Storage of screwcapped wines?

[Nigel Lierop]

Slight tangent but an interesting conundrum last night; I broke the habit of a life-time and ordered a glass of red in a local pub to go with dinner (pub dinner is itself rare!). Glass arrived and suspicion was mild cork taint - but without seeing the bottle was I right?

Ended up going to the bar who confirmed it was under natural cork and changed it without complaint. Second glass better but dull.

 

[Richard_Brooks]

Do we think that screwcapped wines are generally more in need of oxygenation when they are opened? E.g. a splashy decant and back in the bottle?

 

[Bill Marks]

I am serious-storing bottles sealed with natural cork upside down is the best way of keeping the cork moist and the seal intact over the long term, though it doesn't help with TCA!

Is this how wine producers store them. If not why not?

 

[Tom Cannavan]

Is the answer to the original question the same for permeable liners?

It's an interesting one to mull over. Laying down to keep the cork moist is obviously not necessary, but laying down also fills the head space - the gap between wine fill level and closure - so there is no impact from the undisolved oxygen in that space. Given that purpose-designed permeable liners are intended to allow controlled oxygen exchange, if the head space is no longer there because it is filled with wine, would it be best not to lay down?

 

[AJ Temple]

I thought that when they put screw caps on, they also extract the oxygen? The oxygen ullage space otherwise is more than with a cork filling 5cm of so of neck? I don't actually know though.