Corks are in! Doing my happy dance!
Another step closer to being ready for my Syrah bottling in a couple of weeks. It has been quite a process with selecting, designing, and keeping my fingers crossed that it will come out good.
They had a long trip all the way from Portugal which is one of the largest cork producers in the world. Cork is just another name for the bark of an oak tree known as Cork Oak (the trees are so valuable its illegal in Portugal to cut them down). The cork is harvested by stripping the bark off the tree. Good news - it doesn't hurt the tree and in 9 years the bark is regrown and ready to be harvested again.
They range from several cents to over a dollar per cork. The better quality of the cork the less chance of the wine being spoiled.