Flaws in wine : What does cork taste ?

In oenology, corky taste is a term describing a common defect found in wine. Find out more about this phenomenon thanks to Beaux-Vins !

Corky taste is the most popular defect in the wine world and, paradoxically, it is also the most misunderstood. It is often used as a catch-all to say that the wine certainly has an olfactory and taste defect.. Often wrongly criticized, it is my duty to defend it by explaining to you where this corky taste comes from and how to recognize it.

How is the cap made ?

I'm sure you can imagine, but cork is obtained from the bark of the cork oak tree.

The first step in production is called debarking, which simply involves removing the outer bark of the cork oak tree.. This harvest is done during the summer, during the growth period of the tree to avoid injuring it. It takes nine years to harvest cork again, period required for the bark to regenerate.

Then comes the drying period of the cork boards for 6 month to 1 year. Boards, once dried, are transported to the corker who will carry out the boiling. This step is one of the most important in the manufacture of the stopper. The boards are immersed in boiling water for over an hour to clean them. The corker lets them rest for a few days so that they stabilize.

Finally, the selected boards are cut into strips to be perforated using a tubing machine. The punch of this tool makes it possible to obtain the famous cylinder of the cork stopper that we know well.

Why do we use a cork stopper ?

On the 16 billion caps produced each year, 80 % are cork. This is not trivial since the cork stopper has many significant advantages.

The first advantage of the cork stopper may seem obvious, but is essential for the preservation of wine : it is waterproof. Well preserved, a bottle of wine can remain waterproof for many years without having to change the cork. The flexibility of the cork allows the cork to adapt perfectly to the neck of the bottle and to stay there. The cap is compressed to 40 % of its volume when corked and then recovers 80 % de son volume initial. You have certainly already noticed the difficulty we have in recapping a bottle after opening it.

Some argue that a second advantage exists in its ability to be air porous. Like the lung, the cork allows circulation between the wine and the outside air. This exchange has a positive influence on the aging of the wine thanks to the micro-respiration of the wine.. According to the quality of the cork, the wine ages well or poorly. A short, porous cap accelerates aging and vice versa, a long cork allows slow aging for great wines. Cork is a very heterogeneous material. Two corks from the same bark to stopper two bottles of the same wine will not behave the same. This is the reason why two bottles of the same wine can evolve differently over time.

According to the oenologist Émile Peynaud and Professor Pascal Ribereau-Gayon, the wine actually evolves very well with the oxygen which is dissolved in the alcohol and that contained between the surface of the wine and the mirror of the cork.

What does cork taste ?

We consider that 1 to 10 % of bottles distributed on the French market would be corked - estimation large —. Suffice to say that if you feel the taste of cork very often, you are wrong - or you have bad luck —.

Corky taste can be detected on the first nose with humid cellar odors, wet cardboard, musty. The first nose is made without stirring the wine in your glass. The smell of cork is accentuated with ventilation. If in doubt, let the wine aerate for about ten minutes before smelling it again. You can also taste the wine, because this defect is particularly marked in the mouth.

In the scientific world of wine, we often talk about TCA - 2,4,6-trichloroanisole - to designate the corky taste, because this molecule would be the main responsible for this defect. Cork is responsible for 95 % contaminations - reason why wetting is an essential step in the design of the cap —. The molds hidden in the cork placed in the presence of chlorinated compounds develop this molecule which gives the wine an unpleasant odor.. But this defect can also come from the wood of the cellar frames., mold, wine storage and transport conditions.

The musty taste is not just due to the cork. It can also be the result of poor winemaking or unhealthy grapes… This is the reason why we can detect a "corky taste" when the bottle is stoppered with a synthetic cap or with a screw cap..

In the same way that we train to detect the aromas of wine, it is always interesting to find a corked bottle and get used to the smell to find it more easily. Also get used to the evolution of corkage taste over time.

What are the solutions to prevent corky taste ?

Preventive solutions

The wine industry and the cork industry are aware of the problem and are trying their best to eliminate the risk of contamination of the cork and fewer and fewer bottles have this defect.. Some prefer to completely eliminate the risk by using other means of plugging, like screw caps - widely used in New World wines - or synthetic corks. Scientists are still looking for a solution to eliminate this defect.

The curative solutions

Unfortunately, there is no effective technique for 100 % to eliminate corky taste.