Stelvin Closures vs cork

Why has Tinhorn Creek decided to use Stelvin twist caps for the Oldfield's Collection Merlot?
Primarily, it is because we see this as the only true alternative to ridding the wine industry of cork taint.

What is cork taint?
Cork taint is mainly due to the compound 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA). This compound is found in bad corks and results in wines that have mouldy or musty aromas. The percentage of wines ruined by taint range anywhere from 2-10%. Wine lovers who are familiar with taint can detect it right away and generally feel that this wine is ruined. Some consumers, though, who are not familiar with this compound just believe that the wine is “bad” and will never buy that wine again. That is unfortunate because had these consumers tried the same bottle without cork taint they may actually have loved it.

What are the advantages to using Stelvin in addition to eliminating cork taint?
1) The bottles are easier to store (they can be on their side, upside down or standing straight up in your cellar).
2) You will not encounter bottles that leak through the cork.
3)The fruitiness of the wine will stay preserved for longer, thus allowing you to age wines for longer.

Why don't you just use a plastic or synthetic cork?
We are not big believers in the long term aging potential for wines that use a synthetic cork. Many wineries that have used these synthetic closures for more than 5 years are finding that they can start to impart a synthetic taste into the wines. Certainly our own inhouse trials on a chardonnay bottling three years ago reflected that. We would agree that synthetic corks work well for "quick drink" wines, but why not just go with one product that can work for both long aging red wines and drink-now whites? Why not just go with Stelvin to begin with? If you're going to do something don't go half way.

Won’t Stelvin twist caps’ liners impart a synthetic taste into the wines over the long term?
People have been using the Stelvin closures for up to 30 years in Switzerland and approximately 10 years in New Zealand and Australia. They have not found that the liner on the Stelvin closure imparts any synthetic tastes into the wine.

Won't Stelvin twist caps prohibit red wines from aging?
The jury is still out on this one and more research needs to be done. The initial research with big red wines has been done in Australia for more than 10 years. Generally, these studies have found that although red wine in a Stelvin twist cap seems to age quite slowly during the first few years, after 2-3 years the wine does indeed start to soften and as the years go on the wines with a Stelvin closure age much more gracefully than those with a cork. The wine stays more fruity, its colour is more vibrant and it just has more life in it. Most wine aging reactions occur within the bottle and have very little to do with any oxygen getting through the cork. It is just a matter of molecules bumping into one another in a small container that allows wine to age. The tannin molecules collide and form larger molecules and eventually get so heavy that they fall down to the bottom of the bottle. Once these tannins fall out the wine becomes smoother tasting. This reaction occurs with or without a cork.