Ever since the first trials of screw caps for wines was done in the 1970’s there has been a consistent debate about different closures in the world of wine. The Aussies were the first declaring that Riesling produced under screwcap aged just as well and was protected far better than with its natural cork competitor. In 2011 90% of Marlborough (New Zealand) wines were closed with screwcaps. So the issue rages on between which is better.
Why does it matter?
It matters because it is about the quality of a core product of your business and how it is delivered to the consumer. Sometimes consumers may not even notice a corked bottle of wine, is that a reason to ignore it? Maybe not – if they have a poor impression of the product bought in your establishment then how much rub off is there to your reputation? And let’s face it you don’t want to bring attention to poor products.
Read on and let’s explore the issues.
What is a corked wine then?
There is a substance called TriChloroanisole, T.C.A. for short, which can effect the taste and flavour of foods. Primarily found in wines it is thought to come from the use of corks. Whilst thought to be a clinical issue; either a wine is corked or not, in actual fact it affects wines over a wedge of different levels.
At its worst it gives a profoundly musty smell, which to anyone that has smelt it is immediately recognisable – once smelt never forgotten. This translates into the palate and strips the wine of any remaining fruit leaving it flat and lifeless as a wine.
At the thin end of the wedge it merely strips the fruit away leaving a skeleton of the wine without any musty trace. It is incredibly difficult to spot at this level for anyone that doesn’t know the wine intimately, but will often leave an infrequent consumer thinking that the wine is ‘not as good as last time’ or ‘just doesn’t taste right’. Often it can only be proved by opening and tasting several bottles of the same wine, bottled on the same day.
And then there is everything in between.
So it is not just a technical issue but one also of judgment.
I don’t have time for all that – leave it to the techies
Ok that’s fine until you realise that consumers prefer cork. In fact recent surveys point to the fact that only 39% of UK consumers have elected to buy wine in screwcaps; albeit that is increasing.
OK so let’s get into it then
Some commentators have reported that a cork has a failure rate of somewhere between 1% and 10% depending on the sort of cork closure that is chosen. In recent years, especially the last 15, the cork producers have been doing a huge amount to reduce the taint of T.C.A. Some report that the TCA contamination rate is now well below 3%. If it’s failsafe closure that you are after then screwcap is the way to go. If it is more of the experience then cork is the way to go.
A way to think about this is
“if Coca Cola was to have a failure rate or contamination rate of ‘well below 3%’ would it be tolerated in the market?”
I think that we all know the answer to that – never in a month of Sunday’s. Indeed it would cause such a scandal that would be bigger than VW/Audi emissions manipulation.
So if you are after mass appreciation of your establishment and zero failure is important then maybe screw cap is the way to go.
However if it is more about the experience then maybe more cork is the direction.
Whoah – so you are telling me that 3% of wine may be contaminated?
No I am not saying that, and from what I taste (and I do taste a lot of wine) then it is nowhere near that. But screwcaps do give that extremely high level of certainty. In fact screwcaps are about as close as we can get to guaranteeing the wine in the glass is the wine that the winemaker intended to put there.
OK – Easy – go to screwcaps then?
Where’s the romance in that? If consumers are drinking better, open to more different styles and grape varieties, and spending more, but drinking less. Doesn’t that point to them making more of an occasion about it and wanting more of an experience? If that is the case then isn’t cork better?
Maybe that’s part of the reason why Prosecco has gone bonkers – customers like the pop of the cork and the idea of celebration?
Oh and wasn’t there that issue of corks and birds?
Ah yes, the RSPB did hook up with the cork industry to suggest that using plastic corks impacts the natural habitats of some birds, in the cork forests of Portugal, which produce over 50% of the worlds corks for wine. The problem is that corks for wine use only 15% of the cork produced, so the other industries like flooring for example are a better target if that is your complaint.
And just to confuse things in terms of CO2 usage then screw caps use much more than cork, so possibly the greener option might be corks; but then again screwcaps can be recycled; whereas corks can’t.
So how do we wrap this up into some sense?
It is all about the customer – in Hospitality’s case the final consumer. What do consumers come to your establishment for? If you could place them on a level against your competitors where would they sit?
And look at your current business – how many complaints do you really receive right now? If your staff regularly taste wine – how much do they notice – can it be measured and if so how? What alternatives are out there? Is the time and cost in taking out a cork important in service?
So consider your pour by the glass wines especially whites. Fast turnover, little time for staff to engage with customers and less for them to check if each bottle is in good shape, it probably makes sense to have them closed with screwcaps.
Whereas for the wines that are further up the list, served by the bottle and ordered at the table then it probably makes sense to look for cork closed wines.
OK so those are the issues and as you can see the tussle about which is best goes on. Let me know what your thoughts are – we would love to have a good discussion about corks verses screwcaps verses new innovations. The issue of stoppers for wine seems to be an unstoppable (ahem) issue you might say!
Alistair Morrell
Hospitality & Catering News, Wine & Drinks Editor