Ontario Winery Moves to Screwcap with VQA Approval

Beamsville, November 20, 2004,

Malivoire Wine Company announces the release of its first bottlings with Stelvin closures. Three wines, 2003 Estate Bottled Pinot Noir, 2003 Estate Bottled Gamay and 2003 Estate Bottled Gewurztraminer are the first "screwcapped" wines to be released in an initiative that will eventually see the majority of Malivoire's production bottled with this progressive closure.
 
 "It's a natural evolution in our philosophy that has led us to consider alternative closures," says proprietor Martin Malivoire. "We are keen to explore the option that Stelvin offers."

The screwcap closure was approved this year by Vintners Quality Alliance Ontario for use on Ontario-grown-and-made wines. "This step forward, coupled with the local availability of a mobile bottling line, and improvements in glass choices, has increased the opportunity for putting screwcap finishes on small runs like ours," says Malivoire. The winery's first bottling was 3400 cases, including wines to be released later this year.

Stelvin is the brand-name for the state-of-the-art screwcap closure made by Pechiney Capsules of France, and Malivoire is supplied by a production facility in Canada. When the capsule is applied to the wine bottle, pressure rollers shape the aluminum to the threads of the glass bottle. At the same time, the flavour-neutral, stable polyethylene liner creates the seal over the bottle's opening.

"Industry research suggests that the biggest advantages of screwcaps are the consistency and predictability they bring to the wine the consumer tastes," says Malivoire winemaker Ann Sperling. Extensive quality testing indicates that aging is more controlled and measured in wines closed with screwcaps than the same wines closed with traditional cork. Screwcapped wines retain their aromatics longer, while complexity can continue to develop. Tasters have consistently noted that fruit levels hold better in wines with screwcaps, and wines taste "fresher" longer.

Malivoire's plan calls for Stelvin closures for the wines that they would expect to be consumed within five years. Their flagship Moira Vineyard wines will be bottled with natural cork, pending the results of Malivoire's own research on the closures' affect on aging.