Is Your Wine Corked

Here is a video quicky on checking wine before you purchase.

Turns out this wine was corked even tough it seemed OK  from a simple check. It was not “badly” corked but still… it was compromised and a bit off so it was returned. You saw the cork in the video. I cut the cork in half and indeed it was stained in several cracks that ran through the body of the cork.

A  corked wine has been exposed to a cork infected with a fungus that produces 2,4,6-trichloroanisole or TCA. The chemical gives it the off smell. Like wet dog, wet cardboard or newspaper.

Up to 4 or 5% of all bottles of wine are corked. This bottle was Frei Brothers Reserve Syrah Russian River Valley 2006 Northern Sonoma. It’s an excellent wine we have had before and I was opening this one to do a review.

Woops… I will do one later.

Turning the label is not fool proof as you saw. Sometimes you will need to grip the top label firmly to turn it & thats fine. However if the neck wrap starts to tear from being stuck to the neck you may want to try another bottle. A cork pushed up even a little bit is typically a sure sign.

A bottle that is not full to near the bottom of the neck/cork may be a sign of having been overheated during transport leading to a corked or cooked bottle.

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I would be negligent if i did not post this hilarious spoof of  Gary Vaynerchuck’s Wine Library TV

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Below is a tribute to one of the strongest Dad’s in the world.

“Eighty-five times he’s pushed his disabled son, Rick, 26.2 miles in Marathons. Eight times he’s not only pushed him 26.2 miles in a Wheelchair but also towed him 2.4 miles in a dinghy while swimming and Pedaled him 112 miles in a seat on the handlebars–all in the same day.

Dick’s also pulled him cross-country skiing, taken him on his back Mountain climbing and once hauled him across the U.S. On a bike.”

Read the full article by Dick Hoyt here CAN Worlds Strongest Dad Article was originally written by Rick Reilly of Sports Illustrated. Video courtesy of youtube.com.

Happy Fathers Day,

The Frugal Wino

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As promised in our post about the winner for our “Next Wine To Review”..

Here is the Gnarly Head Old Vine Zin Review

Gnarly Head Old Vine Zinfandel also won our Old Vine Zin BBQ Shootout, beating out Seven deadly Zins & Bogle Old Vine Zin. That review coming up shortly.

Heard around the web:

…this one rocks. It needs a bit to open up, but after at least 1/2 hour it has a great nose  full of the briar and spice often found in more expensive Zins

Plum, vanilla and light cedar notes fill the nose of this wine

Varietal and the terroir. It has some interesting layers to peel apart.

The Gnarly Head Zin has a powerful berry punch, leading into a lengthy finish. This is a wine that is fine to drink alone, and which will hold its own with spicy food, barbeque, beef, and any other strongly flavored dish. “Old vine” Zinfandels are noted for strong fruit flavors, and the Gnarly Head is no exception.

Read the Full Review > Click Here

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