5 ms·

Screw tops are better. Tighter, less oxygen, easier to deal with, and they don't ever rot. If you ever get a glass of wine that smells intensely rotten it could

Screw tops are better. Tighter, less oxygen, easier to deal with, and they don't ever rot. If you ever get a glass of wine that smells intensely rotten it could be because the cork has started rotting.

ImprovedSilence 14y ago
Is there any reason the wine industry seems to stick to cork then, other than just being an old fashioned industry?
- arturventura 14y ago
  Yes, better wine preservation.
- memset 14y ago
  Sometimes you want the wine to be exposed to oxygen as it does; it changes the flavor of the wine, sometimes for the better. This is similar to decanting a wine; exposure to air changes it chemically. Wine is often a social experience - so there is something too be said for the "fun" and flash of popping open a cork.
- marklabedz 14y ago
  There's also significant market momentum to overcome as screw tops are often associated with cheap wine at the (typical) consumer level.
  - quonn 14y ago
    Yes, but this perception is rapidly changing, especially since there are plastic corks available (not screw tops). In Europe quality wines now often come with plastic corks.
- dockd 14y ago
  I find there is a ritual in bringing out the cork screw and opening the bottle. Think about how a waiter presents it in a restaurant. There's no anticipation or show in having them come out, showing you the bottle, then twisting the cap off. In a similar note, we have a "rabbit" corkscrew. It's super efficient at opening a bottle, but is not particularly satisfying. Have you ever asked yourself, If only I could open this bottle faster? (Although it can be convenient if you're cooking with wine.)
  - narag 14y ago
    There is a kind without the... screw, the spiral thing I mean. It's pointy and just slightly curved in S. I've been unable to find an image for it in five minutes. I bet that, once you get used to it (after spoling a few hundreds of corks, that's it) it's faster than the "rabbit" model. I say that because I used to be faster with the simple, T-shaped screw, and I've seen it used in restaurants by experienced waiters.
  - jt2190 14y ago
    You forgot the part about the cork, which is presented to the purchaser for inspection (a quick sniff) to make sure the wine hasn't gone bad.
- justin66 14y ago
  The wine industry would be very, very happy to switch over to polymer corks or caps. They stick with cork because it's what the majority of buyers wants.
- lwat 14y ago
  Australia and NZ wineries use screw tops almost exclusively even for high-end wines. In the US market buyers still believe that cork is better though so the wineries must accommodate that.
  - kondro 14y ago
    I don't know what your definition of high-end wine is, but I've never seen a screw top on anything I've drunk over $50.
    - dagw 14y ago
      I've seen it on several wines over $50 from New Zeeland and I've heard that most Australian wines in Australia now come with screw corks even at the higher end (natural cork is only used for exported wines). They seem to be leading the charge on that front. I've also seen it on a couple of French whites. But as others have mentioned, most vineyards are reluctant to do so (especially on wine for export), not because of any quality concerns, but because many people think screw caps make wines look cheap.
      - brc 14y ago
        This is correct - it's very rare to find a corked bottle in Australia, even over the $50 price point
machinagod 14y ago
Cork allows some contact of the wine with oxygen, allowing it to evolve over the years. For wines that lose their primary characteristic when aged (think fruity, fresh wines, normally whites) a screw top is the way to go, for something you want to keep in your cellar and let it evolve a bit till is just right, I'll take cork every day. As a sidenote, cork was one of the main components of the Space Shuttle's insulation (http://www.nytimes.com/1981/11/03/science/shuttle-s-cork-from-portugal.html http://www.nytimes.com/1981/11/03/science/shuttle-s-cork-fro...) [and yes, I'm from Portugal, you can all blame us for the Columbia...]
- jrnkntl 14y ago
  Screw tops also allow oxygen to flow through, in fact, it can even be 'controlled'[1]. This way the caps on some younger wines allow more oxygen to flow through than the older 'lay-down' ones etc. Overall, a screw-cap is a way better option, one of the biggest wine vendors in France (Chateau Bonnet from the famous André Lurton) switched to caps some years ago after extensive research and also prefers them above traditional cork for all wines. Furthermore see [2], they list the following advantages: - No cork taint - No more sporadic oxidation - Screwcaps avoid flavour modification, including scalping - Both red and white wines can age under screwcap - A reliable long-term seal - Cellaring - Recycling [1] http://www.mutineermagazine.com/blog/2008/05/screw-this-cap-a-conversation-with-tim-keller/ http://www.mutineermagazine.com/blog/2008/05/screw-this-cap-... [2] http://www.screwcapinitiative.com/normal.asp?navID=24&pageID=24 http://www.screwcapinitiative.com/normal.asp?navID=24&pa...
  - nagrom 14y ago
    Everything that you say is true. But I really like the ceremony of using a corkscrew to open a bottle of wine; it is a lot more tactile than opening a screw cap.
    - Someone 14y ago
      That is why http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_wine_closure http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_wine_closure was invented. Apparently, this isn't common in the US, but it is in Western Europe.
justin66 14y ago
It's not rot or breakdown of the cork that causes that odor and flavor. It's a result of the metabolic processes of a fungus. I've always wondered if they could fix that by irradiating the things...
shill 14y ago
Bonny Doon Vineyard makes a good case for screwcaps. https://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/screwcaps/ https://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/screwcaps/
lwat 14y ago
Easier to open too!

