Quote:
> We purchased the best corks we could find. We soaked the corks in sulfite
> solution for 2 hrs . before use. After one year we had one bottle that had
> musty smell. We assumed we had a bad cork. We are considering sealing this
> years batch of bottles with wax on top of the corks. Any ideas on this?
> Right now we press the corks in the bottle about 1/8 below the top.
I wax my corks after they have had time to dry adequately in the bottle.
Melt wax in a jar placed inside of a saucepan of boiling/near boiling
water. I use an old spaghetti sauce jar. You may want to use a shorter
jar if you don't have much wax. You can buy plain parafin or "Candle
Magic" in craft stores, or you can cut up old candles (Remove the
string!). Crayons are only reccommended for coloring the wax, and you
don't need much.
Because you press your corks deeply, take a spoon and carefully ladle
the wax into the bottle on top of the cork. Otherwise, skip this step.
When that wax has set (no longer liquid appearing and less glossy),
upend the bottle and dip into the wax just enough to cover the cork.
Spin the bottle as you lift it back up & turn upright, to keep the wax
from dripping/clumping in one spot. Wait for a minimum of a count of ten
seconds before dipping again. Dip each bottle four or five times. I find
that doing four bottles in rotation is easiest for me. (Dip bottle 1,
dip 2, dip 3, dip 4, and repeat).
If you have a seal, press gently onto the top of the wax after the last
dip.
It is a good idea to remove all wax before uncorking, and is easily done
with a table knife. The wax can be saved and reused with no problems.
Quote:
> We also have had some of the wine come all the way through some of the
> corks after the wines have sat on it side after a year. Did we get a bad
> batch of corks? are we doing something wrong? We are using a floor corker.
> Thanks for any suggestions!
Are you letting your corks dry upright for 7 days before laying them
down? If so, then yes, you may have bad corks. Or even pushing them in
too far. I don't know.
-georg
non ani sunt permittendi