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Published -
- March 27, 2020
- 11:12 am
Uncorking a bottle of wine after a long day is one of the few true pleasures in life. But ever wonder where that small cork—aka the last thing standing between you and your favorite red—comes from?
In Portugal, there’s a long and rich history of harvesting cork trees. Harvesters strip trees of their bark by hand, using a process that makes certain the tree remains alive and healthy. The method is so difficult that harvesters begin learning the trade from a young age, keeping up a skill passed down through the generations. So, the next time you kick back with a bottle of wine, give that pesky cork a second glance—its journey from bark to bottle is more surprising than you think.
What products are made from cork bark that isn’t suitable for wine stoppers?
Wine enthusiasts around the world cherish the unique experience of uncorking a bottle of exquisite wine. The sound of the cork popping out, the aroma that fills the air, and the anticipation of tasting the drink are unmatched. But have you ever wondered where those reliable little wine stoppers come from? Wine corks have been an essential component of wine packaging for centuries, and the cork industry has a fascinating story to tell.
Cork harvesting is an ancient tradition that dates back to the 17th century, and it all begins in cork forests. Cork trees, also known as Quercus suber, are indigenous to Western Mediterranean regions like Portugal, Spain, and Italy. These cork oak trees grow to heights of up to 20 meters and have a lifespan of over 200 years. The unique properties of cork bark are what make it ideal for wine closures – it’s compressible, elastic, and waterproof.
The cork harvesters, also known as ‘extractors,’ carefully remove the outer bark from the trees, leaving the tree unharmed. The process of extracting cork is a labor-intensive task that requires skill and experience. The harvesters manually separate the bark from the trunk with specialized tools, being careful not to damage the underlying layer of new cork. This layer of cork keeps the tree healthy and enables it to regenerate.
The harvesters repeat this process every nine years, as it’s the ideal time for the cork to grow to an adequate thickness for wine stoppers. After it’s harvested, the raw cork is then boiled and left to dry for a couple of weeks before being transformed into corks.
The next stage involves cutting the cork bark into small squares of a similar size, with the help of automated machines. Some of the cork bark that isn’t suitable for wine stoppers is used to make other cork products like yoga mats, floor tiles, and even baseballs. But the high-quality cork is sent on to the wine cork manufacturers, who then lower-grade the cork depending on how tight the pores and its quality.
The final stage of cork production involves sorting the cork by size before it’s sent to the wineries. Cork closures used to have some issues with variability which would cause a small percentage of those closures to ruin wine. However, modern manufacturing techniques and quality control practices have significantly improved the cork’s reliability.
In conclusion, cork extraction is a sustainable process that preserves the cork oak ecosystem, which is a vital part of Mediterranean flora and fauna. Its unique properties make it the preferred wine closure for centuries. Whether you are sipping a glass of red, white or rose, now you can appreciate the work and decades-long journey it took for that cork to be what it is today – your wine’s key to preservation.
