Ever Wonder? Why Are Some Wine Bottles Sealed with Wax?

Occasionally, you may come across a wine bottle that has a wax seal over the top of the cork that somewhat covers the neck of the bottle. You may have wondered “Why is it sealed in wax?” and “How do I remove the wax so that I can get to the cork?” These are a couple of great questions to explore.

Most wine bottles today have a capsule cover the cork that goes part-way down the neck of the bottle. In the not so distant past, these were made from lead but are now manufactured from aluminum or a heat-shrinkable plastic.

Whatever the material, these wine bottle capsules serve several purposes. Originally, a capsule was used to protect the cork from insects and varmints when being transported by ship or being stored in caves. And, wax was sometime used as a seal over the cork to keep it from leaking.

With today’s availability of good quality cork, plastic corks and twist-off caps, it’s generally not necessary to add a wax seal. But, some wine producers do use it. Today the wax is used to either provide an air-tight seal for wines that are meant to be aged for long periods of time or they are used as ‘high-end’ decoration for otherwise ordinary wines.

So, these wax seals can either be functional or decorative. But, how do you get through the wax to be able to pull the cork? We’ll address that next time. Until then, Cheers!

Just a Few More Tidbits on Wine Bottles

Last time we explored the various shapes of wine bottles and learned that they are based on traditions that continue to today. Here are few more tidbits about wine bottles:

• The color of wine bottles originally had their origins in helping to protect the wine. Dark bottles protected the wines from premature spoilage. So, wines that age longer, like reds, will almost always be in dark green bottles.

• Today, the color of a wine bottle is still used to protect wines but they are also based on tradition

  • Bordeaux bottles are most often green for red wines (e.g., Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux Red Blends, Zinfandel, and Merlot) or clear for white wines (e.g., Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc)

  • Burgundy bottles are usually green (e.g., Pinot Noir and Chardonnay)

  • Alsace bottles come in clear, green or amber (e.g., Riesling)

• The wine bottle colors shown in the photo are (left to right) clear, antique green, dead leaf green, dark amber, amber and Champagne green

• Looking closely at wine bottles, you’ll notice that some are flat on the bottom while others will have a deep indentation known as a "punt.” These indentations were originally put there by early glassblowers to ensure a bottle could stand on its own. Without a punt, the rounded bottle needed some other means of staying upright. Which leads us to Chianti…

• Chianti bottles were originally wrapped in straw for two purposes: hand-blown glass bottles had round bottoms and could only stand up-right with the aid of the straw basket, and the baskets served as added protection during shipping

• The foil cover that goes over the top of a wine bottle, covering the cork, is called a capsule. While the capsule was originally used to protect the cork, today it is largely decorative. The color of the capsule has no meaning and is usually chosen to best match the bottle and label

  Cheers!

Why is There a Foil Capsule on a Wine Bottle?

Last time we looked at where cork comes from and learned that it's actually the bark of the Cork Oak tree. It is bark that can take 25 to 50 years to get to the point where it is usable for wine bottles and each tree can only be harvested every nine years so as to not do permanent damage to the inner bark of the tree.  But then there is a capsule that covers the cork and the top of the bottle. Ever wonder why there is a capsule on a wine bottle?

Originally the capsule was placed over the cork as a means of protecting the cork from insects and rodents that found the cork to be an enjoyable meal.  The capsule served as a barrier between the critters and the cork.  There are also some theories that the capsule was also a way of covering the cork from would-be wine thieves. The capsule kept unscrupulous individuals from being able to pull the cork on a good bottle, drink the contents, replace it with inferior wine and re-cork the bottle!  I'm not completely sure of this one, but it makes some sense. But, it certainly was the original reason behind the wire-netting that was used over some bottles of wines.

The wine bottle capsule, and wire-netting, continue to be used today. But not to protect the cork from critters or the wines from dishonest thieves. Today the capsule and netting serve purely as decorative elements of the wine bottle packaging.  This was abundantly clear during a recent visit to a small winery. While standing at the tasting bar, the owner came out with a couple different gold-colored capsules and asked which one looked best with their label.  After a bit of comparison with the colors on the wine label, it seemed obvious that one was the better shade of gold.  "Yes" the owner said, "but it's considerably more expensive than the other one."  I don't actually know which capsule they ended up choosing, but the capsule is all about packaging. And economics. 

Originally the capsule was made of lead. It was a very malleable metal that was easily formed into the proper shape. But, in the 1990's, it was confirmed that the lead left enough residue on the bottle's lip so as to be a potential lead poisoning health hazard to wine drinkers. So lead was replaced with tin or plastic.  There are also many wineries that are eliminating the capsule completely, or just placing a small dollop of sealing wax over the top of the cork.

One other bit of trivia regarding the capsule. If you take a close look at the top of the capsule you'll typically see one or two tiny pinholes in the cap.  These holes have been attributed to allowing the cork and the wine to ever-so-slightly breath over time. But the commonly accepted reason is much more practical.  These tiny holes in the top of a wine capsule actually allow the air to escape while the capsule is being installed. Without these 'vents' the air inside the capsule would become trapped and the capsule would not be able to fully seat on the lip of the bottle.

Well, that's a lot of information on something that we usually ignore and simply cut off before enjoying a bottle of wine.  So here's to pulling that cork and enjoying a nice glass of wine. Cheers!

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Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week - Columbia Crest Chardonnay ($8)

Looking for an attainable, affordable wine?  You've come to the right place. Each week I feature just such a wine on the Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week page of EverWonderWine.com. 

This week's wine is Columbia Crest Chardonnay. A great value at $8!  While the pendulum of Chardonnays has swung away from the heavily oaked "Big Buttery" Chardonnays, the Columbia Crest still gives buttery-oak Chardonnay lovers a viable option.  While the oak is bold and rich, it is not over-the-top. This is a great wine with seafood, chicken or a salad.