Last August Caterer promised to keep you informed about developments with the screwcap. So we hooked up with New Zealand's second-largest winery, Villa Maria, to chart the success (or not) of its newly screwcapped bottles, which arrived on these shores last October. After all, it's the first winery in the world to embrace the alternative closure in quite such volume and, well, we - and a fair few others, including the likes of wine gurus Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson - think they're a very good idea.
With unofficial figures declaring that corked wines affect one in 10 bottles (the official figures published by the Wine and Spirit Association last May are substantially lower but have been pooh-poohed by some in the trade), urgent action was needed. After all, no other food or beverage manufacturer would put up with this level of product failure - even at the official figure of 1.2%. Villa Maria's owner, George Fistonich, says: "We have the opportunity to ensure that 100% of our wines reach consumers in pristine condition by switching from corks to screwcaps."
Well, the first lot of figures are now in, and things are looking good. Sales are up on last year, even if it's just by a squeak, at 3%. But that's progress, surely? And opinion is turning, helped somewhat by the supermarkets' willingness (Tesco's particularly) to up their selection of wines bottled under screwcap.
But the catering industry is still dragging its heels - particularly at the fine-dining end of the spectrum. You're taking away the drama, say some sommeliers, stubbornly. So what kind of response has Villa Maria's distributor Hatch Mansfield been getting these last few months?
Well, they've had their fair share of doubters, too. For example, there's the (French) general manager of the Phyllis Court Club in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, who is "vehemently" against screwcaps. In fact, his exact words were, "over my dead body", according to Hatch Mansfield. Though, to be fair to the French, Hatch claims that most of the French sommeliers approached about Stelvin (a foam liner with a Saran Wrapped tin outer covering, which creates a neutral, airtight seal) have "greeted the suggestion with understanding and acceptance".
"It's only the 5% of traditionalists who are unwilling to accept change and unwilling to even try it," says Hatch Mansfield's Susan Harper - and those restaurants are likely to be midmarket hotel restaurants, she adds.
But there's also resistance at the top end of the market. This is what the London Hilton Park Lane hotel's food and beverage director, Joachim Hartl, told Caterer: "If we served up screwcap wine at a function for 1,000, people just wouldn't understand. It's a completely different situation up in our fine-dining restaurant, Windows, where the sommelier understands the product and can talk to the customer about it. Down here, we just wouldn't get away with it - people still don't perceive it as a quality product."
But overall, reports Hatch Mansfield, the reception has been favourable. "The initial reaction in on-trade outlets has varied from extremely well-informed and receptive to horror-struck. However, even those in the latter camp have almost unanimously been persuaded that it is the way forward once they have had the arguments in favour of Stelvin put before them," says Hatch's Ben Knollys. There, you see - it's just a matter of education.
Jeremy Willcock agrees. The owner of the George hotel in Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight is all for screwcaps. "Any of us who have ever worked in this industry will know that the frequency of corked wines is embarrassingly high, so I see no reason why we shouldn't use a closure that is better than cork. We have to accept progress, don't we?"
Even the old guard, such as Phillip Crolla, of Edinburgh wine merchant Valvona & Crolla, accept that screwcaps are a better idea than cork right now. "Wine must be treated like a lady - with kindness and love. But, sadly, we've had far too many mistreated wines returned to us recently. So, yes, I think screwcaps are a wonderful idea and, yes, my customers love them - even in the café."
The message? The on-trade, it appears, is behind the screwcap - though maybe someone should tell the wholesalers. Hatch Mansfield's sales reps met the most resistance in this sector. Knollys says: "The general reaction from wholesalers is, 'We've read a lot about it, though we're sceptical that the on-trade is ready for it when it's only just started rolling out in the retail trade.'" But we say to them, let the on-trade start setting trends for a change. Ready? They're willing, mate - bring it on.
Cork versus screwcap - a reminder
What's wrong with using cork?
As cork is a naturally occurring product, it can cause two major quality issues in wine: a mould known as 2, 4, 6-trichloranisole - or TCA to its enemies - can develop in the bark and taint the wine, making it taste musty (known as "corked" wine); and oxidation, because you can never produce the perfect glass cylinder inside the bottle neck and cork can crease or split allowing the air in, which flattens the fruit and dries out the palate.
What is a screwcap, exactly?
The top and sides are aluminium. Inside the top is a polyethylene liner covered with a special tin foil. The secret of the Stelvin cap, developed in the late 1950s by a French manufacturer, is a foam liner with a Saran Wrapped tin outer covering, which creates a neutral, airtight seal. The main difference between cork and screwcap is that screwcaps seal around the rim of the bottle, rather than along the internal surface of the neck.
When was it invented?
Way back in 1889. One Dan Rylands, of Barnsley, patented the screwcap, but it wasn't introduced commercially until White Horse Distillers introduced it in 1926 (it doubled sales of their brand in six months).
Advantages?
Elimination of cork taint and oxidation; wines that taste fresher and livelier; prolonged and controlled ageing; consistency of ageing; easy to open; resealable; and the confidence when pouring wine knowing that it will be in pristine condition.
Disadvantages?
Leakage used to be a problem, but that's all sorted now; loss of ceremony when removing cork.