The Latest Trend in the Wine Business: The Stelvin Closure

One accepted mandate for years in the wine business was the simple concept of loss. Out of 100 bottles of wine that used natural cork as closures, there was almost a given that up to 7% of the bottles could be tainted or “corked” by the presence of the chemical trichloranisole. This was viewed for years as a given, a cost of doing business.

But margins are forever shrinking and many winemakers, tradition notwithstanding, have begun experimenting with synthetic or plastic closures.

I noticed a very subtle screw off cap on a bottle of Mondavi at one of my favorite local restaurants last weekend. It was, as the bartender explained, a Stelvin Closure (named after the inventor).

I have long been opposed to the use of screw off caps from a traditional standpoint. But the Mondavi Cab tasted just fine and I have to admit I was impressed by the Stelvin cap. There is some data that suggests that in particularly fine wines, which can age for years, the Stelvin closures may be susceptible to a general degradation which might allow some air in with potentially catastrophic results. But that so far is just a suggestion. We won’t really know until some fine Cabs have aged long enough to put the closure to the test.

But I see a call to arms here. Winemakers want to increase profits and the Stelvin Closure is one way of doing it. Opinion studies also show that many wine drinkers, who were utterly opposed to screw off caps 5 years ago, are also grudgingly starting to come around. What’s your take on this? Email me at info@diningoutwithrobbalon.com.