Puzzled ??

[Zebedee]

Reading Duffs excellent thread on preparing wines for competition

http://www.winesathome.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=2048

I have a question about this bit....

Wine bottles.

Wine bottles should be of the sauterne style, clear and preferably with a punted base. They should be fitted with a white plastic flanged cork and be filled to between 1/4 and 3/4 (0.75 and 1.25 cm ) from the base of the cork.


if you look at wine bottles,around the base you will see the capacity 75cl followed by 63mm or 65 mm moulded into the glass.
I have been told that this measurement is the distance from the top of the bottle to the wine when the bottle is full (75cl). So with nothing better to do,I measured 75cl into a bottle.
This filled it to about 1/4 inch up the neck, leaving an air space of around 2 inches

So why do you have to overfill competition bottles ?

[Richard S]

When you prep the bottles for comps, you will normally have to top them up a little. This is because:

1. The rules usualy say that the level of wine in the bottle has to be between 1/4" and 3/4" below the base of the cork. This is to ensure that all bottles look pretty much the same.

2. The competition corks are much shorter than standard corks so topping up is required in order to obtain the correct level.

Hope that helps.

[lockwood1956]

Spot on Richard

[Richard S]

Spot on Richard

As you know Bob, I don't have too much of a problem with presentation.

[Zebedee]

so its nothing to do with unscrupulous inderviduals buying a bottle of the shelf,steaming the labels off ,swapping corks and entering it as 'home made'

[Richard S]

so its nothing to do with unscrupulous inderviduals buying a bottle of the shelf,steaming the labels off ,swapping corks and entering it as 'home made'

There isn't much to stop people doing this and I am sure it does happen. Can you imagine the shame and ridicule that the individual would suffer if caught? Besides, where would the "buzz" come from by winning a comp in this way?

[Duffbeer]

There isn't much to stop people doing this and I am sure it does happen. Can you imagine the shame and ridicule that the individual would suffer if caught? Besides, where would the "buzz" come from by winning a comp in this way?

Exactly, but apparently an odd one or two did do that many years ago, why ??? I don't know, sad to think such levels could be reached.