Fake corks?

[eppie]

The reason to use real cork is not only tradition.

See, one of the great properties of cork is that it expands a bit when it gets wet, and so makes for an excellent seal when the bottle is at a sideways position; ideally the cork would be long enough so that, if you just tilt the bottle instead of putting it sideways, the entire bottom would be in wine but the "water level" would be just under the opening of the bottle. You might have seen that long-term sideways stored wine can be ruined when the cork gets completely wet and the wine is in contact with the outside world.

But aside from that, it does not seal the bottle perfectly. Over time, small amounts of oxygen will get inside, and those micro-oxidations will add to the flavour of the wine. It will age in the bottle, and for different kinds of wine you'll see how different lenghts of aging are recommended. In fact, some wineries will go as far as storing the bottles for some time themselves, one or two years, before selling it.

Finally, one piece of data for the curious, the cork industry is alive and well in Spain. You can get it in square pieces to be used on floors even (treated in a similar way to wood, makes for a softer and warmer surface but it tends to age and deteriorate more quickly).

I urge anyone here that likes wine to try Spanish wine. Look for the grape variety "tempranillo" if you want to try something original ;) </SHAMELESS PLUG>

Okay, I have learned some new things again. (what do all these other post about breeding mean??)
I have a few questions remarks though.

The oxygen thing: -the cork is ussually alco covered by a metal wrap. I would think this will not let through oxygen. Maybe it does, but then my question is do they make cork and wrap so that the amount of oxygen that passes is more or less known?. I also have bottles of "long keeping" wine that hav the cork closed with wax (the stuff to make offcial seals), I guess that does not let oxygen pass. And will the amount of oxygen that will pass the cork be significant with respect to the oxygen that is present in the wine at the moment they bottle it?.

Anyway, thanks for the wine reccomendation.