CORKING YOUR WINE BOTTLES

Okay, it's time to cork your wine. And after all the effort
you've poured into your creation over the past month or two, the
last thing you want to do now is mess it up. If your time is
money, now's not the time to be cutting corners. When it comes to
corking your wine, you want to do it the right way.

Here's some info that will help you stage a plan of attack for
corking up your precious wines. Using the right bottle, the right
corks and the right corker are all ingredients to the recipe for
successfully corking your wines.


- Choosing The Right Wine Bottle

When we talk about corking wines we have to start with the
bottle. Not all bottles were meant to be corked. So, when
selecting your wine bottles you want to make sure they have a
"cork-finish" with the standard 3/4 inch opening. In other words,
they need to be wine bottles that are designed to take a cork.

Corking screw-cap wine bottles just doesn't get it. Quite often
the size of opening these bottles have do not work well with the
size of corks that are available. Secondly, the shoulder of these
bottles will often start too early. There is simply not enough
neck for the cork. The result is a compressed cork that flares
out on the bottom while in the bottle. When this happens the cork
is often drawn down on into the bottle by this flaring action.


- Choosing The Right Cork For You

To get a good cork seal on a bottle, you will want to use a
"Straight" cork as opposed to a "Tapered" cork. A Straight Cork
is cylinder shaped and provides the maximum amount of sealing
surface possible. The sealing surface of the Straight Cork is the
whole length of the cork, whereas the Tapered Cork seals only at
one point along its side--where the cork meets the glass.

One simple way to seal a wine bottle with a straight type cork is
to use our "Mushroom Corks". These are Straight Corks that have a
plastic top on them for gripping. They can be pushed in by hand
and fit fairly tight when using a standard cork-finished wine
bottle. Mushroom corks will work fine for wines that are going to
be consumed within 12 to 18 months.

- You can find the Mushroom Corks we offer at the following link
on our web site:

Mushroom Corks

Synthetic Mushroom Corks

If you plan on storing your wines for longer than a year, then we
would recommend going to a more conventional Straight Cork. These
straight corks would be like you see used on commercially
produced bottles of wine. These Straight Corks are first
compressed and then driven into the wine bottle all with the aid
of a corker. They offer an extremely tight seal because you are
putting a lot of cork into a little area.

We offer three different grades of these straight corks: Superior
Grade, Extra-First Grade and Synthetic. The main difference
between these corks is their density. The more dense they are the
tighter their seal will be.

Superior Grade Straight Corks:
These are our most common straight corks. They are recommended
for wines that are to be consumed within 5 years. If you
think you might keep some of the wine around a little longer you
might consider using the Extra First Grade.

Extra First Grade Straight Corks:
These corks are more select and are more dense then the Superior
Grade. They are recommended over the Superior Grade for wines
that may be stored for more than 3 years. They are of the same
quality that most wineries use, and will provide a dependable
seal for many years.

Synthetic Straight Corks:
These corks are produced from man-made materials. They are beige
to brown in color with light swirled design that look similar to
a natural cork. When these corks are used, you are essentially
providing the best seal a cork can possibly give. We recommend
using these corks when you know you are going to keep a wine for
many years.

- For more information about all the Straight Corks we offer, go
to the following link on our web site:

Straight Corks

Straight corks are available in more than one diameter. A size #9
is normally recommended when inserting them into a standard cork-
finished wine bottle. This is the size that commercial wineries
use. All of the corkers we offer will put in this size just fine.
But beware, there are some corkers on the market that are prone
to pinching or mangling the cork before getting it in the bottle.
If you have one of these corkers, then we recommend using a size
#8 Straight Cork instead.


- Choosing The Right Corker For You

We have three different types of corkers available. All of them
work primarily the same way. They have a compressing iris that
evenly compresses the cork from all sides, down to about the
diameter of a dime. Then they drive the cork into the bottle.

All of them will insert a full size #9 Straight Cork into a
standard cork-finish wine bottle with ease. The main difference
between them is speed.

Gilda Hand Corker:
This is a hand-held corker. It has a butterfly handle action for
compressing the cork and a long levered handle for driving the
cork. It is a two step process--compress then drive.

- For more information on the Gilda Hand Corker go to the
following link on our web site:

Gilda Hand Corker

Bench and Floor Model Corkers:
The Gilda Hand Corker is the ideal unit for someone that is
corking 20 or 30 bottles at a time, but if you are planning on
corking 150 or 200 bottles or more throughout the year, then you
might want to consider getting a Bench Model or Floor Model
Corker.

These corkers compress and drive the cork just like the Gilda
Hand Corker, but they do it in one single action. You load the
cork and pull the handle. As you start to pull down on the handle
the corks is being compressed. Then at the end of the handle's
throw, the cork is driven into the wine bottle. This single,
swift action makes the corking process move along a bit faster.

If you plan on using Synthetic Straight Corks, then you will want
to use either the Bench Model or Floor Model corker. These corks
are extremely dense and require the additional leverage that
these corkers provide.

- For more information on the Bench Model Corker go to the
following link on our web site:

Bench Model Corker

- For more information on the Floor Model Corker go to the
following link on our web site:

Floor Model Corker

- Cork Preparation

What you will notice when you first get your corks is that they
are fairly hard or rigid, much more so than the corks that you
pull out of a wine bottle. For these corks to go nicely into the
wine bottle and mold themselves to the inner wall of the bottle's
neck, they will need to be softened.

There are many different recommendations for softening corks from
one source to the next. Some sources will recommend soaking the
corks over night in a cold sulfite-water bath. Others will
recommend pouring boiling water over them.

Both of these methods have merit in the sense that they will
sanitize the corks. But they may or may not soften the cork up
sufficiently to be inserted into the wine bottle.

For softening and sanitizing the corks, we recommend steaming
them. Bring a pan of water to a boil. Then take the pan off the
heat; drop in the corks, and put the lid on the pan. Allow them
to steam for anywhere from 1 to 3 minutes, depending on the
cork.

It is important that you do not steam them anymore than necessary
to make them slightly pliable. It is not necessary for the
corks to be spongy. In fact having them too soft will make them
harder to put in as well. You just need them to give a little
when you squeeze them between your fingers.

Also, heating the corks longer than necessary or steaming them
while the water is boiling will cause them to deteriorate while
in the bottle. This can lead to leaky bottles during storage and
an unpleasant, crumbly mess when the time comes to decant your
wine.


- After The Corking

After you have corked your wine bottles you will need to leave
them standing up-right for at least 1 day--2 would be better.
This is to give the corks time to re-expand into the neck of the
bottle and create a complete seal.

After the re-expanding period you will need to store the bottles
on their sides, so that the wine is touching the cork. This is to
keep the cork moist and expanded. If the bottles are stored up-
right, the corks will eventually dry out and the wine bottles'
seal will be compromised. Over time, this could lead to problems
with oxidation and possibly spoilage of the wine.


- Related Articles:

"An Overview Of Wine Bottling"

"Wine Bottle Storage And Temperature"

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E. C. Kraus

Home Wine & Beer Making Supplies

Address: 733 S. Northern Blvd. - P. O. Box 7850 - Independence, MO  64053

Phone:(816) 254-7448  Fax:(816) 254-7051  Toll Free: (800) 353-1906

Email: customerservice@eckraus.com

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