ImprovedSilence 14y ago

Is there any reason the wine industry seems to stick to cork then, other than just being an old fashioned industry?

arturventura 14y ago
Yes, better wine preservation.
memset 14y ago
Sometimes you want the wine to be exposed to oxygen as it does; it changes the flavor of the wine, sometimes for the better. This is similar to decanting a wine; exposure to air changes it chemically. Wine is often a social experience - so there is something too be said for the "fun" and flash of popping open a cork.
marklabedz 14y ago
There's also significant market momentum to overcome as screw tops are often associated with cheap wine at the (typical) consumer level.
- quonn 14y ago
  Yes, but this perception is rapidly changing, especially since there are plastic corks available (not screw tops). In Europe quality wines now often come with plastic corks.
dockd 14y ago
I find there is a ritual in bringing out the cork screw and opening the bottle. Think about how a waiter presents it in a restaurant. There's no anticipation or show in having them come out, showing you the bottle, then twisting the cap off. In a similar note, we have a "rabbit" corkscrew. It's super efficient at opening a bottle, but is not particularly satisfying. Have you ever asked yourself, If only I could open this bottle faster? (Although it can be convenient if you're cooking with wine.)
- narag 14y ago
  There is a kind without the... screw, the spiral thing I mean. It's pointy and just slightly curved in S. I've been unable to find an image for it in five minutes. I bet that, once you get used to it (after spoling a few hundreds of corks, that's it) it's faster than the "rabbit" model. I say that because I used to be faster with the simple, T-shaped screw, and I've seen it used in restaurants by experienced waiters.
- jt2190 14y ago
  You forgot the part about the cork, which is presented to the purchaser for inspection (a quick sniff) to make sure the wine hasn't gone bad.
justin66 14y ago
The wine industry would be very, very happy to switch over to polymer corks or caps. They stick with cork because it's what the majority of buyers wants.
lwat 14y ago
Australia and NZ wineries use screw tops almost exclusively even for high-end wines. In the US market buyers still believe that cork is better though so the wineries must accommodate that.
- kondro 14y ago
  I don't know what your definition of high-end wine is, but I've never seen a screw top on anything I've drunk over $50.
  - dagw 14y ago
    I've seen it on several wines over $50 from New Zeeland and I've heard that most Australian wines in Australia now come with screw corks even at the higher end (natural cork is only used for exported wines). They seem to be leading the charge on that front. I've also seen it on a couple of French whites. But as others have mentioned, most vineyards are reluctant to do so (especially on wine for export), not because of any quality concerns, but because many people think screw caps make wines look cheap.
    - brc 14y ago
      This is correct - it's very rare to find a corked bottle in Australia, even over the $50 price point

machinagod 14y ago

Cork allows some contact of the wine with oxygen, allowing it to evolve over the years. For wines that lose their primary characteristic when aged (think fruity, fresh wines, normally whites) a screw top is the way to go, for something you want to keep in your cellar and let it evolve a bit till is just right, I'll take cork every day. As a sidenote, cork was one of the main components of the Space Shuttle's insulation (http://www.nytimes.com/1981/11/03/science/shuttle-s-cork-from-portugal.html http://www.nytimes.com/1981/11/03/science/shuttle-s-cork-fro...) [and yes, I'm from Portugal, you can all blame us for the Columbia...]

jrnkntl 14y ago
Screw tops also allow oxygen to flow through, in fact, it can even be 'controlled'[1]. This way the caps on some younger wines allow more oxygen to flow through than the older 'lay-down' ones etc. Overall, a screw-cap is a way better option, one of the biggest wine vendors in France (Chateau Bonnet from the famous André Lurton) switched to caps some years ago after extensive research and also prefers them above traditional cork for all wines. Furthermore see [2], they list the following advantages: - No cork taint - No more sporadic oxidation - Screwcaps avoid flavour modification, including scalping - Both red and white wines can age under screwcap - A reliable long-term seal - Cellaring - Recycling [1] http://www.mutineermagazine.com/blog/2008/05/screw-this-cap-a-conversation-with-tim-keller/ http://www.mutineermagazine.com/blog/2008/05/screw-this-cap-... [2] http://www.screwcapinitiative.com/normal.asp?navID=24&pageID=24 http://www.screwcapinitiative.com/normal.asp?navID=24&pa...
- nagrom 14y ago
  Everything that you say is true. But I really like the ceremony of using a corkscrew to open a bottle of wine; it is a lot more tactile than opening a screw cap.
  - Someone 14y ago
    That is why http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_wine_closure http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_wine_closure was invented. Apparently, this isn't common in the US, but it is in Western Europe.

justin66 14y ago

It's not rot or breakdown of the cork that causes that odor and flavor. It's a result of the metabolic processes of a fungus. I've always wondered if they could fix that by irradiating the things...

shill 14y ago

Bonny Doon Vineyard makes a good case for screwcaps. https://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/screwcaps/ https://www.bonnydoonvineyard.com/screwcaps/

lwat 14y ago

Easier to open too!