Bottle shock?

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Hmmm. As a beer brewer, I always used the term to refer to the airspace in a bottle -- as defined in "Homebrewing for Dummies": "The airspace at the top of the bottle is called 'ullage'." However, this thread prompted me to check my dictionary where I found that it is _actually_ "the amount of liquid within a container that is lost during shipment or storage, as through leakage." So ... now I don't know what the correct term is for the airspace _deliberately_ left in the neck of a bottle, but I'm going to keep calling it 'ullage' since that's what everyone else calls it. :-)

Cheers.

Bill Velek

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Well, Ray, it has always been my understanding that the very reason for storing corked bottles on their sides in the first place is to keep the corks from drying out. Now, that logically means that the liquid inside the bottles is constantly replacing moisture that is constantly, though slowly, evaporating from the cork. Otherwise, your cork would dry out, and you'd lose your seal and the wine would ruin. And I'd imagine that the same thing is happening with wooden kegs; their is bound to be a certain amount of drying of the wood, with moisture in the wood being replaced from within the barrel. In neither case would you expect to see any evidence of 'leakage', even though you are losing contents. At least that would be my take on things.

Cheers.

Bill Velek

An excellent point. Corks will definitely dry out if the bottle is left standing. I have certainly observed that. And once it happens the wine is quickly ruined due to oxidation.

This would certainly indicate that ullage is taking place. It is not leakage, it is ullage.

Thanks for a good observation.

Ray

I think the term is container-independant, IOW it's used for tanks, barrels, bottles and bellies ;)

If your belly has 'ullage' then have another glass of wine! 8-) Dan.

It doesn't seep out through your belly; it comes out every time you exhale. The solution? Don't breathe!!! Or, like Bill Clinton, don't inhale...... Bob<

-- "I can't stand water because of the things fish do in it. Once, whilst traversing the Himalayas, we lost our corkscrew, and were compelled to live on food and water... for several days."

-W C Fields-