| Screw tops also allow oxygen to flow through, in fact, it can even be 'controlled'[1].
This way the caps on some younger wines allow more oxygen to flow through than the older 'lay-down' ones etc. Overall, a screw-cap is a way better option, one of the biggest wine vendors in France (Chateau Bonnet from the famous André Lurton) switched to caps some years ago after extensive research and also prefers them above traditional cork for all wines. Furthermore see [2], they list the following advantages: - No cork taint - No more sporadic oxidation - Screwcaps avoid flavour modification, including scalping - Both red and white wines can age under screwcap - A reliable long-term seal - Cellaring - Recycling [1] http://www.mutineermagazine.com/blog/2008/05/screw-this-cap-... [2] http://www.screwcapinitiative.com/normal.asp?navID=24&pa... |
Theoretically cork taint is mostly avoidable as long as the wines aren't stored in buildings made from wood or that have wood floors, and as long as there isn't air conditioning. The reason for cork taint is that the chlorine that's used in cleaning products and that comes out of air conditioners (running on chlorinated city water) builds up in wood over time, and then reacts with the mold in cork to form TCA. The other problem is that the vast majority of cork is stored on the ground and is just left to get moldy with zero quality standards, despite what this article would have you believe. Cork taint should be essentially non-existant up until the time of purchase, it's just that the industry has been completely unable to get its act together.