MCV FARM NEWS - 5/31/08 - Man in a Dress?

Hey Ya'll,

Good morning! It seems that Mother Nature has been a bit more cooperative with us in the past week. We have seen some great growth in the vineyard. The vineyard is a funny place one week your ahead, another you are behind, but then weather improves and you are ahead again so on and so forth... We do all that we can to make the best wines possible. Sometimes Mother Nature makes this more challenging, but we have to react to what she delivers us. We can do many things that are proactive in the vineyard, but ultimately we are a reactive bunch.

I have been spending time researching the new screw capping machine that we will be purchasing. The technical/wine geek term for screw caps are Stelvin's. I am not fully sure, but I believe that this comes from the original company that produced them. I guess it is much like we call facial tissue, Kleenex. Kleenex is technically a company that produces facial tissue.

There are many considerations to be made in the switch over to Stelvin. First you have to be aware of what glass is available. Not all of our bottles are currently available as a Stelvin. So at this point in time some of our product line will have to remain on cork. Our main glass manufacturer, Vitro Glass has most of the glass that we will use, but not every bottle as a Stelvin.

Second, we have to choose which type of stelvin to select? There are two main options in the world of Stelvins, the traditional Stelvin and the Stelvin Lux. The traditional Stelvin looks like any screw cap that you may have seen before. See the photos below:

The Stelvin Lux is a little fancier. To the consumer it appears a little less obvious that it is a "screw cap". It is slightly disguised as to its true identity. However, my feelings with something like this is if you put me in a dress, you would all know that I was a man in a dress! (I mean no offense to those men that like to put on dresses) Maybe some would be fooled, but most would see what is going on. I must say that the Stelvin Lux is a bit nicer looking, but I am not saying that I like men in dresses! I have included some photos below:

You can see in these photos that the Lux is a cleaner look, without the obvious look of being a screw cap. However, it is still a screw cap. There is a cost difference between these. The Lux is a little bit more expensive and there are different machines required for applying each closure. I would be interested to hear some of your thoughts on this issue. Which is preferred aesthetically? Perhaps, some of you have come across both of these and have a personal testimonial. Please share! The great thing about these closures is that they can be decorated with art work and even embossed on the top of the closure.

Another consideration to be made is the type of liner placed on the inside of the closure. There is Saranex which allows a little bit of air in the bottle. This maybe most suitable for reds. There is also a tin liner, that allows very little oxygen and may be best suited for our aromatic whites. The best thing is that either way we say good-bye to cork taint! Beyond these considerations there are more decisions to be made, but I have discussed the major ones. So if you can let me know what you think in regards to preference and the next time you are in the bottle shop have a look around at some of the closures to get a first hand view of these.

One last quick thing... Martha Clara wines will be featured at a wine dinner on Sunday evening at North Fork Table and Inn! I will be there to pour them! Till next time, drink what you like and like what you drink!

Cheers,


Juan.