February 13, 2009 The Vinegar Master

Great Glue, Too

Each bottle in our 50+ bottle collection of others' balsamic vinegars has one thing in common with the others: sticky, broken corks.  

No matter the purchase price, no matter the maker, no matter the age of these aceto balsamicos, traditional or industrial in their making, if they have corks, the corks usually get stuck after a single opening, just a single use.

There's a simple reason for this.  Balsamic is a terrific glue! 

After first opening a bottle to use and pouring balsamic through the throat of the bottle neck, the neck is made wet. When the cork is returned to place, both it and the bottle have a light coating of balsamic.  In time, the cork dries in place.  Next time you try to open the bottle, the cork is fixed to the bottle throat and usually breaks.

This happened on the $350 bottle we own -- and virtually all the others.  The only exception is screw tops, but that's a case where the cap is better than the made-in-a-day contents. 

Our two-part custom Portuguese made corks -- wooden tops joined with quality cork insert -- give a good hand grip, have good appearance, and provide an excellent seal. But they can fail too, especially in a warm and arid climate like ours.

What to do?  Use a moist Q-tip or corner of a towel spun in the neck of the bottle before putting it away.  This works every time, even if it's a hassle.

The no-hassle approach?  Cut a 3 inch square of linen or muslin to cover the top and tie it in place with string.  This is a traditional practice -- and it allows continued, slow balsamic concentration in between uses.