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Pure snobbery. Though pulling a cork gives you a better feeling and maybe there's some perceived quality based on you believing it's better, but it's balls really.
In my experience the main quality difference in wines (and I'm no expert) is based on price. Always been in the sub £10 category myself but with £20 to £40+ wines I'm pretty blown away. 99% of that is down to the quality of the content. 1% could be the top, don't know as only have pricey stuff in restaurants and they always do corks so the waiter can do their act (preferably without a Campagnolo which is not the done thing with posh stuff 😉 ). Wouldn't be surprised if some stuff comes screw top and they pop a cork in it just to be seen pulling the cork out. Which of course you have to sniff even though most, including myself, wouldn't have a clue what they're doing.
Price is most likely related to age though and age is really the quality factory. Cheap supermarket stuff is often a year or two at the most old, but the odd discounted stuff that's from 2009 of obscure origin I find is way better than fresh. Cork or screw top.
We probably buy 200-300 bottles a year and the vast majority are cork sealed
Oooft, 5 bottles a week 😀
Which of course you have to sniff even though most, including myself, wouldn't have a clue what they're doing.
You're just supposed to be checking that it is not corked. Smell the wine in the glass. If it smells like wine, all good, if it smells like a musty wet brown paper bag then it is corked. Simples.
Wouldn't be surprised if some stuff comes screw top and they pop a cork in it just to be seen pulling the cork out.
Check the colour, it's not hard to tell if the cork is new or not.
Oooft, 5 bottles a week
That explains a lot. 😀
There are other, infinately more pretentious ways to open a bottle, you know
Blind test is the only way to tell. Buy 4 or 5 bottles of random seal and get drinking. I thought natural cork was best until recently proved wrong. A lot of our cheap plonk is delivered to the UK in flexitanks and bottled here which makes commercial sense and is greener but it certainly excludes the artisan wines and cork suppliers of business.
The majority of nouveau is made by Georges Duboeuf and it's crap, but if you get an independent then it can be good.
KiwiJohn - genuine question, is the proportion of cork taint as high as 1 in 8? I know many wouldn't spot it and it can be less pronounced but that seems high
It can Ed. Some people are more sensitive to it than others. We had 8 grand cru burgundies, top shelf stuff & 1 was corked. Winemakers can be very picky & tend to argue a lot.
Cork is the main source of TCA, but old barrels can be infected with it. Some wineries in California have had huge issues with it (Gallo).
You're just supposed to be checking that it is not corked. Smell the wine in the glass. If it smells like wine, all good, if it smells like a musty wet brown paper bag then it is corked. Simples.
What does wine smell like? A good burgundy smells of rotten vegetables. Maybe not so simple.