I sense that there still isn’t much movement towards screw caps on red wines, at least red wines that are of actual interest to those of us on WB.
It was kind of exciting when Plumpjack gave you the choice on their Napa cab, probably starting in the late 1990s vintages, but I don’t sense that adoption has moved too much since then, again, in reference to red wines of interest to us here at WB. I think we all know that they have gradually become more common among inexpensive wines and grocery store type wines, which is a good thing.
What red wines of interest here to WB and that are above the “daily drinkers” level are now being offered under screw cap? And are there any producers offering the same wine under both closures to allow for some comparisons down the road, as Plumpjack does or used to do?
I think the only one on my radar is Tercero, as I think Larry makes all his white and red wines under screwcap (bravo to Larry). I’m sure there are others. And if any winemakers want to chime in on plans to move this direction in the future, I’d love to hear about it.
I can’t believe I didn’t think of Loring and Siduri. They probably won’t be the first names mentioned in this thread that makes me feel like a bonehead.
Brian, do you have any sense of whether it has tended to help or hurt your sales? I assume you believe they are superior closures, but of course, customers are fickle and not always armed with all the information. Plus, whatever a customer may think, they may still be concerned about what their uninformed friends and relatives, with whom they may open the wines in the future, think about the closures, or what they signify about the wine.
I love screwcaps, for red or white wines. It would seem that the reduction problem is being dealt with, Stelvin has I think 3 different screwcaps with different levels of oxygen transmission, and another company is coming out with a similar range.
Oliver, do you see any more inroads coming with screwcaps, or are almost all of the premium red wines going to stay with corks for the forseeable future?
I’m surprised more don’t at least stick their toe in the water by offering one or two of their premium reds in both closures. I know there’s a bit of extra cost and hassle to doing multiple closures for one wine, but I’d think someone might try it. They could see for themselves how much demand there is for one versus the other, they’d get some free publicity out of it, and they’d have some interesting aging comparisons down the road.
Oliver, have any of your Alto Adige producers used Stelvins for export (particularly to German speaking countries) but had to use corks for the Italian market?
Laimburg told us that the Italians REFUSED to buy screwcaps and they had to do both.
Lots of Oregon wineries use screwcaps on at least some of their red wines.
Argyle, Benton Lane, Erath, King Estate, Lange, Ponzi, Roco, Willakenzie.
Not WB favorites to be sure, but the list is growing.
I have a pair of 2004 Penner Ash Pinots, one under screwcap, one with cork.
It is probably time to put them to the taste comparison. Anyone interested?
Please do make a separate post on here when you do the comparison, hopefully a blind comparison with a few other experienced tasters.
Even better if it’s double blind to the others (i.e. they don’t know they’re trying two versions of the same wine under two different closures, but are just trying two red wines, or two Oregon pinots).
I asked a panel of producers at a big seminar on AA wines this year why they didn’t use more screwcaps, and they said ‘our biggest market is still Italy, and…’
Some of my producers have switched, though, and the AA is by far the best region of Italy for this (perhaps due to its proximity to Austria, which is the only old world country that has embraced screwcaps). Erste & Neue, Thurnhof, the excellent Kuenhof, Baron Widmann have all switched at least some wines. There is a mobile bottling line in the area, which is key (it would be really hard for most small producers to buy their own equipment, at least initially). Germano in Serralunga has just bought his own equipment, as has Colle Stefano in Matelica. Things are shifting, albeit glacially.
I love that La Clarine is moving toward 100% screw closure (at least, all the wines I’ve gotten from them from 2011 on have 'em). Great wines, and a real progressive vigneron.
The Loring screwcaps make opening another bottle of wine way too easy It lowers the transaction cost just enough to promote drinking more.
Many a night I have been downstairs and just finished a bottle with my wife and wanted one more glass, but all my screwpulls are located upstairs. Nine times out of ten I would just go into my wine storage (10 feet away), pull out a Loring, unscrew, and within 10 seconds I had my other glass. Instant gratification.
And that reminds me that I forgot to put in my order.
It lowers the transaction cost just enough to promote drinking more.