Is it okay to cork and cap a wine bottle?

[Berry454]

So I have 120 screw top wine bottles which are used and I'm reusing them.

I tried corking one this morning and the corks go in with ease. I know you have to be Hella careful corking screw cap wine bottles but it seems to work!

I was wondering if I could cork and screw cap them? Just because the corks look a little weird without the screw cap going on top!

I will be long term aging these. Will this not be detrimental to the corks if I store them like this for 2-5 years?

 

[RichardM]

Why do you want to fit corks and screw caps? One or the other will do.
Commercially produced wine is stored in bottles with corks for years without problems so yours should be ok.
I would recommend Novatwist caps for your screw top bottles e.g.
Novatwist wine bottle screwcaps Consumables Bottling Consumables,Wine Making Equipment. Other suppliers are available.
If you want to use corks then you could use heat shrink foil covers to finish e.g. Wine Shrinks/foils - Bottling Aids - Keg/Barrel/Bottle again, there plenty of other suppliers to choose from.

 

[Stevieboy]

Yes. I've done it.

 

[Berry454]

Why do you want to fit corks and screw caps? One or the other will do.
Commercially produced wine is stored in bottles with corks for years without problems so yours should be ok.
I would recommend Novatwist caps for your screw top bottles e.g.
Novatwist wine bottle screwcaps Consumables Bottling Consumables,Wine Making Equipment. Other suppliers are available.
If you want to use corks then you could use heat shrink foil covers to finish e.g. Wine Shrinks/foils - Bottling Aids - Keg/Barrel/Bottle again, there plenty of other suppliers to choose from.

It's not that the bottles need to be corker and capped. It's that I want to cork and cap them for the exact same reason we use shrink sleeves. Aesthetics.

Shrink sleeves won't fit over a screw cap wine bottle even after a cork is fitted

 

[Berry454]

Yes. I've done it.

So you have corked and fitted the original cap over the top of screw top wine bottles ?

If so that's awesome. I was just worried that the cap would somehow compromise the cork!

 

[Stevieboy]

Yes - you can (on my corker) set the depth of the cork to just below the rim of the neck. Screw cap goes back on just fine. You need to watch out for trapping moisture though - but you should be standing your bottles upright for 24 hours after corking before laying down any way.

 

[An Ankoù]

So I have 120 screw top wine bottles which are used and I'm reusing them.

I tried corking one this morning and the corks go in with ease. I know you have to be Hella careful corking screw cap wine bottles but it seems to work!

I was wondering if I could cork and screw cap them? Just because the corks look a little weird without the screw cap going on top!

I will be long term aging these. Will this not be detrimental to the corks if I store them like this for 2-5 years?

No problem at all. Some of the Belgian fruit beers come in bottles which are corked and then a crown cap fitted over the cork. On the other hand, if you've got screw top bottles, there's no need for a cork.

 

[MartinF]

I read some time ago that you shouldn't put corks into bottles that have threaded tops for screw caps; the reason given being that the bottle necks are not as strong as on those bottles designed to take corks, so there's a risk of breakage. That said, I've done it and still have a few corked, screw top bottles with 5 year old wine in them.

 

[user 44889]

I read some time ago that you shouldn't put corks into bottles that have threaded tops for screw caps; the reason given being that the bottle necks are not as strong as on those bottles designed to take corks, so there's a risk of breakage. That said, I've done it and still have a few corked, screw top bottles with 5 year old wine in them.

I have read the same, it's just the glass is not as thick on screw tops at the neck as corked ones so there's a risk of breaking and injury when corking one. But you say your corks go in easily so sounds good. Think i might try myself, thanks.

 

[ColinF]

I think the majority of my bottles are screw tops and I've had no issues corking them, then put on a shrink cap.

Initially I was sanitising the old caps and reusing them. However I didn't have space to keep my bottles vertical and discovered that several of the screw tops would drip when laid flat.

So now I Cork and put on a plastic shrink cap then lay flat in an old wooden shoe rack that I've found holds 60 bottles

 

[Berry454]

I have read the same, it's just the glass is not as thick on screw tops at the neck as corked ones so there's a risk of breaking and injury when corking one. But you say your corks go in easily so sounds good. Think i might try myself, thanks.

Yeah my corks definitely go in with ease. I have a little red hand corker which is supposed to be used with a hammer. I tried corking one of the screw top bottles and the cork gone in easily with just applying a little of my body weight. Didn't even need a mallet or hammer. Imo the pressure needed to get the corks into these bottles wouldn't even be close to enough to slash the bottles. Even with the glass being thinner.

 

[Berry454]

I have read the same, it's just the glass is not as thick on screw tops at the neck as corked ones so there's a risk of breaking and injury when corking one. But you say your corks go in easily so sounds good. Think i might try myself, thanks.

Yeah my corks definitely go in with ease. I have a little red hand corker which is supposed to be used with a hammer. I tried corking one of the screw top bottles and the cork gone in easily with just applying a little of my body weight. Didn't even need a mallet or hammer. Imo the pressure needed to get the corks into these bottles wouldn't even be close to enough to slash the bottles. Even with the glass being thinner.

 

[user 44889]

Yeah my corks definitely go in with ease. I have a little red hand corker which is supposed to be used with a hammer. I tried corking one of the screw top bottles and the cork gone in easily with just applying a little of my body weight. Didn't even need a mallet or hammer. Imo the pressure needed to get the corks into these bottles wouldn't even be close to enough to slash the bottles. Even with the glass being thinner.

Will deffo give it a go and Colin said he can shrink cap his or as Stevieboy said " set the depth of the cork to just below the rim of the neck. Screw cap goes back on just fine"
Think i will try a couple of empty ones first as have a bench press Corker just to be on the safe side.

 

[Berry454]

Just wanted to let you guys know that I corked 26 screw cap bottles.

When I was corking the 25th bottle, a large chunk smashed out the side of the bottle. Surprisingly the neck was not damaged.

I guess the thin glass of the entire wine bottle could struggle with the high pressure generated from corking.

I'll still cork the rest of my 120 screw cap bottles. But I'll definitely wrap a towel around the bottles from now on.
.

 

[user 44889]

At least 25 were ok and no injuries to you.

 

[Berry454]

At least 25 were ok and no injuries to you.

Yeah no injuries whatsoever thankfully!

Honestly they really aren't so bad. Providing you wrap a towel around them when corking then it should contain any explosion of the bottle.

 

[Cheshire Cat]

Cap and cork is the equivalent of crossing the streams and should be avoided at all cost.
or it could just be belt and braces.

 

[VW911]

Just get a decent twin lever corker.
I cork at least 500 bottles a year, a mix of screw and normal bottles.
Never had a bottle break...

 

[ColinF]

Just wanted to let you guys know that I corked 26 screw cap bottles.

When I was corking the 25th bottle, a large chunk smashed out the side of the bottle. Surprisingly the neck was not damaged.

Wow, how hard did you hit it