Leaking cork, what should i do?

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Good morning gentlemen,

From a recent trip to Portugal that i will further describe under another topic, i imported by airplane a few bottles of VP's. The bottles were between years 70 and 85, and protected by wine sleeves and tons of cloths to avoid, as much as possible, the vibrations and hits.

Amongst them, 2 bottles had corks that appear to have leaked a little bit. I noticed it by the red stains on the white paper that is put between the cork and the plastic cover. One still being wet when i touched it, even though there were no trace of any drop, both on the bottle itself and inside the wine sleeve (the wine sleeve is made that no liquid can escape from it, by two means of protection). The second bottle's white paper barely had a trace of red on it, the majority of the paper still being pure white.

Based on this information, what should i do? Can i consider it a part of the angel (i don't know if the translation is good - feel free to correct me) and let them rest for a few years, or should i be scared and consider my trip ruined (yes, i am exaggerating!). Maybe I should rather consider these bottles as a "drink as soon as possible" option?

Once again, thank you for your help!!

[PhilW]

Obviously it's not ideal, but nor is it particularly uncommon, depending on the age of the bottle and its cork condition, and the amount of temperature (and pressure) change the bottle undergoes during its transportation (hence the general preference to transport during cooler months). Here's what I do:

When I have a bottle arrive with any seep, the key thing to determine is whether it has just seeped an odd drop due to the temperature changes etc, or whether it has actively started seeping. I do this by cleaning and drying the capsule, covering it with a tissue and wrapping with cling film, and then putting it in the cellar. Given the potential temperature change from ambient to cellar, you might get another drop of seep in the first 24hrs as the bottle returns to cellar temperature, but should get no more than that. As long as there is no more seepage in the following week, you can then remove the cling film and tissue and store normally for the future (and if the capsule is damaged, you might also want to consider rewaxing, which will also help).

If the original seep during transport is obviously more than just a drop, and/or the level in the bottle is less than vts/bn, and/or the above test shows the bottle to still be seeping even if slowly, then I would mark it for immediate/imminent drinking.

[Andy Velebil]

Generally speaking. Once a cork starts to seep it means the cork isn’t sealing as good as intended. Those bottles go to my drink soon section. I’d suggest the same for you.

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Thank you gentlemen! I will try SIR Phil's suggestion, and see if the corks are still leaking or not. With luck, i may be able to save a bottle or even two!

[Glenn E.]

Phil's advice is good, but so is Andy's. What Phil's test will show you is which "drink soon" queue the bottle goes it. Drink ASAP, drink within the next year or two, or drink within 3-5 years. But as Andy said, if it has leaked - even due to the change in pressure it encountered during takeoff and landing - the seal isn't a good one and that bottle isn't likely to last for decades. Drink sooner rather than later.

[Alex Bridgeman]

The other option is to re-wax the bottles over the tops of the cork. The wax will work with the cork to prevent any more liquid escaping or - perhaps more importantly - any oxygen getting in.

There are a few threads on re-waxing bottles which will help you through the process, but if you decide to do so and have any questions please feel free to ask.

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Thank you again, everyone! I will definately take time to rewax the precious bottles, and will most like play safe and drink the bottles sooner than later.

I also did appreciate the timespans you suggested, SIR Glenn! It helps me have a more precise portrait of the urgency to drink them! Anyway, as a small collector, having a timelimit to drink them is not a bad idea at all for me!