Cork contamination can cause wine to spoil, with 1-15% of bottled wines affected. The cause is often a chemical called 2,4,6-trichloroanisole, which can develop if fungi come into contact with environmental pollutants called chlorphenols. Synthetic corks and screw-top wines can also suffer from cork contamination.
The smell of cork is usually the explanation for why a bottled wine goes bad, other than improper storage or significant age. The cork may appear moldy or the wine may have seeped through the cork. Alternatively, the wine itself may taste musty or have an unpleasant odor. The smell of cork or wine with a touch of cork has as many colorful comparisons as wet dog or musty newspaper.
Approximately 1-15% of bottled wines will show traces of cork contamination. That’s why restaurants that serve wine open the bottle at the table. The patron can inspect the cork and the wine can be sniffed and tasted for evidence of cork contamination. Once you’ve found the cork stain, it’s perfectly acceptable to send a wine back.
While some cork stain is the result of a contaminated cork, some wine spoilage can be due to storage in oak barrels, which can also grow fungi. The fungus is harmless to drink, but makes a tasteless or unpleasant wine.
Cork odor occurs when the cork or wine becomes contaminated with a chemical called 2,4,6-trichloroanisole. This chemical can develop if fungi come in contact with environmental pollutants called chlorphenols. Chlorophenols are often present in pesticides and can be found in cork or oak trees which are later processed into barrels. They can also be used as a wood preservative. Oak barrels with this wood preservative are much more likely to have cork stains.
Ironically, perhaps, a cork stain can also occur when people try to make wine hygienic and safe to drink. Many companies used to bleach corks with chlorine, which can produce chlorophenols. Since this cause of cork contamination has been established, other bleaching methods for corks are now preferred. Most cork companies use hydrogen peroxide or other peroxides as a safer alternative.
Since cork is not always involved in cork contamination, wine with synthetic corks may still suffer from cork contamination. Screw-top wines, which are often poorly made by wine traditionalists are actually prone to a different kind of taint. The cork can release odors, which taint the smell and taste of the wine.
Other chemicals may also be responsible for cork contamination, but they occur less frequently. Most of these chemical compounds produce unpleasant odors, quite different from the smell of cork. An unusual, off-putting odor may not be a “traditional” cork stain, but it’s still a good reason to send a wine back, especially when you’re paying good scores for the wine at a restaurant.
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