A Stelvin? What on earth is that???

[JH02JLH]

No, it's not a christian name for chavs, but the new word for the screwcap.

I was blissfully unaware of this until the other day when my colleague in the wine shop pointed it out to me.

We will be seeing more and more of these wonderful little closures as wine producers move away from cork to screwcap.

And I for one am pleased! No need to mess about with fiddly corkscrews and no danger of cork taint which they reckon afffects about 8% of wine. We have numerous bottles stacked up on a shelf at work, full of "corked" wine, recognisable by its musty, rotten wood smell.

The jury is still out on whether the stelvin is as wonderful as it makes out, as some say the essence of the wine can be affected by not allowing it to breathe as it would do with a cork seal.

And also there is the danger of the cork forests disappearing as the demand for cork decreases.

But for sheer convenience and for wines that are consumed within months of being bottled, the stelvin is perfect.

But I could never see the top Bordeaux producers adopting it!

Happy quaffing!
Jane

There was quite a big article about 'bottle closures' of various types in one of the Telegraph weekend papers, apparently the cork industry is revitalising itself so there may be a return to cork, I am not fussy as long as the wine is in good condition! It is helpful if the danged things are openable though, some of the synthetic corks are very tight indeed.

[JH02JLH]

Hi Penny!

Yes the plastic corks are perhaps my least favourite as they have nearly broken my "screwpull" corkscrew in the past and are very difficult to get out.

Plus they are virtually impossible to insert back into the bottle if you don't finish it in one go (rare in my house!).

Jane