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| To Cork or Not To Cork: Tradition, Romance, Science, and the Battle for the Wine Bottle | 
 enlarge | Author: George M. Taber
Publisher: Scribner
Category: Book
List Price: $26.00
Buy New: $4.98
You Save: $21.02 (81%)
New (36) Used (22) from $2.47
Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 168023
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.5
ISBN: 0743299345
Dewey Decimal Number: 641.22
EAN: 9780743299343
ASIN: 0743299345
Publication Date: October 9, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Ships immediately! Perfect and New! Has a publisher remainder mark. 2007 Hardcover.
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 1-5 of 8 | | NEXT » |
 An interesting book with a limited audience August 12, 2008
To really enjoy this book I think you need to like wine, have some interest in the chemistry of wine, and enjoy stories of marketplace battles between products. The book worked for me, but many will find parts of it uninteresting.
The cork has a long, generally distinguished tradition as a wine bottle stopper. But in the last three decades poor process control started to allow corks tainted with a foul-tasting contaminant to reach market, and the "corked" bottle of wine became an increasing challenge to vintners.
This set off a wave of entrepreneurs trying to build a better "cork" (or at least a better seal). The book tells the story of many brands, and their challenges, successes, and failures. Many fell by the wayside, but several are still expanding in the marketplace, each having its proponents and detractors. Ultimately, there is probably no ideal stopper for every bottle. Different approaches may apply to different wines with different aging requirements and different life expectancies. And wines may need to be made differently depending on the stopper chosen.
While the need for new stoppers seemed obvious five or ten years ago, corked bottles are clearly less of a problem in recent years. At the end the author explains how the cork industry has brought this about by cleaning up its act. So cork is likely to remain the stopper of choice for wines intended for years of bottle aging for some time to come. But as wine production expands the need for seals that don't rely on the bark production of some old oak trees is certain to increase. The battle for that market will continue. At least as long as bottles hold out against bags in boxes ...
Fantastic read August 8, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'm a wine industry professional and this book was packed with new information that was fascinating while not being overly technical. I think my favorite parts were little facts about TCA 2,4,6. I highly recommend reading this if you ever have to deal with the question of cork vs screw cap. However it doesn't draw a definite conclusion but gives you enough information to formal an intelligent opinion.
wine bottle closure July 29, 2008
Worth reading, got a broad insight into the merits of different bottle closures. The time line of development was very interesting. The development of the business aspect and human inertia was good.
 Don't Go Cork, Get Screwed! July 19, 2008
Having read "Judgment of Paris" by this author and frankly finding it a bit of a single topic disappointment, I happily discovered in this book that not only does the author choose a subject worth a whole book, but he also makes it an exciting read! Don't get me wrong - the cork vs. screwtop vs. synthetic cork debate may not interest everyone, but if you are interested in wine (and drink it at least a few times a week) this book will entertain you with a bit of science and lots of great anecdotal points to give the topic some juice.
I've read maybe 10 wine books this Summer and this was by far my favorite. Whether you're still romanced by cork, a lover of plastic or a true lover of wine (Stelvin closures) this book thoroughly covers the topic and makes it interesting as well. Cork industry, beware!
At last the truth is out January 7, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
George Taber has finally unearthed what so many of us in the wine industry have been saying; Closures are dependent on the varietal, region and the target consumer. Mr. Taber has taken a rather dull topic and made a page turner book revealing personal and industry stories of the history of wine closures and their varying success. This author has obviously spent a lot time investigating and interviewing notables in the wine world to bring us all up to speed. I hope this book reaches international readership so the wine world can continue its quest for quality and ultimately, a better consumer experience.
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