Wine bottle

Abstract: This comprehensive book describes cork as a natural product, as an industrial raw-materials, and as a wine bottle closure. From its formation in the outer bark of the cork oak tree to the properties that are of relevance to its use, cork is presented and explained including its physical and mechanical properties. The industrial processing of cork from post-harvest procedures to the production of cork agglomerates and composites is described. Intended as a reference book, this is the ideal compilation of scientific knowledge on state-of-the-art cork production and use. It presents a comprehensive coverage from cork formation to post-harvest procedures. It explains the physical properties, mechanical properties and quality of cork. It addresses topics of interest for those in food science, agriculture and forestry.

Abstract: A Semillon wine was bottled using 14 different closures: a screw-cap type, two grades of conventional natural cork, two 'technical cork' closures (natural cork with a synthetic component), and 9 closures manufactured from synthetic polymer material. Closure performance was evaluated for physical aspects (e.g. extraction force and energy, change in closure diameter, and ease of closure reinsertion), and for wine composition and sensory properties. Wine under the screw cap closure retained the greatest concentration of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and ascorbic acid and had the slowest rate of browning. For other closures the trend of SO2 loss relative to the screw cap closure was apparent from an early stage of testing, and was most evident in the group of synthetic closures, intermediate in the conventional corks, and least evident in the technical cork closures. The loss of SO2 was in general highly correlated with an increase in wine browning (OD420) and the concentration of SO2 in the wine at six months was a strong predictor of future browning in the wine, particularly after eighteen months. Neither the concentration of dissolved oxygen at bottling (0.6-3.1 mg/L), nor the physical closure measures were predictors of future browning. For several closures upright storage tended to accelerate loss of SO2 from the wine, but in many cases this effect was marginal. The closures differed widely in regard to physical characteristics, and in general synthetic corks appeared least 'consumer-friendly' in terms of extraction forces, energies, and ease of closure re-insertion, but there was a trend for natural cork closures to exhibit larger variability in physical characteristics than technical cork and synthetic closures. Sensory analysis indicated large differences in wine flavour properties, with closures which tended to result in the best retention of free SO2 having wine sensory scores for 'citrus' that were generally high whilst scores for the attributes 'developed'/'oxidised' were low. The situation was reversed for wine under closures that performed poorly in the retention of free SO2. It was found that below a critical level of free SO2 remaining in the wine, closures exhibited substantially higher 'oxidised' aroma. Whilst trichloroanisole-type (TCA) taint was a noticeable problem for some cork and technical cork closures, any plastic-type taint appeared not to be a problem with most synthetic closures.

Abstract: Monetary transactions in which consumption is temporally separated from purchase naturally lend themselves to multiple frames and to alternative accounting schemes, which nonetheless maintain a modicum of discipline and authenticity. We investigate some of the relevant accounting rules, and find that advanced purchases (e.g., a case of wine) are typically treated as "investments" rather than spending. At the same time, consumption of a good purchased earlier and used as planned (a wine bottle opened for dinner) is often coded as "free", or even as savings. However, when it is not consumed as planned (a bottle is dropped and broken), then the relevant account, long dormant, is resuscitated and costs associated with the event are perceived as the cost of replacing the good, especially if replacement is actually likely. Related phenomena and assorted implications are discussed.