Bill's Rosé Wine Blog

Who is Bill?

Bill has a passion for wine and “discovered” Rosé wine thirty or so years ago in the South of France, at a time when the wines were very good there, but often failed to travel well. This had to be overcome before his idea of specialising in marketing top quality Rosé wines within the UK could be realised. Happily, this has now been achieved by adding modern production methods to the traditional skill of the winemakers resulting in wines that are superb anywhere!
Bill had forecast the expanding market for good Rosés long before it happened. He registered Rose-wine.com, established a reputation, and negotiated some of the best, most characteristic wines, at an early stage. The rest, as the say, is the stuff of legend!

Cork vs. Other Closures

01/05/2010 01:00:00

At risk of controversy (why change the habit of a lifetime), my view is that ideally, there really should be no contest. Cork rules! I particularly like the best Portuguese cork used on most of our wines, although we do cautiously accept the full length plastic substitute where it has been adopted by a grower and are beginning to see some scewcap closures too.

The position in Europe regarding closures is, dare I say, fluid, but despite the occasional ‘corked’ wine I do believe Cork is best. Continuing research into cork processing will likely eradicate the cause of problems - there are promising results already. We are always happy to replace or credit a ‘corked’ bottle'.

The plastic substitutes can be very tight in the bottle neck allowing the possibility of glass breakage around the bottle rim. The screw-top has been associated with convenience wines for immediate consumption, but regrettably, versions thus far, do not impart a feeling of quality and can have some sharp edges too. I accept they are becoming quite popular and we already are seeing some good wines closed this way. There is a lot of demand from restaurants for this closure.

Technically, cork is probably not an absolute necessity for our Rosés as they are unlikely to be stored for an extended period, but it has proved its compatibility with wine over a very long time and is a natural material. The cork oak trees are ecologically sound and will likely remain as long as there is commercial need for them. Cork harvesting also helps a lot of rural communities and is vital for their economy. See www.corkmasters.com for more information.

Oh, and while I’m on this sort of subject, I especially like the foil pull tab used on our wines Cuvée du Cep D’Or and Carte Noire. This is elegant to use and eliminates the need for a foil cutter. A deft flick of the wrist removing it, adds to the flair of presenting the wine at the table as does the proficient removal of the cork. Yes, I accept different closures have their merits and that we'll be seeing more of them in the future, but ideally I’d prefer a cork! Happy drinking!