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Why aren't all wine bottles twist offs?

Juddog

Juddog

Diamond Member
I just picked up this bottle of Relax, it's a german reisling, and it tastes great - but it uses a twist off instead of a cork.

Why bother with corks when you can just twist it? Sometimes I'll get a cork that's all crumbly and end up getting pieces of cork in the wine, which sucks.
 
expense (when you have paid for bottling equipment for corks it may not make sense to invest in twist off machines) and americans who think that progress = inferiority
 
I do not believe there is any proof that a screw cap is worse than a regular or synthetic cork when it comes to aging wines. However, pigs will fly before you catch a 1st growth Bordeaux or a cult California cabernet using screw caps to seal there wine as that type of closure is perceived as cheap...
 
Oil said:
Tradition
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Yep. The wineries actually prefer screw top as they can get better quality control of the wine. It's actually better to have a screw top. But people falsely associate screwtop to cheap or "uncared for" wine, which couldn't be further from the truth.
 
My wife always feels like cheap wine has a twist off where as better wine has a cork. So I think perception may play into it as well.
 
Juddog said:
I haven't had a good boxed wine yet. I have doubts they exist.
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I had an ok Reisling and a meh cab.

Apparently, France has a ton of decent-to-good boxed wines.

It really is the best, though, because the wine doesn't go bad. It's in an air tight plastic bag with a spout. Pouring a glass doesn't introduce any air into the bag, so no oxidation occurs. Open up a bottle of wine, though, and immediately starts oxidizing.
 
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Juddog said:
I haven't had a good boxed wine yet. I have doubts they exist.
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There are plenty of very good box wines out there that are in reality 20+ a bottle wines. But since a box is 4 bottles and it's easier to package plus in bulk you get what is essentially 4 20 dollar bottles for 40 bucks. Only stubborn or ignorant wine snobs would turn their nose at a screwtop or box wine.
 
SlowSpyder said:
My wife always feels like cheap wine has a twist off where as better wine has a cork. So I think perception may play into it as well.
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It does. Screw caps are probably superior but this is an old old industry. Also, opening a bottle of wine remains a romantic tradition, and if you just screw the top off some of the lustre goes with it. Such is progress.
 
Juddog said:
I just picked up this bottle of Relax, it's a german reisling, and it tastes great - but it uses a twist off instead of a cork.

Why bother with corks when you can just twist it? Sometimes I'll get a cork that's all crumbly and end up getting pieces of cork in the wine, which sucks.
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They should all be twist off or at least synthetic corks. Natural cork can be tainted, fungus ridden, and ruin the wine or it can shrink and let air in.
 
Simple answer. Micro-oxidation. That cannot occur with synthetic or screw caps. If you are talking about a wine to drink immediately, then screw cap is the way to go. Any wine that needs to age, real cork is the way to go.

This is the same reason why wineries barrel age. Barrels provide a proven method for micro-oxidation. I have seen articles about a method to perform micro-oxidation with some new machine. That would eliminate the need for barrels and corks.
 
KB said:
If a wine has a cork it can continue to age and improve in the bottle. It does this by allowing very small quantities of air to mix with the wine. If the wine is boxed or is a twist off, it will not improve in the enclosure. The optimal age is usually around 5 years.

http://www.corkqc.com/currentresearch/research2.htm
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An issue came up a few years ago about a natural cork shortage. This caused a push to synthetic corks and screw caps. But I have not heard about the supposed shortage for quite a while.

Natural corks are also why those bottles must be stored on their side ... to keep the cork from drying out, falling apart, and/or allowing too much air in.
 
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