As I might have predicted, the column on Talbott Winery and the Stelvin closure generated quite a lot of interest, opinion, and a few questions. Along with some other questions we have received recently, it seemed an appropriate time to answer as many as possible.

The term Stelvin refers to the twist cap closure that is used most frequently to replace corks. It is the trademarked term given to not just the twist cap, but the entire closure system designed and manufactured by Amcor. While it is the most common synthetic or non-cork closure, it is by no means the only one. There are many versions of synthetic corks manufactured from plastic and other materials.

In addition, there are glass and rubber closures called "zorks" that fit snuggly into the end of the bottle and are held in place by a ripcord-like device. By pulling the end of the closure, it comes off the bottle almost like a zipper, thus the name.

Natural corks fail for two reasons. If a wine bottle is stored upright, the cork will dry out and shrink, allowing air to enter the bottle. If the bottle is later turned on its side after the cork has dried, wine may also leak out, also causing air to enter the bottle. This will cause the wine to oxidize and lose much of its character. Oxygen is one of the most damaging gases to wine as it quickly causes fruit flavors to dissipate and the wine to taste flabby and unbalanced.

The other failure is if the cork contains TCA (trichloroanisole), a chemical present in natural cork that causes the wine to spoil. If the cork is tainted with TCA, the wine is referred to as "corked." The wine will lose most of its aromatics; instead you will smell something akin to wet newspaper or wet cardboard. On the palate the effects are worse as fruit flavors are stripped from the wine, so you taste only alcohol and in some cases oak. There are degrees of "corkiness," but in all cases the effects will become worse as the bottle sits open and the wine is exposed to oxygen. This condition does not develop over time in cork. It either has it or it doesn't. So if the cork is clean of TCA, a wine will not become corked over time, if it changes from tasting good to not so good it is for another reason.

If you encounter a corked bottle at a restaurant or purchase one from a shop you should leave the wine in the bottle and return it. Here at the dinner party we always refund/replace flawed bottles. Smelling the cork is an extremely unreliable way of detecting corkiness, the best way is to swirl the wine in a wine glass and get your nose deeply in the glass and smell for the telltale wet cardboard smell. Alternatively, take a small amount of wine on your palate and pull air over the wine. The corky smell will travel back through your sinus passage and reveal itself.

All wine is a living breathing liquid while it is in the bottle. Whether a wine ages well or not so well depends almost entirely on how it is made. Proper storage once the wine is completed and bottled is no doubt vital, but the real determinant of age worthiness is in the making of the wine and harvesting of the grapes. What happens though when you uncork a bottle of one of your favorites and it just doesn't measure up?

Assuming the bottle is not flawed by a bad cork - or some other flaw - it could just be in a phase. We frequently hear from wine consumers that they tried a bottle of a wine they truly love and purchased in quantity to enjoy over time, and find it to be lacking. Their assumption is that all of the remaining bottles must be the same, they all must be bad.

Not so fast. All wine is capable of going through phases where it might not be quite as good, but before you trash the whole lot, give the remaining bottles six months or so before you try the next one. They may indeed be "goners," but you would be surprised how many times a wine will come back from this bad spot to still taste delicious. While all wines regardless of color or varietal will at some point go through this, we have found Syrah more than any other grape to go in and out of tastiness.

If there is a topic you would like to read about, or if you have questions on wine, you can email George@thedinnerpartyshop.com, or make suggestions by contacting the Healthy Community section at the Coeur d'Alene Press.

George Balling is co-owner (with his wife Mary Lancaster) of the dinner party, a wine and tabletop decor shop by Costco in Coeur d'Alene. George has also worked as a judge in many wine competitions, and his articles are published around the country. You can learn more about the dinner party at www.thedinnerpartyshop.com. You can get all of these articles and other great wine tips by friending us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/dinnerpartyshop.