The great closure debate

I'm not the most articulate of people, so here's my prattle...

I love corks, there is something so sexy about the idea of popping a cork off of a bottle of wine in front of the fire on a blustery December evening. HOWEVER, not all wine requires a cork. I think stelvin caps (screw caps) are great for some wines. Yea, screw cap looks kinda cheap, may even reduce the value of a bottle of wine, but it works to keep wine fresh for a long time too.

I have found that the misconception of many of my friends is that wine can last forever in stelvin, this is not so. These wines are not any more age worthy based on their closure. Something like 99% of wines are not to be aged longer than a year, most stelvin, especially those sold for less than $20, are not meant to be hung on to that long. There are exceptions of course. It is important to remember that just because a wine doesn't have a cork, doesn't mean you can abuse your wine by placing it on the fridge, or anywhere in the kitchen. These places still change too much in temperature for wine, regardless of closure.

I think that synthetic corks are the worst, they are not corks so they don't hit against the entire surface of the glass to be as good as the real thing, and don't reduce oxidation the way screw cap and glass stoppers do either. Plus they are plastic, what's that petroleum product doing to the environment? Yea, they're recyclable, if you recycle them! They have you in the worst position possible with synthetics.

I say, if you like a closure type, there isn't a reason to change your purchases, but denying your palate a wine simply because it doesn't have your ideal closure is foolish too. Not all wine is age worthy to begin with, so closure most likely doesn't matter for most bottles. Take each wine as it comes to you, and when you become a winemaker, you can decide which wines you close how.

Taste the difference for yourself (if there is a difference in fact). Willakenzie actually puts 1/2 of certain wines in to each, corked and stelvin. You can lay it down side by side for a few years to see if it makes a difference that you can distinguish, and which is tastier to you. I think Penfold's does this too with the Grange.

I love a good cork, but the day I turned 21 the first bottle I bought was a screw cap. Neither defines who I am as a wine drinker. But if I had to choose a wine needs to lay down for a few years or one I should drink young, I'd take the corked cellar wine over the stelvin early sipper any day.

Bottom line: I've made my decision. Make your own and respect others. Oh, and if your agenda is political for why you don't like cork, just think of all the more important matters you could be thinking about, like health care and job security, and if your bank will still be open tomorrow.