Corks
Corks
Much talk and considerable column inches have been dedicated to discussing the virtue of the humble cork and its ability to spoil a perfectly good bottle of wine.
Statistics vary, but in the region of one in ten bottles has some form of cork taint. This has given rise to a dramatic increase in the number of bottles appearing with artificial (plastic) corks. Unfortunately, these do not always stop deterioration of the wine and their manufacture and disposal have environmental implications. In recent tests the screw cap came out as one of the best performing closures and despite its lack of aesthetic appeal, it’s likely that its us will become widespread.
From our position, we would like producers to continue to use traditional corks – particularly as this will help preserve the cork forests of southern Europe, a precious habitat for wildlife – but only as long as cork quality remains high. If the issue of cork taint can’t be satisfactorily dealt with we feel that screw caps are the best alternative.