The Cork Conundrum

 

As I stared at all of the beautiful wines in my chiller that would go perfectly with my dinner, I grumpily snagged the one sporting a bottle stopper and sighed. Thanks to the winery’s need to encapsulate their wines with a synthetic cork, my Coravin system would not work on it. This meant I was resigned to this one particular quaff for the next four days, whether it was a perfect pairing or not. In this case, not. Sipping and scowling, my thoughts drifted to the notion of how a wine bottle is sealed, and all of the various options that go with it.

              I know I have mentioned my Coravin system before, and will do so again, simply because I love it. Created to allow consumers the opportunity to savor and enjoy wine on their own terms, wine is pulled out of the bottle through the cork by using a large needle and Aragon gas, a noble gas already used in winemaking. The cork naturally reseals the tiny hole and the next pour is waiting whenever the timing is right. As someone who enjoys her daily glass of wine with her evening meal, I have really loved and appreciated the pairing flexibility this wonderful invention has given to me. And, with my Timeless Three+ version also providing specialty caps for screw top bottles, allowing these wines to stay fresh for up to three months, my options have been practically endless. That was until recently.

              At any given time, I have approximately twelve bottles of wine in my temperature-controlled wine fridges. As I finish the last glass in one, I replace the now empty bottle with a new wine I can’t wait to sink my teeth into. Over the course of a recent month, I made a horrific discovery as I conducted this ritual. Almost half of my bottles were closed by this god-awful thing known as a synthetic cork, or a brand-new annoyance, a bottle with a glass cork. Neither of which I could use my Coravin system on. Pissed and filled up on wine I wasn’t wanting, I needed to know why these wineries weren’t using corks, or at least screw caps. Logging into Wine Folly, I discovered that they had numerous articles discussing the different types of wine bottle closures. I got to reading, while choking down some rosé I wasn’t in the mood for.

              For the most part, there are four main types of closures for wine bottles: natural cork made from the bark of a cork tree, technical corks which are supplemented with cork dust and particles, synthetic corks made of polyethylene, and screw caps. Though not as common as the others, the new bane of my existence, that glass cork, is commonly referred to as a Vino-Lok or a Vinoseal. As with all things in life, all of these stoppers have pros and cons.

When it comes to a wine that can or should be aged in the bottle, the best choice is a natural cork. These closures are designed to allow the tiniest nip of oxygen into the bottle, which helps the wine to develop softer tannins and the more complex flavors desired in an older bottle of wine. For a wine that is to be consumed either immediately or within a couple of years, any of the mentioned closures will work.

So, why do wineries stray away from natural corks since they are the only ones with proven aging potential? There are a variety of reasons. The one major problem with this type of closure is that approximately one to two percent of cork enclosed bottles will experience cork taint. Trichloroanisole (TCA) forms when a fungus from the cork tree reacts with chlorine. When a wine is enclosed with a TCA infected cork, an awful, musty, wet dog, wet cardboard smell will develop. Thankfully, because it truly is awful, with changes in both the cork processing and winery cleaning practices, it is not as common as it once was. Other reasons are the non-cork closures are cheaper, based on its uniformity of being a completely manmade product synthetic corks can more accurately determine the amount of oxygen going into the bottle each year allowing a winery to know how long the wine will be drinkable, and wineries are not dependent on how much cork can be harvested from the trees so there is less fluctuation on availability and price.

So, then the next question would be why don’t all wineries use these other closures? First and most importantly is the reason described above. Cork is the best and most appropriate closure for aging wine, especially those that can and should live in bottles for ten, twenty, thirty years like Bordeaux and Barolo. Another reason is the simple tradition of using it, and the simple fact that it has worked forever. Stopping wine bottles with cork has been a practice for over two hundred years, and there is no point in fixing something if it is not broken. Cork closures also bring a certain elegance to a bottle; it gives that feeling of drinking something special. The wine industry has had quite a battle on their hands fighting the notion that only cheap wines use closures like screwcaps. They have made some progress, but there is still that seed of doubt planted in many a wine lover’s head.

Armed with a bit more knowledge, I still despised these damn synthetic and glass corks, but I could definitely see where the wineries using these stoppers were coming from. Why enclose a bottle that should be consumed as soon as possible with an expensive cork, when there is a more cost-effective option available. Even with this knowledge and understanding, I still couldn’t help but be in the mindset of trying to avoid these closures. So much so, that I skipped buying anything from a winery that has excellent wines when I was at a festival because I knew they had gone to the glass corks. Though disappointing, I felt this was the right thing for me. It also helped to further motivate me to do this blog. Which ended up being a true blessing.

Reading those articles on Wine Folly gave me an understanding of where these anti-cork wineries were coming from. It also led me to the Coravin site. Wanting to verify that I had properly described how this system worked, I hopped on their page and did something I hadn’t done in a long time, I went to the section on the systems available. As I already had a device for still wines and another for sparkling, I hadn’t been on this part of the website for a while. I usually go straight to the needles or Aragon gas capsules, whatever I am needing at the time. It was here I discovered the Pivot+, a device that can be used on still wines with any type of closure. The answer to my dilemma.

With the Pivot+, the cork, synthetic cork, Vinoseal, screwcap, whatever, is removed and replaced with a Pivot+ stopper. After the stopper is securely and tightly placed into the bottle, the system is inserted through the top of that specialty closure, and with the help of Aragon gas, wine is poured into a glass. Once finished, the Pivot+ is removed, and the bottle is closed up with a cap. Using this system allows a wine to taste fresh and delicious for a month, taking away that need to drink an entire bottle within a couple of days. I was so excited when I saw this, I immediately ordered one and anxiously awaited its arrival. Now I could enjoy my synthetic cork bottles at a more leisurely pace, and I wouldn’t have to pass up a delectable vino because of its closure. I was over-joyed, and a bit annoyed with myself, as the Pivot+ was not new. It had been out since I ordered my Timeless Three+, but I had apparently ignored it at that time because I wanted the system that would allow an “opened” bottle to stay fresh for months and years.

This blog definitely became an expensive one for me, now being the proud owner of three different Coravin systems, but it also helped me to remember that you never know what is around the corner. From the simple act of being severely annoyed at having several synthetically enclosed wine bottles, I gained so much knowledge and developed, not necessarily respect, but at least an understanding, for non-cork closures. It also took me down the path to my newest Coravin love and the ability to enjoy a bottle of wine, no matter how it is sealed. It took annoyance and turned it into happiness, and that is something I can be grateful for. From wine varieties, to bottle closures, to the devices used to enhance the whole wine-loving experience, I raise my glass and say cheers. Now, if we could just do something about bottles being sealed in wax…