The aluminium advantage for today's wine

Hold. Swirl. Smell. Sip.

Wine has a profound presence in almost all cultures across the world. Traditionally, wine bottles have been sealed with cork since the 17th century. However, a little bit of aluminium has found its way in preserving your favorite bottle of wine by becoming an alternative method of closure.

As the beverage traveled far beyond its birthplace, the wine community grew too. From wine tasting sessions to exhibitions, everyplace that one could go, one would hear a debate brewing – ‘Whether traditional corks or screw caps produce a better bottle of wine’ - a controversial one that has divided the wine community. Some people feel that the age-old method of using cork is the genuine way to increase the character of the beverage while others are of the opinion that screw caps, majorly made out of aluminium, are the best way of preservation.

Screw caps have been around since the late 1950’s but they were originally intended for use with economy (cheap) wines. During the early 2000, Australia and particularly New Zealand started to use them extensively for all kinds of wines including the costly ones too. According to Dave McIntyre, a wine writer in The Washington Post, a lot of winemakers these days “prefer screw caps for white wines and reds meant to be drunk young,” because of its ability to retain the wine’s crispness and preservation over time. In fact, according to Andrew Waterhouse, a wine chemist at UC Davis, “In New Zealand corks are nearly unheard of, and in Australia, screw-caps dominate the market.”

Let’s take a look at the scenario of the wine sealing industry. Earlier, cork was the preferred choice of sealing as it resisted moisture and rotting in addition to being leak-proof. But cork’s graceful utility took a bad hit as the issue of ‘cork taint’ came to fore. It leaves a moldy, musty, off-putting smell inside a bottle. It is commonly associated with spoilt wine. In a 2013 study, it was found that ‘Cork taint’ comes from a natural fungus which infects the wine through TCA, or 2,4,6-trichloroanisole, a compound that lends an off-putting aroma. Screw caps help winemakers avoid cork taint, which can wreck as many as seven bottles of wine out of a hundred.

So, why did the aluminium screw-cap do well over corks?

A screw-cap provides better insulation to the wine from oxygen than cork.
It includes the elimination of the nasty smell that TCA gives out from ‘cork taint’.
Screw-capped wines contributed more consistency in flavor and the wine ages more slowly than in bottles closed with cork, which aged not only more rapidly but more variously too.
The aluminium caps gave a good cost benefit compared to the corks.

In 2001, started the Screw Cap Initiative in New Zealand where the top winemakers in the country were sealing their bottles with aluminium caps. It garnered a huge favor in Australia too where it is gaining momentum rapidly. Aluminium caps are 100% recyclable, and reduces the weight of the bottles, helping in become more ecological for transport. In 2105, Washington State University's Viticulture and Enology scientists said that they would prefer wine bottles’ closure to be made of aluminium screw-caps rather than corks any day.

Long Live the screwcap - Burying the cork for good are winemakers, John Forrest, John Stichbury, John Belsham and Ross Lawson. The Priest conducting the service is Gary Lacroix, from the Lonely Planet film crew.

10 years ago, about 90% of all wine bottles produced in the world were sealed with natural cork. Today, thanks to aluminium, only 70% of all bottles produced globally are corked. More and more winemakers are shifting their bottle closures to aluminium caps so that it reduces their risk of product spoilage and ensure that their name on a wine bottle stands the test of time as well as their rich heritage.

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