Cork Size - Scotch vs Bourbon

[dmorris]

Hi all.

I have been drinking scotch for quite a few years. I got two bottles of bourbon at Christmas to give them a try..

Elijah Craig and Bladnoch

I noticed that they both have corks about twice the width of my scotch corks. Is this normal for a bourbon, or just chance? I have drank my share of scotch and have never seen a cork that didn't appear to be a standard size.

Any thoughts anyone?

D

[Deactivated Member]

I'm not sure you meant Bladnoch, which is a Scotch - Blanton?

Many Bourbons have narrow corks - Bookers and Stagg spring to mind. Some Scotches also have non-standard corks, including Cardhu and Ben Nevis 26yo.

[Deactivated Member]

The Elijah Craig cork is about the widest there is among bourbon. Only a handful vary off of the standard.

[irishwhiskeychaser]

I have actually noticed that both of the Japanesse whiskies that I have have larger than regular corks as does my Woodford reserve and 2 glenrothes. All my Irish have standard corks as with Macallan and Highland Park. Not something I really though about before though.

Maybe it is so you can pour bigger drams with out feeling guilty

[Virginia Gentleman]

I really love Elijah Craig 12 but I hate the bottle. I wish they would change it. If you would like a bourbon with a standard cork try Elmer T. Lee Single Barrel or the original Wild Turkey Russell's Reserve.

[Deactivated Member]

Genuinely misread this. Couldn't figure out what size one's manhood was to do with whisky/bourbon drinking.

[irishwhiskeychaser]

..... Couldn't figure out what size one's manhood was to do with whisky/bourbon drinking.

The more you drink the smaller the cork

[Muskrat Portage]

Eelbrook:
There must have been a major evolution of English since we legislated ourselves into a country in 1867:
Bird = young woman
Boot = trunk of car
Bonnet = hood of car
Cork = manhood
Now that's out of the way ...

... the only real difference I've seen in cork sizes in whisky was the A'Bunadh which is larger in diameter than other bottles and the Edradour CS 1989. If bourbon is wider mouthed it would reduce the surface tension marginally, due to a less restrictive opening, making the pour faster (not a bad thing from a marketing perspective). I know that I could "chug" the wide mouth American beers faster in my misspent youth. Musky P.

[Deactivated Member]

They say that girth is more important than length. With whisky corks that is!

[Muskrat Portage]

They say that girth is more important than length. With whisky corks that is!

I like the lay of your jib, eelbrook. Makes excuses for those...never mind.
I wonder if the time for corks is rapidly disappearing as so many wineries are switching to the plastic kind or something more hideous? I can see it now, tetra packs of single malt by 2010. At least they wouldn't "glug" and could get past Dansk Post.
Musky P.

[dmorris]

I'm not sure you meant Bladnoch, which is a Scotch - Blanton?

Yeah.. I did mean Blanton.. It not only has a "wide girth" but it also has a pewter (or similar) horse on the top....

[irishwhiskeychaser]

The bottle of Nikka Black that I have has a plastic coated cork. The cork looks real on the inside though. I can't see the point of going to all that trouble .......

unless......


This maybe is where the change starts.....

Get people used to the idea of plastic corks by having real cork plastic coated first....

.. then before you know it they are just plastic..

.... cunning plan

[Photon]

.. then before you know it they are just plastic..

.... cunning plan

I've had several wines with plastic corks (mainly those lazy Californians - not a good Oregon wine ) and they don't seems to affect the flavor at all. They reseal a bottle a little better than a plain cork - not that many bottles in my house ever need that. They do have the advantage of no flakes gettng left behind and a plastic cork has never broken off in the bottle

Right now I have a Balvenie with a severely cracked cork that I have put toothpicks in to keep from breaking all the way. Works, but it looks wierd.

-P.