It’s the hottest time of the year, and that’s a big test for wine. If you are careless, you may crash. Some time ago, a friend bought wine. After opening the package, he noticed that the wine’s cork was bulging out, which is often called a “popped cork” (inflated cork or top cork). What is the cause of popping? How can I avoid bursting? Can I still drink this wine?
1, what is the cause of the explosion?
The cork may be caused during bottling, transportation and storage. In general, there are six main causes.
(1) Failure to compress during bottling: During the wine filling process, the machine malfunctions and the cork is not fully compressed, which may cause part of the cork to remain outside and therefore look like a “popped cork”.
(2) Residual yeast in the wine: Most wines contain sugar, even dry red wines contain less than 4 g/l. If there is residual yeast in the wine at this time, secondary fermentation will occur, resulting in the release of carbon dioxide and causing an explosion.
(3) High sugar content of wine: The possibility of bursting is high because of the high sugar content and the possibility of secondary fermentation, which may lead to bursting.
(4) High temperature: The fermentation process uses sulfur dioxide and produces carbon dioxide, a small portion of which is dissolved in the white wine. When the temperature rises, their solubility decreases, leading to precipitation and a cork explosion.
(5) Low temperature: If the temperature is too low, the wine will freeze and increase in volume, which will also resist the cork and cause the cork to explode.
(6) violent vibration: violent vibration of the wine will accelerate the oxidation and evaporation of phenolic substances in the wine, increasing the temperature of the wine, which will lead to the formation of the burst wine explosion cork.
2、How to avoid bursting?
(1) Check carefully when bottling to avoid the phenomenon of uncompressed cork.
(2) Avoid violent vibrations during transportation and storage. Vibrations will accelerate the oxidation of the wine and reduce the quality of the wine.
(3) Keep the temperature at a constant 10-15°C. If the temperature fluctuates too much, it will cause the cork to expand and contract, which will reduce the sealing performance and cause the liquid to leak.
3、Can I drink exploded wine?
Exploding wine is not necessarily bad wine. Whether you can drink it depends on the degree of explosion.
(1) Cork with only a slight bulge: This wine is most likely due to packaging errors or the high sugar content of the wine, as there happens to be residual yeast in the wine, causing secondary fermentation. Usually, there are no problems with this type of wine and it can be consumed normally. However, it is not recommended to keep it for a long time and should be consumed as soon as possible.
(2) Cork protrusion: This type of wine may be affected by short-term high temperatures or severe vibrations during transportation, which may affect the quality of the wine, but sometimes it is not bad and can be consumed normally.
(3) Cork protruding 30% or more: This type of wine indicates that a large amount of air has entered the bottle, often accompanied by leaks and other phenomena. The wine usually emits the flavor of cooked fruit and caramel, and the aroma is depleted, so it is usually not recommended to drink.
4. In addition to popping the cork, there is also the phenomenon of plug penetration
In addition to popping the cork, there is also a cork in wine. A cork is a slight liquid leak caused by the wine being soaked in oak cork during storage.
Wines with cork are not necessarily poor quality wines. For example, the famous Burgundy winery Leroy often uses cork, which is a soft, breathable material that is manually sealed to allow the wine to mature better. As a result, the cork will wear out during long-term storage, but the quality of the wine is not affected and can still be consumed.
In short, wine is not necessarily bad, whether it is burst or threaded. Some wines can still be consumed, but their quality will not be affected.
