Screw caps are better than corks at preserving the fruity bouquet of New
Zealand's signature sauvignon blanc wines according to a two-year scientific
study conducted by wine researchers at The University of Auckland.

The news comes as a further blow to traditionalists who favour the cork
stopper. The cork is already under fire for 'corking' a percentage of wines,
something the screw cap has already been proven to prevent.

The findings have been supported by leading New Zealand wineries Villa Maria
Estate and Kumeu River.

The study was commissioned by the wine industry's Screw Cap initiative, led
by Michael Brajkovich, and undertaken by researchers at The University of
Auckland's Faculty of Science. The research team was led by Dr Laura
Nicolau, a lecturer in the University's Department of Wine Science.

"We compared the aromas of bottles that had been sealed with corks and screw
caps using a GCMS machine, which is a scientific instrument used to measure
and analyse smells. The analysis revealed that the two fruity thiols
(aromatic elements) we looked at were up to 23% higher in the bottles using
screw caps," says Dr Nicolau.

The two thiols studied were those with aromas of passion fruit and box tree,
as well as those with a grapefruit element. These tropical smells lose their
power markedly when they come into contact with oxygen, which explains why
sauvignon blanc can lose its fruity character after one or two years.

Further analysis by the research team, however, showed that the cork and the
screw cap were equally efficient at preventing oxygen getting into the
bottle. Dr Nicolau said the team suspects the difference is either a result
of more oxygen getting into the bottle when it is corked up or that the
aromas are actually absorbed by the cork over time. The team plans to do
more research into this area.

George Fistonich, Managing Director of Villa Maria Estate, supports the
findings.

"At Villa Maria, we have conducted comparative tastings in Sauvignon Blanc
and other varietals after 12 months and two years in bottles, with
professional tasters in both our US and UK markets, as well as in New
Zealand. In all cases, the opinions on the wines sealed with screw caps were
that they were fresher and retained their varietal aromas much better than
corks. We have sealed all our wines with screw caps since 2002 and have
almost totally eliminated our credit returns from oxidised and cork-tainted
wines."

--

st.helier

"st.helier" > skrev i melding
...
> ... We have sealed all our wines with screw caps since 2002 and have
> almost totally eliminated our credit returns from oxidised and
> cork-tainted wines."
>
Hooray!!
Anders

"st.helier" > wrote:

> Screw caps are better than corks at preserving the fruity
> bouquet of New Zealand's signature sauvignon blanc wines
> according to a two-year scientific study conducted by wine
> researchers at The University of Auckland.

Nothing *really* new. ;-)

M.

Blasphemy!!! :-)




"st.helier" > wrote in message
...
> Screw caps are better than corks at preserving the fruity bouquet of New
> Zealand's signature sauvignon blanc wines according to a two-year
> scientific study conducted by wine researchers at The University of
> Auckland.
>
> The news comes as a further blow to traditionalists who favour the cork
> stopper. The cork is already under fire for 'corking' a percentage of
> wines, something the screw cap has already been proven to prevent.
>
> The findings have been supported by leading New Zealand wineries Villa
> Maria Estate and Kumeu River.
>
> The study was commissioned by the wine industry's Screw Cap initiative,
> led by Michael Brajkovich, and undertaken by researchers at The University
> of Auckland's Faculty of Science. The research team was led by Dr Laura
> Nicolau, a lecturer in the University's Department of Wine Science.
>
> "We compared the aromas of bottles that had been sealed with corks and
> screw caps using a GCMS machine, which is a scientific instrument used to
> measure and analyse smells. The analysis revealed that the two fruity
> thiols (aromatic elements) we looked at were up to 23% higher in the
> bottles using screw caps," says Dr Nicolau.
>
> The two thiols studied were those with aromas of passion fruit and box
> tree, as well as those with a grapefruit element. These tropical smells
> lose their power markedly when they come into contact with oxygen, which
> explains why sauvignon blanc can lose its fruity character after one or
> two years.
>
> Further analysis by the research team, however, showed that the cork and
> the screw cap were equally efficient at preventing oxygen getting into the
> bottle. Dr Nicolau said the team suspects the difference is either a
> result of more oxygen getting into the bottle when it is corked up or that
> the aromas are actually absorbed by the cork over time. The team plans to
> do more research into this area.
>
> George Fistonich, Managing Director of Villa Maria Estate, supports the
> findings.
>
> "At Villa Maria, we have conducted comparative tastings in Sauvignon Blanc
> and other varietals after 12 months and two years in bottles, with
> professional tasters in both our US and UK markets, as well as in New
> Zealand. In all cases, the opinions on the wines sealed with screw caps
> were that they were fresher and retained their varietal aromas much better
> than corks. We have sealed all our wines with screw caps since 2002 and
> have almost totally eliminated our credit returns from oxidised and
> cork-tainted wines."
>
> --
>
> st.helier
>