It seems like every time you turn around someone else is adding more to the Great Closure Debate. Most of the information is not very helpful, but once in a while, I read something that is informative and interesting. Today was one of those days.

This quote comes via Eric Asimov’s post yesterday, and is from the Tablas Creek Vineyard Blog

We (and everyone who’s joined us) describe consistent differences between the cork-finished and screwcapped wines, and have noted these differences as early as 3 months after bottling. Wines bottled under screwcaps taste fresher, higher in acid, younger, tighter, and more mineral. Wines bottled under cork taste softer, sweeter, richer, more open, and more evolved. Which is better is not a simple question, and it depends on what we want out of the wine. For an aromatic white, or for our Rose, we like the brightness and freshness that the screwcap provides, and feel that the screwcap will have the additional benefit of keeping these wines (which are typically meant to be enjoyed young) tasting youthful longer. But those same characteristics do not benefit most of our reds, and they do not benefit our Roussanne-based whites, all of which we want to develop that softness and sweetness that time brings to wines meant to age.

There is logic to this. Corks come from the bark of cork oaks, and have a flavor (if untainted) similar to gentle oak from a barrel. In addition, they provide a measure of oxygen exchange with the wine (even if they provide a perfect seal between the wine and the outside air, corks contain oxygen in their pores and share that with the wine). Screwcaps provide a better seal, but don’t provide either the flavor exchange or the oxygen exchange that a cork does. (New models of screwcap allow a tiny oxygen exchange with the air outside, but are new enough that we haven’t felt comfortable experimenting yet.)

This explains a lot of where my thought process has been on cork vs. screwcap. I would be curious if the results were the same for the screwcap as they would be for a vinolock or Zork.