Whitehall Lane makes first commercial use of glass capsule closures for wine
Published:11-May-2006
By
As the wine industry remains divided over the use of cork or synthetic stoppers for wine bottles, Whitehall Lane Winery of Napa Valley, California, has been named as the first winery in the world to seal its bottles of select premium wines with the Alcoa developed Vino-Seal closure, a glass closure for wine bottles secured by a traditional tin capsule.
This is the first commercial use of this new glass closure designed by Alcoa's Closure Systems International (CSI) business as an alternative to traditional corks and synthetic stoppers for the wine market. The original sealing system has been used to top 45,000 bottles of Whitehall Lane premium 2003 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and 3,000 bottles of its premium 2003 Leonardini Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon.
With a design similar to a decorative decanter stopper, Vino-Seal was developed as an alternative to traditional wine stoppers. It provides airtight seal ensuring the wine retains its purity of flavor and aroma. Vino-Seal uses an inert o-ring to provide a sterile seal, preventing contamination or oxidation.
Vino-Seal is the US cousin of the Vino-Lok 'glass on glass' wine closure also developed by Alcoa CSI in Germany, which is currently being used by 350 wineries throughout Europe to top their premium wines. "The only difference between the two glass stoppers is that Vino-lok uses an aluminum cover cap, while Vino-Seal uses a tin capsule, which is more in line with North American wine packaging," said Laura Clark, adult beverage marketing manager for Alcoa.
