Screwcap damage: how much of a problem is it? For this Henschke Johann’s Garden 2023, not so much
I’ve talked a lot about the problems of cork taint. It’s still here, but at a reduced rate from the highs of the late 1990s and early 2000s, where I kind of felt compelled to write about it as one of the scandals of the wine world.
Screwcap issues? These are rare, to the point that I’ve never experienced one in the wild, until today. I just received a bunch of samples from Henschke, one of the most wonderful of all Australian producers (family owned, amazing wines, lovely people, great heritage). This included the 2022 fancy wines (there’s an embargo on reporting on these), but fortunately Hill of Grace, Hill of Roses and Mount Edelstone weren’t affected! It was another wine, but still a special one, that got damaged in transit – the 2023 Johann’s Garden. The cap was damaged to the point that some wine was leaking, but not much.
Clearly this is a potential issue. But how much? For a red like this, with ageing potential, is a small amount of oxygen ingress going to kill it? So I popped the cap to see the state of the wine. It was pretty much as I found it last July, when I tasted it at the winery. This is reassuring. Screwcaps are more fragile than in-neck closures, but even if there is a bit of damage, then as long as the wine is young and you are not cellaring it, this isn’t on the level of cork taint, which ruins the wine. At least you can see if the bottle has been affected. And: I open a lot of wine and this is the first time this has happened to me. So here’s my note, but bear in mind this wine has seen a little oxygen that a freshly opened bottle with an intact seal wouldn’t have.
Henschke Johann’s Garden 2023 Eden Valley, Barossa, Australia
This comes from red loamy, limestone soils that are the foothills of the Eden Valley. When they first started making this the fruit came from Stephen’s uncle vineyard, planted by Johann Alfred Zobel, so they called it Johann’s Garden. This vineyard is now houses, so the wine now comes from the Penrise area with their red loams. Old vine Grenache and old vine Mataro. Fine-wrought and elegant with sweet red cherries and strawberries, as well as some spicy, grainy detail. The elegant sweet fruit is the Grenache signature, while the spicy, grainy, stewed berry fruit component is very Mataro. Despite the elegance, this has potential for development. Beautifully expressive. 95/100 (UK retail: varies, between £35 and £50, depending on vintage and source. UK agent is Liberty Wines)
