mold on corks???

I opened a bottle of Ecco Merlot once to find a small amount of mold on the cork on the inside of the bottle. I'm sure it didnt help the taste at all and in fact gave some off flavors but is was drinkable and it didnt kill me or make me sick either.

As long as it stays on the outside you are probably OK. Just clean it off before opening.

The question is, why is it there? It is not normal. Did you spill something on the bottles after bottling are was something on the corks before bottling, in which case it may have done something to the wine.

I would not be overly concerned. It may effect the taste but it will not make you sick. There are no known pathogens that live in wine. But you might consider not aging the bottles effected over long. Just go ahead and drink them up if they do not taste bad.

Ray

In message , MOhar871 writes

I've got a few that have gone like that, too. The bottles are stored in a garage outside, so I guess the occasionally damp atmosphere helped. But if I remember correctly, they were a few bottles that I corked and stored on their sides immediately, rather than letting them stand upright for a day or two. So it's possible the pressure inside pushed a little of the wine out before it equalised, and it's the residue of the wine that's gone mouldy. Anyway, it doesn't seem to have harmed the wine at all.

cheers, robin

I have been told repeatedly that you should always let your fresh-corked bottles stand up for one day to allow pressure to equalize somewhat. I have not had any leakers since doing that also, and I've never had mold either.

i let mine stand for at least 4 or 5 days before putting them on their sides...still got the mold :(

In 30 years of making and bottling wine the only times I have had mould is when I have been careless during filling and corking -- i.e there was some spillage around the top neck of the bottle which I didn't clean.. However it is rare that your bottled wine would be affected -- especially if you clean and sanitise the outer cork/bottle top --- gently

I've had a couple that have shown it on the outside of the cork, and I agree that it might have a lot to do with a slightly damp atmosphere (I live near Portland, where the locals are slowly evolving gills :-) ). And since I stored them vertically for a day and didn't see any leakage, I think that gives even more suggestion that it has to do with the dampness.

I've seen nothing wrong with the taste from it, but I'm now using shrink-on capsules to cover the cork, putting them on the day after corking. I'm hoping this (or possibly a wax capsule) will keep it from happening.

Rob

I've been told ONE day is all you need. Otherwise, the cork dries and shrinks, and the wine sneaks out while your back is turned....

This problem is increasing day after day. High priced French wine producers are now using aluminum screw caps for export. The harvesting of cork from the same oak trees for hundred of years is not giving the quality of corks we had before. I have started to look for screw cap bottles and will gradually phase out the bottles using corks. I may be able to get away with composite corks or plastic?

You should check your humidity. 80% and higher will cause mold to grow!

For information on mold, check out

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