🍷 Sparkling wine cork

A sparkling wine cork is a thick stopper that takes the shape of a mushroom after opening. It holds the pressure inside the bottle and seals the wine.

Sparkling wine has dissolved carbon dioxide, and the pressure in the bottle is about 5-6 atmospheres. So the cork must be dense and springy. It is made from pressed cork granules, and the lower part, which touches the wine, is usually assembled from discs of natural cork. Before corking, the stopper is compressed and fits into the neck. After opening, the cork expands at the top and takes a mushroom shape because the upper part stuck out of the bottle.

To stop the cork flying out, a wire cage called a muselet is fitted over it. It is twisted around the neck and covered with a small metal plate. The cork and muselet work together. The bottle should be opened carefully, holding the cork with a hand and pointing the bottle away from people. The sparkling wine cork is a type of stopper but differs from a still wine cork in size and construction. The material comes from the cork oak.