Guide to Wine Podcast: Episode 32

Wine Faults 101
How and Why Does Wine Go Bad?

Air Date: Wednesday, December 27th 2023

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Have you ever wondered why that bottle of wine you opened tastes off? 

A bottle of wine can go bad before you even open! We call the things that make it go bad wine faults.

Wine faults are often caused by poor storage and handling however there are other cases where damage happens to the wine through no fault of our own!

It’s good to know what these wine faults are and understand what to do when you notice them. Many of us drink faulty wine and just think it’s bad wine, when that’s not the case!

We are discussing common wine faults such as cork taint, reduction, oxidation, UV damage and heat damage. We will discuss what causes these wine faults, what these wine faults smell like, and how to remedy these wine faults.

We’ll also dive into herbal aromas, aka smells green, and wine diamonds. These are often misunderstood as wine faults, however, they aren't! 

So, if you are curious about wine faults and how to identify them then this episode is for you! Grab a glass of wine, press play, and enjoy!

Episode Highlights:

• What causes cork taint
• What does cork taint smell like
• Can you drink wine with cork taint
• How to remedy a wine with cork taint
• What causes wine reduction
• How do you fix reductive wine
• What does reductive wine smell like
• What is oxidation in wine
• Is oxidized wine safe to drink
• How do you remove oxidation from wine
• What does UV damage to wine smell like
• How does UV damage to wine happen
• How can you remedy UV damage to wine
• What does heat damage to wine smell like
• What causes heat damage to wine
• How can you remedy wine with heat damage
• What is volatile acidity in wine
• What is brettanomyces, aka Brett, in wine
• What does Brett smell like in wine
• Is Brett a fault in wine
• What is methoxypyrazine in wine
• What does pyrazine wine taste like
• What are tartrate crystals in wine
• Are wine crystals edible

Have you joined the Cork Crew?! 
The Cork Crew Tasting Club is a community of people that enjoy drinking and learning about wine. It's like a book club...but with wine! Each month I’ll select two styles of wine for us to focus on. We’ll then have a virtual tasting party to explore those wines along with a community event to learn from professionals in the wine community. Use code WINE101 to get your first month free!

Learn more about the Cork Crew here - https://www.corkandfizz.com/thecorkcrew

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