Many beginning winemakers will be happy to know that you do not have to buy a corker to seal your wine bottles. We have other ways to seal wine bottles during the wine making process. Consider the alternatives listed below for your next batch!
When you go to buy wine corks for your wine bottles you will find that most of them require a corker to press the cork into the wine bottle. This is because a new cork starts out much fatter than what you are used to seeing coming out of the wine bottle when decanting.
These are the type of wine corks we recommend using, particularly if you know you’re going to continue to make more wine into the future. But, if you are not sure if you’ll be making more wine, or you just don’t feel like buying a corker, just yet, there are other ways to seal your wine bottles.
Mushroom corks are an easy way to seal your wine bottles without using a corker. They are basically a cork with a plastic grip top. They come both in natural cork and synthetic cork. With some force they can be pushed in by hand to create a tight seal. While they do not seal quite as tight as traditional corks being pressed in, they are more than sufficient for any wine that will be consumed within 12 months.
Another way to seal your wine bottles that does not require a corker is our reusable wine bottle stoppers. Just like the mushroom corks, these stoppers can be put in by hand as well. Their unique design of ridges creates a series of chambers to produce a seal. While these stoppers are not all that attractive for passing out as wine making gifts, they can be covered up with decorative heat shrink capsules to give them a professional look.
And yes, you can always use screw cap wine bottles. By using screw caps you will be sealing the wine bottle air-tight, however you must have the right screw cap on the right bottle. Not any wine bottle can take a screw cap; it must specifically be a screw cap wine bottle. And, the screw caps you are using must be the correct size with matching threads. Not all threads are the same.
In summary, you do not have to buy a corker. There are other ways to seal a wine bottle. But, if you plan to continue making wine corks and a corker are your best long-term option.
Happy Wine Making,
Ed Kraus
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Ed Kraus is a 3rd generation home brewer/winemaker and has been an owner of E. C. Kraus since 1999. He has been helping individuals make better wine and beer for over 25 years.
What do you think about the Zorks for sealing bottles?
Tony, zork corks are another great way to seal your bottles if you do not have a corker. Zork Corks can be inserted into any standard wine bottle without a corker, though depending upon how many bottles you have to close, you may want to use a rubber mallet or something similar to hammer them so that you fingers will not get too tired.
I have some Zorks but haven’t yet used them. Question: can Zorks be reused? It looks to me that they can, but need expert view.
Ron, unfortunately the Zork Corks are not reusable. There is a pull tab at the bottom that removes the bottom plastic part of the cork when you open the cork. If you tried to reuse them withou that part you would not have a good seal.
i have used flip top “beer bottles” for my wine for 15 years and have had no problems.
I have started kegging my wine instead of bottling & corking. I got some 5 gallon “Corny Kegs”, the old Coca-Cola style kegs, a 0-15# nitrogen regulator, and a 10 pound food grade nitrogen tank. I pressurize them with 3 pounds of nitrogen, and keep my wine on tap. A little more expense up-front, but everything is re-usable, and the labor is much less!
I’ve forgotten how to use the heat shrink capsules to seal my finished product. Can someone give me a refresher course. All I remember is using boiling water.
Barbara, all you need to do is secure the capsules on the bottle with a rubber band from the top of the bottle to the bottom and dip them for a few seconds in the boiling water.