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Having been a wine collector and sometime winemaker I found this fascinating. Claret is truly a cultural force of its own but I'm pleased its power is waning as a tastemaker. (Although less so in the states).

If anyone cares for wine advice AMA even though it is all bullshit there still is good and bad wine which is a strange combination.

As far as collectible wines go, do you see Bordeaux's star falling and what is rising in your view?
Any tips for enjoying Madeira or info on some quality brands that can be found?
Thoughts on screwtops?
I live in Washington's wine country. A recent quote from a winemaker I spoke with who produces both their own labels and those of other labels: "If consumers would accept them, we'd do everything in screw tops." His reasoning is exactly what you'd expect: cork taint is real, it's difficult to reseal with a cork in the event you don't drink the entire bottle, and if the bottle is going to be cellared for a long time the cork will play a role in how it ages. Plus they seem to be aware of the environmental side + cost of using cork. Synthetic corks are a middle ground that according to the winemakers I've spoken with have the same basic issue - consumers equate natural cork with a higher quality product (at least in the US - apparently in Australia it's entirely screw tops).
I had a funny bit in a restaurant recently: we asked the waiter to recommend something, and he shows up with a bottle and a corkscrew and a white towel, ready to do the bottle-opening ceremony. He extolled the virtues of the wine, finishing off with "And there is only one drawback..."

And then he twisted off the top.

It was hilarious. I'd love it if all wines were screwtops.

People keep saying that cork taint is a thing, and it's real — but I have never once had a tainted bottle of wine. Either I have no taste, or … it's not that big of a deal.

> Plus they seem to be aware of the environmental side + cost of using cork.

What's the environmental cost? Cork trees are grown, not wildcrafted. Do they use an absurd amount of water? Do they not provide habitat?

Seems like a plastic cork or a piece of metal is worse environmentally than a bit of bark.

> People keep saying that cork taint is a thing, and it's real — but I have never once had a tainted bottle of wine.

I did. So what does that tell you?

IIRC they say 1% of every natural cork is tainted. I don't know which wines you drink, but lets assume natural cork is for "fine" wine. So you would expect to buy 100 bottles of not-so-cheap wine to have 1 tainted. Again, I don't know which wine you drink or how often, but maybe this puts it in a broader light.

Can confirm, Australian Wine is now almost entirely screw tops.
What's wrong with a simple metal wine stopper with rubber to block the neck of the bottle?
What's the benefit of that vs a synthetic cork?
Probably nothing but most decent French wines use a cork and I use stopper to close it if we're not finishing the bottle. I guess I could buy a fake cork instead but it's pretty much the same at that point.

My point was, it's not hard to seal an opened cork bottle

Why do you hate claret/bourdeaux?
Have you tried aldi's $3 wines?
The 3€ Cabernet-Sauvignon from Calfornia is sold for 5€+ in a different bottle at more "upscale" supermarkets. Burlwood IIRC.
Burlwood is here in the appalachian stores too for around $4 or $5 dollars. Winking Owl is the cheapest at $3, and doesn't taste bad, but I haven't tried a huge variety.