Yesterday I was talking about screwcaps and their faults, but tonight I opened a bottle of a pretty decent wine (yes, with a cork!) and poured it into my glass. I paused while I got the movie started … Men In Black … and suddenly I got a whiff.
It was spreading around the room. I could smell the effects from half a metre away within a minute or two. I was worried, but maybe it was a damp cloth? A stray walnut? No! A smell of the glass confirmed it all. Like a concoction made from concentrated damp cardboard, liquidised walnuts, and the merest hint of a blackberry juice that has been left open for a week. No closure ‘technology’ is infallible (as even the technical screwcap showed) but this was one of the most “failed” of any I have come across for a LONG time. I rarely bother, but this one’s going back to the shop!
March 26, 2011
It’s great when you can be sure. I hate when it’s a marginal case and there are others there and you’re the wine expert. Gah!
March 26, 2011
If you think it is, you are probably right! You are the consumer, if it doesn’t taste right, send it back
March 26, 2011
I’ve been lucky with this recently, although I had a spate of slightly cork tainted wines in wine bars before christmas. It’s when I pull the cork on some 30 year old bordeaux that I’ve been treasuring in the cellar that I really get nervy. So far, so good . .
March 27, 2011
Its a shame in a way that I can’t share this wine with people as a case study of what to look out for … very instructional