I see there are different types of corks available, why?

Corks are made out of different materials for several reasons, and some will impact your decision on what type of cork to buy. You also have different grades of cork to confuse things even more, but once you understand what each type can do for you we think it will be much easier to make a decision.

First Quality Corks

Let’s first talk about the cork that most wine makers use, the First Quality Cork. This is a standard cork material that does well for short to medium storage times. It is not unusual for a #9 X 1¾” cork to store a wine for 5 years or more, based on our experience. They do allow more air to transfer than some of the more expensive corks, but they do a pretty good job for most home winemakers. Keep in mind that proper wine storage is vital with this type of cork.

Premium Corks

The next level up is the Premium Cork. These corks are usually made up of bits of cork that are pressed together to form the entire cork. These will work a little better because there are fewer gaps in the cork, and that leads to less air transfer. Simply put, the less air transfer, the longer the wine will store.

Winery Grade Corks

The last type of natural cork will go buy the name of ultra premium, or super premium. These corks are very dense, and have very little gaps in them. These are a strong contender for storage time with the synthetic corks. These corks cost a lot, but they do help with the longevity of the wine.

Synthetic Corks

Another type of cork is the all synthetic cork. These are the corks that look like a dense sponge when you pull them out of the bottle. The nice thing with this type of cork is because it is made out of synthetic material you do not have to store the bottle on its side. Only corks made with cork need to be stored on their side because the cork will dry out otherwise. Some argue that an all synthetic cork helps the wine store for a longer period of time. There are some studies going on about this subject, and we’ll update this article once the results are in.

Agglomerated Corks

The last type of cork is a cork/synthetic blend. These corks are pressed together with natural and man made materials to form the cork. This leaves very little room for gaps in the cork, and is our recommendation for long term storage of a wine. We use these for any wines that we plan on storing for 5+ years. We’ve had customers tell us that they have been able to store wines for 10 – 15 years with this type of cork. Make sure that you store the wine properly if it’s being stored long-term.

Corks are very important to the storage of wine because the cork is the only thing preventing air from coming into contact with the wine. If you plan on making a wine and aging it for a long time, spend the extra money on a good cork. This is one area where you get what you pay for. Don’t expect a wine to store for 10 years with a low-end cork because they are not designed to store a wine for long periods of time. A lot of wine makers use the lower end corks because their wine may not age very long before being consumed. There are those that have wine cellars, or good storage areas, that treat their homemade wine just as well as they would a good bottle of commercial wine. This author is one of them. I love pulling out a wine that I made 5 years ago and trying it today. It is amazing how wonderful the wine tastes with that much age time on it. Don’t be afraid, or embarrassed, to treat your wine the same way as you would a commercial bottle of wine. Your wine can be every bit as good, even better, than a lot of commercial wines out there. Just be sure to use the right cork!