Starting five years ago, Taco Bell crossed over into boozy beverages, offering liquor-spiked Mountain Dews and punches, margaritas, and even its first branded lager, which seem to make sense with such fare. Now the fast-food chain has an alcohol addition that's slightly more upscale (and "democratizing," per the Takeout): "Jalapeno Noir," a pinot noir made by a Canadian winery to accompany Taco Bell Canada's newest menu item. Described in a release as a "silky limited-edition red wine" with "notes of wild strawberry, cherry, and beetroot," the pinot is made by Ontario's Queenston Mile Vineyard and comes in a not-too-shabby-looking bottle with three different labels.
The bottle will sell for around $20 starting Wednesday, which is the equivalent of what three or four entire Taco Bell meals cost. "Wine and cheese are simply meant to be together, so launching a new wine to go with the craveable, cheddary Toasted Cheesy Chalupa made perfect sense," says Kat Garcia, the Yum Brands chain's director of marketing. As Food and Wine notes, however, you'll have to go north of the (US-Canadian) border to sample this offering, and only in parts of Ontario—either from select restaurants in Hamilton and Toronto or via Taco Bell Canada's website. As for an eventual vino offering in America, the release says only that "the Toasted Cheddar Chalupa will also be available in the US in November," with no mention of the pinot noir. (More Taco Bell stories.)
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