Episode 9: Everything You Need to Know About Wine Corks (and Other Enclosures!)

In this conversation, Rabbi Yisroel Bernath and Dr. Kenny Friedman talk about an oft-overlooked aspect of every wine bottle: the enclosure. 

First, they introduce a new segment as Rabbi Bernath reads a wine label and Kenny is left to guess which bottle it is.

They then introduce the main topic, first discussing some of the history of cork and its geographical implications. 

They discuss each of the enclosures used for wine, including natural cork, synthetic cork, agglomerated cork such as Diam, Vinolok, crowns, and screw caps. They discuss the pros and cons of each enclosure and some of the myths attached.

They tackle the issue of TCA, which causes the wine fault of cork taint, and comes from a contaminant inside the cork which can affect over 3% of all wines enclosed by cork.

Lastly, they talk about an interesting wine they enjoyed over the last week. Kenny discusses the Binah, Blanc de Blancs, 2021, and Yisroel talks about the Jezreel, Icon, 2018.

The hosts mention that they love feedback and questions and leave open the possibility of mentioning people’s names on air should they choose.