SCREW CAPS CONTINUE THEIR RISE TO ACCEPTANCE

The October 31, 2007 issue of "Wine Spectator" includes an article by Matt Kramer on the use of screw caps as closures for wine bottles. He starts by relating a story of a colleague who tasted two identical bottles of a 2002 chablis except one had been sealed with a screw cap and the other had been sealed with a cork. The wine from the screw capped bottle was "much fruitier" than the wine in the corked bottle. He said that this was consistent with his experience. Wine from screw capped bottles "invariably emerges fresher, fruitier and more precise in flavor definition."

He says that a recent study in France tested the amount of oxygen that gets into a bottle sealed with screw caps versus both natural and artificial corks. Not surprisingly, screw caps are best at keeping oxygen out. I was surprised to learn that natural corks do a better job at it than artificial ones. I thought natural corks would "breathe" better than artificial ones. Perhaps they do, but in doing so they apparently let less oxygen into the bottle. In addition, the higher quality natural corks let in less oxygen than lower quality ones.

Wineries do have to make some adjustments in the way they make wine if they use screw caps. They need to take measures to prevent the development of sulfide characters.

One other fact mentioned in the story. Bottle orientation (upright or on its side) has little impact on oxygen infiltration. Also, the need for humidity in the storage of bottles is essentially not needed. While important for wine stored in barrels, the humidity level inside bottles is maintained at virtually 100% and the humidity outside is of little consequence.

BOOK REVIEW -- MONDAVI

I have recently read two books that I would like to discuss. Several months ago I read an autobiography of Robert Mondavi. It is called Harvests of Joy with the subtitles "My Passion for Excellence" and "How the Good Life Became Great Business." It is a very interesting book that includes a history of Mondavi's parents' life in Italy and their immigration to America. It discusses the family life in Minnesota and its move to Cailfornia. There is an account of how the father started in the wine business and how it grew.

I had known that Robert Mondavi had split with his brother Peter at some point. I did not know that Robert Mondavi was 52 when he essentially was banished from the family business and went on to start his own winery which he built into a world-renowned wine empire. He very much focused on quality not just for his own winery, but he encouraged others to help build the reputation of California as a source of great wines. He traveled to Europe and throughout the world and established partnerships that helped catapult California wines into a world-class league.

The book ends on a high note expressing his conficence that the future of the winery was bright and that it was in the capable hands of his two sons.

More recently, I read The House of Mondavi:The Rise and Fall of an American Wine Dynasty by Julia Flynn Siler. This book was published in June 2007. It would probably be very interesting to read both books simulteneously as they do cover many of the same events. Of course, the Siler tale is a bit more objective and presents some of the negative aspects of those events that do not come across as strongly in Mondavi's own words (though, overall, Mondavi's passion for quality and for promoting Californial wines comes across strongly in both books). The House of Mondavi is as much a book about the workings of business as it is about the Mondavi story. It is almost a little sad as it describes how how close associates and members of Mondavi's Board of Directors took actions (which they felt a fiduciary obligation to take) that resulted in the loss of control of the Robert Mondavi winery by the family. Part of the problem was due to the fact that a second generation of brothers (Tim and Michael) split as had the previous generation of Robert and Peter. However, there were myriad causes that led to the loss of the winery and it is fascinating to see the story unfold iin this book.

I highly recommend both books to persons interested in the backstory of the wine industry.