Have you ever tasted a wine that smelled like wet cardboard? It may have been from a “corked” bottle – one that suffered from cork taint. Understanding a bit about this common wine fault can help wine enthusiasts avoid unpleasant wine tasting experiences, and ensure you’re tasting what the winemaker intended when they put it in the bottle.
In this post, we’ll cover what cork taint is, how to identify it, what to do when you find it, and how to reduce the likelihood that your bottles will be “corked.”
What Is Cork Taint?
Cork taint is a wine fault most often caused by a chemical compound called TCA (a.k.a. 2,4,6-trichloroanisole). TCA forms when certain fungi and microorganisms naturally found in cork or other wood products react with a family of chlorine-containing compounds.
When a cork (or barrels, or cardboard boxes, or other winery equipment) contaminated with TCA comes in contact with wine, the TCA has a chance to work its way into the wine itself. While not dangerous to consume, the presence of cork taint in wine changes our perception of the aromas and flavors. This effect can be subtle or dramatic, depending on how much of the compound is present in the wine.
How to Detect a Corked Wine
Wine Smell:
Our first clue that we have a corked wine on our hands is the smell. Wines (and corks) strongly affected by cork taint give off a musty or moldy odor, similar to damp cardboard, wet newspaper, or a dank basement. Even at lower concentrations of TCA, the fresh, fruity aromas we’d normally expect when smelling a wine are nowhere to be found.
Wine Taste:
Tasting is the step that confirms our suspicions about cork taint. A corked wine tastes dull, flat, or muted, with wine’s usual fruity flavors and aromas stripped away by the TCA. Significant amounts of cork taint will also give the wine an unpleasant, musty taste to match the wet newspaper aroma.
Visual Clues:
Visual signs of cork taint are rare. A visibly moldy cork might indicate contamination issues, but usually you can not spot cork taint just by looking at the cork. You have to engage your senses of smell and taste.
Common Misconceptions:
We’ve heard a number of myths about cork taint, the most common one being that it’s caused by bits of broken cork floating in the wine. Little pieces of cork floating in the wine is not a sign that the wine is “corked,” it just indicates the cork crumbled apart when you opened it. TCA can be present in a perfectly intact, visually perfect cork.
The other misconception we often hear about tainted cork is that it makes a wine unsafe to drink. Nope! Cork taint in wine won’t hurt you – at least not physically. (Though, you’ll almost certainly feel disappointed by the unpleasant taste.)
What Causes Cork Taint?
The primary cause of cork taint, as we’ve mentioned, is TCA. Once a cork is contaminated with TCA, it becomes a menace to any wine it touches. Defective corks can develop TCA while still on the cork tree if the tree is sprayed with certain treatments, but more commonly this happens during cork production processes that involve a family of chlorine-containing chemical compounds. Alternative closures like screw caps, glass and synthetic corks are much less susceptible to TCA contamination, which is why many producers prefer them.
Fortunately, cork producers have made great strides in recent years to reduce the risk of TCA contamination. Careful management of the wine cork production process and strict screening protocols have made cork taint less common than it was a few decades ago. Which is wonderful, since natural cork is a renewable, eco-friendly material with a long and cherished history in winemaking! In addition to quality control, many consumers are choosing to buy wine online from brands that prioritize sustainability.
How to Prevent Corked Wine
While there isn’t much a consumer can do to prevent TCA from causing tainted wine, we do have three simple tips to help you avoid drinking corked wine.
Purchase from Reputable Wineries:
The quality and integrity of natural cork closures are quite varied in today’s marketplace. We strongly recommend buying from organic wineries or brands, like Bonterra, that prioritize the integrity of their product.
Use Alternative Closures:
The usual culprit for cork taint, TCA, has a much harder time contaminating alternative closures like screw caps or glass stoppers. While these alternatives are less ideal for wines that you plan to age (because they don’t allow essential air exchange the way cork does), they are fantastic for wines you plan to drink right away! We use screw caps on our best-selling Bonterra Chardonnay, Bonterra Sauvignon Blanc, Bonterra Estate Sauvignon Blanc, and Bonterra Rosé.
Inspecting Wines Before Serving:
We recommend doing some quality control of your own every time you open a fresh bottle of wine. Does the cork smell musty? Does the wine remind you of a damp basement or wet cardboard box?
Smell and taste a little bit of the wine before starting to pour for yourself or your guests. Catching cork taint before you’ve poured the tainted wine into everyone’s glass saves your guests from having to taste something unpleasant – and saves you a lot of dishwashing.
What to Do if You Encounter a Corked Wine
You’ve smelled and tasted a wine, giving it your full sensory attention, but all you’re getting is “basement.” There’s not a fruity aroma or flavor for miles. What do you do now?
Don’t Pour It Down the Drain Right Away:
Some musty smells will dissipate after a few minutes of being exposed to the air. Give the wine in your glass some good swirling to see if the mustiness “blows off,” and fruit aromas start to appear. If it seems the same after a few minutes of aeration, or the musty smell is getting worse, the writing’s on the wall.
Trust Your Senses:
Have faith in your senses of smell and taste. If the wine smells off or tastes musty to you after several minutes of being open, it’s likely corked – or has another flaw affecting its flavor. Trust your palate to guide you.
Return or Exchange the Wine:
Yes, you really can do this! Simply take your corked bottle back to the place you bought it and let them know it was corked. Most restaurants, wine retailers and wineries will offer a replacement or refund for corked wines you purchased from them. Bonterra is proudly among this group. If you’ve purchased a bottle of Bonterra that has cork taint, contact us for help resolving your situation – regardless of where you bought the wine bottle. If you belong to a wine club, reach out to the company for assistance with any issues.
Avoid Cork Taint for Better Wine Tasting
Cork taint is one of the most common wine faults, and one of the most disappointing. The flat, dull, and muted taste of a “corked” wine bottle is something very few of us enjoy, but nearly everyone encounters at some point. Fortunately, we can reduce our risk of a corked bottle by choosing reputable producers like Bonterra, and by embracing alternative closures for wines that won’t be aged. Do you have a tale of cork taint woe? Share your story with the Bonterra wine community on social media, and let us know how you handled the situation!
