WAC 2022 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 WAC 9 WAC 2022 9 3 - WAC - Posters 9 Influence of cork density upon cork stopper resiliency after opening a sparkling wine bottle

Influence of cork density upon cork stopper resiliency after opening a sparkling wine bottle

Abstract

After Champagne popping, the first consumer’s observation is the shape of the cork stopper. Consumers expect a “mushroom shape”. Nevertheless, we sometimes observe a “barrel” shape due to inappropriate cork’s elastic properties. The aim of this study was to follow the loss of cork stopper resiliency during 26 months according to the density (d) of the cork in contact with the wine. 1680 disks were weighed + measured and divided in 6 density classes: High (H1 d= 0,19 g/cm3 – H2 d= 0,21 g/cm3), Medium (M, not studied) and Low (L1 d= 0,13 g/cm3 – L2 d= 0,14 g/cm3). Then, 138 technical cork stoppers were produced for each of the 4 studied groups. These corks consisted of an agglomerated natural cork granule body to which two natural cork disks were glued. A total of 552 bottles of sparkling wine were closed with these corks and open after 13, 19 and 26 months to follow cork resiliencies. Wine bottles were stored horizontally; thus, the external natural cork disks were in contact to the wine. During the 26 months of the study, highly significant differences (ANOVA) were observed between the resiliencies of H-corks and those of L-corks, whatever the time studied. The diameters of the L-corks were statistically higher than those of the H-corks. No significant differences were observed between L1 and L2 corks. At the opposite, differences were noted betweenThomas Salmon H1 and H2 at 19 and 26 months. This could be explained by the heterogeneity of the resiliency that was higher for H-corks than for L-corks. Finally, the corks were visually (12 judges) divided in 3 classes corresponding to high (expected mushroom shape, i.e high resiliency), medium (irregular shape of the disk in contact with the wine and/or low premature deterioration of the expected resiliency) and low qualities (barrel shape = premature deterioration of the resiliency). The corks were also divided in 3 categories corresponding to 0-33%, 34-66% and 67-100% resiliency. A strong correlation was noted between the visual and the instrumental categorizations. This study strongly evidenced 1) the importance of the cork density on the cork stopper behaviour when opening the bottle and 2) the interest of an instrumental approach reflecting the consumer’s perception.

DOI:

Publication date: June 27, 2022

Issue: WAC 2022

Type: Article

Authors

Thomas Salmon, Jordi Rosello, Alexandre Marcoult, Chantal Prat, Richard Marchal

Presenting author

Thomas Salmon – University of Reims Champagne-Ardenne – University of Haute-Alsace

Francisco Oller S. A. Cassà de la Selva, Province of Girona, Spain | Oller & Cie – SIBEL, Reims, France | Francisco Oller S. A. Cassà de la Selva, Province of Girona, Spain | Laboratoire d’Oenologie, Université de Reims Champagne-Ardenne, Reims – Université de Haute-Alsace, Colmar, France, ,

Contact the author

Keywords

cork stopper, cork density, resiliency, sparkling wine, visual categorization

Tags

IVES Conference Series | WAC 2022

Citation

Related articles…

Significance of factors making Riesling an iconic grape variety

Riesling is the iconic grape variety of Germany and accounts for 23% of the German viticulture acreage, which comprises 45% of the worldwide Riesling plantings. Riesling wines offer a wide array of styles from crisp sparkling wines to highly concentrated and sweet Trockenbeerenauslese or Icewines. However, its thin berry skin makes Riesling more vulnerable to detrimental environmental threats than other white wine varieties.  

Malolactic fermentation in wine production

What influence do these bacteria have on wines? What new bacteria are being studied to carry out this fermentation? Find below articles about malolactic fermentation published in our 3 media (OENO One, IVES Technical Reviews and IVES Conference Series). OENO One...

Metabolomics screening of Vitis sp. interspecific hybrids to select natural ingredients with cosmetic purposes

Introducing natural ingredients using green chemistry practices is a major challenge in cosmetics industry to follow the market trend. Among the plants of cosmetic interest, vine products show a remarkable diversity of natural substances with high potential for the cosmetic and dermatological sectors. To date, research focuses on well-known compounds like E-resveratrol and E-ε-viniferin,

WAC 2022: Abstracts are available on IVES Conference Series

In order to disseminate the scientific results presented during the WAC 2022 , the organizers have decided to share the abstracts of the oral communications and posters with Open Access on IVES Conference Series. The fifth edition of the International Conference...

Winemaking techniques and wine tasting methods at the end of the Middle Ages

Les pratiques de vinification et de dégustation du vin sont souvent perçues, à travers un discours marketing très puissant, sous l’angle d’une tradition millénaire qui perdure depuis le Moyen Âge. En Bourgogne, il est courant de rattacher les racines de ces pratiques à l’activité des institutions ecclésiastiques qui possédaient d