The Truth About Corked Wine - Part I

Part 1: What Does It Mean When a Wine Is Corked?

Have you ever opened a bottle of wine, poured a glass, and thought something smelled off – like a damp basement or wet cardboard? If so, you likely encountered a “corked” wine. Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Corked wine is a common wine fault that even seasoned wine lovers run into occasionally.

Let’s start with the basics: a corked wine doesn’t have cork bits or a dry cork floating in it. Instead, it refers to a wine tainted by TCA (2,4,6-trichloroanisole), a compound that can form when natural fungi in cork come into contact with certain chlorine-based substances. TCA causes a musty, moldy smell that overwhelms the wine’s natural aromas.

How Common Is Corked Wine?

Today, cork taint affects an estimated 3–5% of wines sealed with natural cork. That means about 1 in 20 bottles might be corked. Thanks to modern cork processing improvements, rates have dropped from historical highs of 5–10%, but it still happens.

How to Recognize It

• Tell-tale signs of a corked wine include:
  • A musty, moldy smell (wet dog, cardboard, damp basement)
  • Muted or missing fruit aromas
  • Flat or dull taste that doesn’t improve with air

Some people are more sensitive to TCA than others, so if a wine tastes or smells lifeless and unpleasant to you, trust your instincts.

Coming Next Week: Part II - We’ll dive into whether corked wine can be saved, how to handle it when it happens, and why some wines are more at risk than others.