The Wine Bottle

Beer bottle tops (caps) and wine corks have been used to keep their respective fluids in their respective vessels for longer than most people can remember. Indeed they are an iconic image to the seasoned drinker, scattered about the floor and table after a heavy night on the liquor. However, with the insurgence of the screw top wine and beer bottle, the old designs are being pushed out, and are soon to be an extinct.

Bottle caps are traditionally made from steel and the original design had 24 teeth that wrapped around the rim, although more modern caps have around 21 teeth. Whilst they were great at keeping the contents of a bottle fresh, they are a nightmare to get off and unless you have teeth made from granite, you have to use a bottle opener to stand any chance of quenching your thirst. For this reason above all others, the screw top beer bottle has seen an upsurge of popularity in recent years, as they can be taken anywhere and you don’t have to drag and bottle opener along with you.

It’s a similar story with wine bottles, although ease of entry is not the only reason wine makers are moving away from corks. A corkscrew used to be a staple part of any tableware set, but its usefulness is dwindling as screw top wine bottles become more popular. In the same way as beer bottles need a bottle opener, wine bottles always required a corkscrew to be close by, and that’s just not always practical. Additionally, when it comes to storing wine for any length of time, screw tops are far superior to corks. Air can breach the cork as it expands and contracts with different moisture levels in its surroundings, and air can very easily turn a wine bad. Also, it has a tendency to break up over time if the wine is stored horizontally, as it often is on a wine rack, resulting in the wine sometimes being ‘corked’ when served. So it seems that whilst some classic tops are on their way out, at least they are being replaced by superior products.

Tags: Beer, caps, corks, screw top, wine bottles