay from Santa Lucia Highlands, has a stellar blue color that pays homage to the history of colorful Star Trek spirits. Aged 12 months prior to bottling, the Andorian Blue has delicious notes of citrus, peach, and apricots. Bright, fresh acidity with a lush mouthfeel and long finish.
We also got to examine the new blue Andorian wine at the Las Vegas event, and were quite impressed by the design of the metal UFP seal.
Both new Star Trek Wines releases are available for preorder now at their official website; they expect to ship to buyers this fall. Do note that the company has a two-bottle minimum purchase requirement, though they do over several mix-and-match options from their listings.