Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/347498
W i n e s & V i n e s A U G U s T 2 0 1 4 37 He said three full-time techni- cians conduct the analysis. A team of two techs will sniff each sample jar and if either of them detects TCA (or any other off aroma) the cork is immedi- ately rejected. "We don't discuss whether someone got some- thing or didn't," he said. All of the approved corks are then audited by a third tech to ensure they're clean. Hladun said techs essentially need to score perfect on a standardized "duo-trio" test for TCA to work on the DS100 program. He said the company has plenty of space for its DS100 analysis, it's just a matter of buying the hardware, glass- ware and hiring the right staff. A few equipment upgrades have helped as well. Hladun said Cork Supply developed a process to heat the sample trays and create stronger, cleaner aromas for the sensory staff to analyze. Dustin Mowe, the president of Portocork America, said Amorim & Irmaos SA (a sub- sidiary of Corticeira Amorim) is develoing an automated in- spection system at the Porto- cork facility in Portugal. "We continue to work on this," he said. "We have a machine that works, that is operational. Our biggest problem has been throughput—being able to put out enough corks." Mowe said the company is planning to make a "significant investment" in the technology to reach production scale, and equipment could be in place to screen the company's top-qual- ity corks by April 2015. He said the individual sen- sory analysis method remains an excellent choice for prevent- ing TCA contamination, but a significant number of corks are removed or "kicked out" for a variety of sensory flaws such as aromas of jalapeno pepper or ashtray, although it's not clear exactly what could happen to the wine when sealed with corks displaying these attri- butes. Mowe said his staff at Portocork has begun a long- term study in which the re- jected corks are used to seal a neutral, white wine. Regular tastings will be held every six months, with winemakers and a few wine writers participat- ing to evaluate how the re- jected corks affect (or don't affect) the wine. "I think this will be the first huge (develop- ment) that tells us how impor- tant it is to kick out these things with sensory," he said. Lafitte Cork & Capsule cur- rently offers individual sensory analysis—but only for its large- format corks, said general manager Mark Hautala. He said the process is a very reli- able method for detecting TCA, but it's not particularly worth the time and effort for an order of several thousand or tens of thousands of standard corks. "It's really the time, be- cause with the levels of TCA that we see on incoming lots it almost doesn't make sense, quite frankly," he said. "We're down to less than 1% now." As a member of the Cork Quality Council, Lafitte—as well as Amorim Cork Amer- ica, Cork Supply, Ganau, Scott Laboratories, Portocork and M.A. Silva—conduct rigorous testing at the supply source as well as when they receive corks in the United States. Testing involves pulling sam- ples from cork bales for gas chromatography mass spec- trometry (GCMS) as well as other tests to ensure corks meet size and quality stan- dards. Hautala said Lafitte conducts additional quality testing for every bale of the top three levels of quality corks it buys. He said Lafitte is also work- ing with research partners to develop its own automated system for individual cork analysis and is close to having something ready soon. "We're working on some things," he said. "We do see it trending in that direction where one day there will be individual testing without human sensory." C L O S U R E S