When it comes to wine, few debates spark more curiosity than the one between cork and screw cap closures. While the choice might seem like a small detail, it can actually impact how wine tastes, ages, and is perceived. So, is one better than the other? Let’s discuss!
Cork vs. Screw Cap: The Basics
Cork: Old World Tradition
Natural cork has sealed wine bottles for centuries. It’s made from the bark of cork oak trees and is beloved for its tradition, its pop, and its romantic symbolism. Cork is also slightly porous, letting in tiny amounts of oxygen over time—which can help certain wines age and evolve beautifully.
But cork can have a downside: the potential of cork taint, a musty fault caused by a compound called TCA. While rare, it can spoil a wine’s aroma and taste. Around 1–3% of wines sealed with cork are affected.
Screw Cap: Modern Innovation
Once seen as “cheap,” screw caps have earned serious respect—especially in places like Australia and New Zealand. They’re airtight, easy to open, and brilliant at preserving fresh, fruity flavours. Most white wines and many rosés benefit from their tight seal. And contrary to old myths, premium wines can—and do—come under screw cap. Many winemakers now use screw caps not just because it’s cheaper for production, but because it offers more control over the wine’s ageing and gives some additional consistency.
The Science: How Oxygen Affects Wine
Here’s the big thing closures influence: oxygen exposure.
- A little oxygen helps red wines soften and develop complexity over years.
- Too much oxygen makes wine go stale.
- Too little oxygen can trap unpleasant aromas (like sulfur or rubber), especially in whites.
Natural cork is a popular choice for specific grape varieties and wines because the cork allows slow, variable oxygen exchange which can support the ageing of wine.
Screw caps used to be pretty much airtight, but now modern screw caps are made with special liners that can be customised to let in just the right amount of oxygen for ageing if required. Some examples of this are saranex liners which allow small amounts of oxygen into the wine.
That means screw caps can, in theory, now age wine just like cork but with far more consistency and no cork taint. Pretty cool, right?
Choosing Cork vs Screw Cap
Go for cork if:
- You’re cellaring an age-worthy red (like Bordeaux or Barolo)
- You love the ritual and feel of pulling a cork
Choose screw cap if:
- You’re drinking a wine that is meant to be consumed young
- You want something super fresh, fruity, and consistent
- You’re taking wine camping, traveling, or just hate hunting for a corkscrew.
Debunking The Quality Myth
Despite the evidence supporting the efficacy of screw caps, there remains a stubborn misconception that cork is automatically superior. In reality, screw caps have been widely adopted by reputable wineries around the world, including producers of high-quality wines – it just depends what wine you are putting in the bottle! If a wine is meant to be drank fresh and young, producers won’t be using cork.
Ultimately, both methods of closure have their place in the wine world depending on what the wine maker is trying to achieve, and consumers should feel confident in choosing wines sealed with either cork or screw cap based on personal preference rather than old school myths about the quality of the wine inside.
The closure is just one part of a winemaker’s toolkit—and today, both cork and screw caps are used on amazing wines. The real question isn’t what’s sealing the bottle, but what’s inside it and how soon you plan to drink it.
So whether it’s the satisfying pop of a cork or the crisp twist of a cap, enjoy your wine the way you like it. ????
Cheers!
