Even The Northwest Has Its Own New Synthetic Cork

If you purchase even three or four bottles of wine a month on the average, chances are you've encountered a synthetic cork. And chances are the experience (a) made you angry because the cork disappeared into the bottle, (b) pleased you because it popped out of the bottle easily, or (c) you never noticed.

All three reactions have been reported including (a) from our restaurant critic, John Hinterberger, who wrote of his frustration earlier this year after attempting to open a bottle of Hogue Cellars wine.

It's something we are going to be living with from now on. No, winemakers are not doing this to make your life more difficult. In fact, it's their life that has been difficult since cork became more scarce and expensive. But that wasn't the main reason. It was "corked" wine, a problem that has plagued the wine industry for years.

If you've had a corked wine, usually evidenced by an off aroma of mustiness often described as like "wet cardboard," you'd recognize it. According to many winemakers, it can exist in up to 9 percent of all wines. The cost to the industry could be 5 percent of total annual sales. However, it might be higher, as many consumers, recognizing that the wine is bad but not knowing why, simply never return or purchase that wine again.

The culprit is the cork. But why and how recurring corkiness seemed to surface less than five years ago, is another question. Lower-quality cork from makers in Portugal and Spain is one answer. Another is poor handling and sanitation of the finished cork. In any case, the problem has not gone away.

If many winemakers had their way, a screw-top closure would be the answer. As unromantic as it sounds, it is the perfect closure, sealing the wine correctly and allowing no seepage. But would the public buy it? Not on your life, according to most marketing studies. The average wine buyer expects a cork in the bottle and associates screw caps with cheap, poorly made wine.

Then along came synthetic corks, a new development in the past few years which a number of winemakers have taken up with enthusiasm.

Basically, it is just as it sounds, a realistic-looking "cork" made from a high-grade synthetic material that will not affect the flavor or aroma of the wine and can be opened with a regular corkscrew. Unlike wood-bark cork, an agricultural commodity subject to varying conditions such as weather, synthetic corks are man-made at considerably less cost.

Two producers of synthetic corks emerged on the market early: Cellu-kork from the Lermer Packaging Co. of New Jersey, and Tage, made by the A.P.M. company, of California (which has all but disappeared).

Any number of major wineries in California have used these artificial corks, generally with mixed results. In most cases, they have cautiously used the synthetic corks on a limited number of wines, usually varieties such as chenin blanc, white zinfandel, etc.

It wasn't long before the idea spread to the Northwest. The big news this year was the appearance of the first Northwest-manufactured synthetic cork. The brand, SupremeCorq, was developed by a corporation formed in 1991 by several Washington residents with diverse talents. Businessman Jerry M. Zech is president. Bringing his wine expertise to the group is Steve Burnell, well known locally within the restaurant and wine business.

After three years of research and development, SupremeCorq made its appearance last year and is now being used in more than half a dozen Northwest wineries. Worden Winery has made extensive use of the synthetic corks until, today, they are used in nearly one half of the winery's production. Paul Vandenberg, winemaker for Worden, is a big fan.

"Anybody who's opened many corked bottles," he says, "would welcome the idea. When I saw what bad corks did to my chenin blanc (a wine he was particularly fond of), I knew we had to stop this."

Other Washington wineries have either experimented with or used the artificial corks by the Kent firm, including Hogue Cellars, Preston Wine Cellars, Covey Run, Portteus Vineyards, Yakima River, Barnard Griffin, Yamhill Valley Vineyards and Bridgeview Vineyards of Southern Oregon. Bridgeview's new bottling, Blue Moon Riesling, has probably made the biggest statement for the local synthetic corks. The riesling was bottled with a variety of wildly colored corks, which probably surprised and amused many a wine drinker.

For the record, it should be noted that the cork that gave Hinterberger problems was the Cellu-kork from New Jersey. David Forsyth, winemaker at Hogue, is now working with both corks, but feels Cellu-kork has made improvements.

"We certainly need alternatives to natural cork," he says. "I think we've really worked through the physical problems and now we just need to educate the consumer."

Forsyth is planning to bottle his latest sauvignon blanc with synthetic corks, a first for a top-end varietal. In another vote of confidence, Doug McCrea of McCrea Cellars is bottling all of his 1993 chardonnay using SupremeCorq.

There are, however, winemakers who won't use the new technology, mostly smaller, prestigious wineries whose image doesn't fit a plastic cork. One of these is Kay Simon, winemaker and co-owner of the highly respected Chinook Wines, who has her doubts.

"Wine is a pretty traditional thing," she says, "And when you start making changes, you have to think of your consumer. I don't have any problem with the imitation corks per se, but I don't want to be the guinea pig. I prefer to use high-quality corks."

One final bit of advice: Nearly any corkscrew will work on the synthetic corks, except for one. From personal experience, I would avoid the two-pronged corkscrew (commonly called an "ah-so"). There's an 80 percent chance the cork will end up in the bottle.