Read The Cork By Rosemarie T. Anner

We don't see too many people sniffing the cork of a just-opened bottle of wine any more. Critics may do it, of course, but for the ordinary Joe, it feels more like an affectation than anything else. Sommeliers in upscale restaurants will uncork a bottle and while holding the bottle will put the cork in front of you to sniff for off-aromas or to inhale exhilarating aromas of powerful Grand Crus but that is becoming a rare practice. While the rest of us continue to debate the merits of cork versus screw-cap, the people at Dry Creek Vineyard are giving us a reason to seek its cork-closure bottles. This California winery is working with its longtime partner, Cork Supply USA, to entice you to pick up that cork and examine it more closely. On its latest release of Old Vine Zinfandel, for example, the winery laser printed some neat information on the cork. The data is all about cork: the forest from which it is harvested (Portugal), the date of harvest (bark is peeled from mature trees without harming the tree), even about the habitat regulated by the supplier working with foresters. Much of the cork forests are refuges for the Iberian lynx and the Spanish imperial hawk so sustainability is as important as harvesting. It just makes you feel good knowing that. Dry Creek has a pending patent on its narrative cork. You might need glasses to read all the fine print, but think of the consternation you will cause as you slowly twirl that cork close to your eyes to read rather than bring it close to your nose to smell.