Corked Champagne
- Alex Bridgeman
- Croft 1945
- Posts: 16020
- Joined: 12:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Berkshire, UK
Corked Champagne
After having drunk goodness knows how many bottles of Champagne over the last 30 years, I opened a bottle today and encountered my first ever corked bottle of Champagne! What a shock!
Top Ports in 2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
Re: Corked Champagne

I hope it wasn't a particularly good one!
"The first duty of Port is to be red"
Ernest H. Cockburn
Ernest H. Cockburn
Re: Corked Champagne
Sorry to hear but I am very surprised by your low strike rate! I haven't been as fortunate 

- Alex Bridgeman
- Croft 1945
- Posts: 16020
- Joined: 12:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Berkshire, UK
Re: Corked Champagne
It was a modest bottle, not something too serious, but very irritating. Happily a substitute was found rapidly.DRT wrote:![]()
I hope it wasn't a particularly good one!
Top Ports in 2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
- Alex Bridgeman
- Croft 1945
- Posts: 16020
- Joined: 12:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Berkshire, UK
Re: Corked Champagne
I'd built up an expectation that Champagne was unlikely to be corked, I wasn't sure why - I assumed that the corks used were top quality so less likely to be contaminated.griff wrote:Sorry to hear but I am very surprised by your low strike rate! I haven't been as fortunate
Top Ports in 2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
Re: Corked Champagne
That's what I think about port corks!AHB wrote:I'd built up an expectation that Champagne was unlikely to be corked, I wasn't sure why - I assumed that the corks used were top quality so less likely to be contaminated.griff wrote:Sorry to hear but I am very surprised by your low strike rate! I haven't been as fortunate

- mosesbotbol
- Warre’s Otima 10 year old Tawny
- Posts: 628
- Joined: 18:54 Wed 18 Jul 2007
- Location: Boston, USA
Re: Corked Champagne
Was it an aged bottle? Champagne should be aged upright. Can't recall the last corked Champagne I have had. Madeira, I have had one bottle corked.
F1 | Welsh Corgi | Did Someone Mention Port?
- Alex Bridgeman
- Croft 1945
- Posts: 16020
- Joined: 12:41 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Berkshire, UK
Re: Corked Champagne
It was an aged bottle, from the 2000 vintage.mosesbotbol wrote:Was it an aged bottle? Champagne should be aged upright. Can't recall the last corked Champagne I have had. Madeira, I have had one bottle corked.
Purely from a storage convenience point of view, I store my Champagne bottles on their side - it's just easier with the racking I have. While I agree that you can store Champagne bottles upright, I guess the only advantage to that is you might avaid TCA contamination if the cork is infected.
Top Ports in 2024: Niepoort 1900 Colheita, b.1971. A near perfect Port.
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
2025: Quevedo 1972 Colheita, b.2024. Just as good as Niepoort 1900!
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- Quinta do Vesuvio 1994
- Posts: 3084
- Joined: 21:16 Mon 25 Jun 2007
- Location: Los Angeles, Ca USA
- Contact:
Re: Corked Champagne
Bummer. Not often you hear of someone having a corked Champagne. 
