Written on 21/07/2020
Wine is one of the few products for which we know, when we market and buy it, that it may be unfit for consumption! The risk of a corked bottle is known and accepted by both producer and consumer.
On a Friday evening unlike any other, you've been invited to an important dinner party. You know that the hosts are wine lovers and you've decided to treat them - and yourself - to something special. On the way, you visit a trusted wine merchant who points you in the direction of a successful vintage from a reliable estate. Your bag is weighed down with a bottle, but your steps are lighter, sure that your gift will have an effect. The aperitif goes perfectly with your new bosses, your future parents-in-law, or Mr. Member of Parliament... You sit down at the table, open your wine and... It's corked! You apologize, we tell you it's nothing serious...
O rage! O despair! O enemy mould!
What is a "corked" wine?
It's a wine that smells of dust, must, even mildew (like a teenager's bedroom) and is therefore undrinkable. That's why the restaurant waiter makes you taste the wine: to check that it's not corked (not that it's to your liking). Most of the time, the sense of smell is enough to detect this. In well-kept restaurants, you can watch the sommelier discreetly smell the cork before serving you. If you're not sure, don't stir the glass and just taste. Is it corked? Send the bottle back.
Where does this taste come from?
Cork! But you guessed it. In fact, it's the meeting of cork micro-moulds and chlorine particles that gives this unpleasant aroma (TCA, for the scientists). It's often caused by poor-quality corks, or by the presence of chlorine in products used to maintain or preserve casks.
How to avoid it?
Unfortunately, corking happens ! It's a risk you have to accept, and the best houses can't avoid it... But they can do all they can to prevent it: firstly, by using better quality corks, and secondly, by spacing bottles well apart during storage.
Sometimes you can save a corked wine by decanting it. If the corky taste doesn't go away, forget this bottle and move on to another one!
If you plan to drink this wine within the year, you can use corks other than cork (synthetic, caps...).
Rest assured that a corked wine is very rare, and to make sure you're ready for the next important dinner: pack two bottles!
