Cork For Champagne

Cork For Champagne

The cork is a vital piece of champagne's identity.cork for champagne The porous, mushroom-shaped stopper seals the bottle and stops oxygen from flooding in, preserving the sparkling wine's precious bubbles for all to enjoy. But its role is more than just to preserve bubbly, it is also a guardian of the delicately made wine and has a special place in champagne's ritualized opening. It is an important job with very particular rules that must be scrupulously followed for all to enjoy.

Corks for champagne are made from the bark of a very special tree, Quercus suber.cork for champagne The elasticity of the corks is due to the numerous pores in its dense, tough surface. It is these pores, when compressed at a cellular level, that give the champagne bottles their famous "puff" as they open. The corks also help to retain the wine's bubbles and their flavour for longer, compared to other types of bottle closures such as screw caps or synthetic corks, which have a greater permeability to oxygen.

The corks used to put into champagne bottles are specially pressed and processed, making them very resilient to the huge pressures in the bottle.cork for champagne The bottling machine compresses the cork down to over half its length when it is inserted and the lower part expands into a bulb shape that resists the enormous pressure in the bottle. The lower part is then sanded and treated with a mixture of tallow, wax and resin to give the cork an attractive and durable finish. This treatment, and the fact that the cork is a natural material, has contributed to the Champagne's world renowned reputation for quality.

Modern processes have shifted away from using the traditional natural corks and now almost all Champagne bottles are sealed with agglomerated or composite corks.cork for champagne These are made by blending adhesive and high-quality cork waste to make a solid cylindrical structure, that is more robust and less susceptible to problems such as cork taint. But many producers still use traditional corks for the aging of their champagnes, and these are still very robust and long-lasting.

When opening a bottle of Champagne, it's essential to have the right tools to hand.cork for champagne A chilled bottle, placed in an ice bath; an empty glass, for pouring; a clean napkin; and for any recalcitrant corks, a pair of Champagne cork pliers, or a more expensive lever corkscrew.

To avoid having Champagne shooting off into all directions when you remove the wire cage, hold the body of the bottle in your dominant hand at a 30-45° angle and point it in a safe direction.cork for champagne Then, wedge the bulbous end of the cork deep into the palm of your non-dominant hand. This will prevent it from flying off into a crowd.

Once the cork is out, a quick rinse under hot water will get rid of any residual Champagne left in the bottle neck and prepare it to be removed properly. If you do have a recalcitrant cork that takes some effort to extract, running the neck of the bottle under warm water for three to five minutes can agitate it enough to encourage it to come out more quickly.

Tags:t top cork | bar top cork | 187ml champagne bottle