Everyone has something to sell

TCA, which is normally associated with cork taint, can be found in things other than corks. For example if a barrel of wine is infected if the barrel is blended in a batch, then the whole batch will basically be stuffed. TCA can also be lurking in wineries and can play merry hell with the product.

Recently a well known and regarded US winery discovered they an infestation of TCA in one of their cellar humidifiers which resulted in a significant taint problem in some of their top wine brands. The full story can be found here. http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Daily/News/0,1145,1841,00.html

Although the winery has a no question replacement policy for off wine, only four bottle of dud wine had been returned. Whilst the attitude towards returning off wine is the US is very different (most people just pour it down the drain) it does raise some interesting questions.

Firstly, one can only wonder when people were drinking the affected bottles how many of them realized the wines were infected with TCA and how many just thought the wines were ordinary. Imagine your reaction if you paid $100 for what you thought was a top wine and found it to disappointingly ordinary, you would not be impressed.

Secondly these TCA affected wines are doing the wineries reputation a huge amount of damage but in reality they only have themselves to blame because they are responsible for turning out a defective product.

News Release, Napa Valley, Calif. (Sept. 27, 2002) – In an article posted today on the website of the Wine Spectator, James Laube reports that some Beaulieu Vineyard (BV) red wines made from 1997 to 1999 contain "high" levels of 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA), a harmless chemical compound usually associated with bad corks.  BV acknowledges that laboratory tests, using new technologies, have detected the presence of TCA in some of our red wines.  However, we believe that Mr. Laube errs both in describing this as a problem unique to this winery and in his characterization of the sensory threshold of wine drinkers for TCA.

"We disagree with the Wine Spectator's categorization of the levels of TCA as ‘high' and the implication that the quality of our wine therefore suffers," said Raymond Chadwick, President of Diageo Chateau and Estates, which owns BV.   "In fact, our wines contain concentrations below the sensory threshold of the vast majority of wine drinkers, including connoisseurs, and continue to be well received by reviewers and consumers alike.  Consumers like our wines and we reject any assertion to the contrary."

The presence of TCA is an industry issue, by no means unique to BV wines.  Indeed, tests indicate that many wines contain measurable levels of TCA, including some of the world's greatest wines.  In fact, in past issues the Wine Spectator has reported as much.

For example, in a piece from October 31, 2001, Wine Spectator examines the problem of TCA on an industry level:

"The major villain is trichloroanisole, or TCA, a substance endemic to cork forests and the production process... And all it takes to form TCA is an interaction of phenol (an organic compound found in all plants), mold and chlorine. Each of these components is commonplace, so TCA continues to plague the industry." (Bold emphasis added)

This was not the first time the Wine Spectator described the problem as endemic to the industry.  In its November 15, 1998 issue, they reported that:

"Most producers concede that some of their wines are corked..."  (Note: "corked" is the term used when TCA presence is noticeable in wine.)

Mr. Laube asserts that some tasters can detect TCA at levels as low as 1 and 2 parts per trillion (ppt).  But this is not true for the vast majority of wine drinkers.  In a 1999 study, UC Davis researchers found that "in sensitivity tests of a group of trained wine judges, a geometric mean of the minimum detectable concentrations of TCA has been determined at 4.6 ng/l."  A measurement of 4.6 ng/l corresponds to 4.6 ppt.  None of the BV wines Mr. Laube tested exceeded this level.

Other experts agree on a higher threshold: "After more than 1,000 analyses, we had observed that the flavor threshold is more than 5 ng/l (ppt) in red wine for TCA." (Wine Analytics Scientific Symposium, Bordeaux, 1997.)

Mr. Laube's own Wine Spectator has reported in the past that determining TCA thresholds can be difficult and problematic:

"The problem can't be definitively quantified, because people's thresholds of perception vary dramatically, according to both experience and genetics." (October 31, 2001)

And that the average sensory threshold is higher than Mr. Laube claims:

"Many people detect the substance at around five parts per trillion" (October 31, 2001)

Mr. Laube admits that he has a particularly high sensitivity to TCA, which makes him a distinct minority among wine drinkers, and we believe this story reflects that unusual sensitivity.  Over the 7 million bottles of BV wines we have sold over the past 6 months, only four complaints have been received of "corky" wine.

Leading wine publications such as the Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast have given favorable reviews to many of our recent releases, including many of our 1997 to 1999 vintage red wines:

· Wine Enthusiast gives a 90-point rating to our 1999 Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon and our 1999 Napa Valley Merlot in its November 15, 2002 review.

· The New York Times this week (September 25, 2002) selected the 1999 Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon as one of its "Wines of the Week," describing it as a "classic Napa cab"

· The Wine Advocate awarded 91 points to the 1997 Clone 4 Cabernet Sauvignon 1997 (Issue 141), noting that it "should drink well for 15-20 years.

· Wine News awarded 91 points to the 1998 Clone 6 Cabernet Sauvignon 1998 and 92 points to the Georges De Latour Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 1998 in its June/July 2002.

· Tastings.com awarded 90 points on March 1, 2002 to the Clone 6 Cabernet Sauvignon 1998.

· Mr. Laube himself gave 91 points to our 2000 Signet Zinfandel in the June 15, 2002 issue of Wine Spectator.

Though Mr. Laube ignores it, perhaps because of his own sensitivity, most wine experts won't detect the presence of TCA at concentrations below 5.  To put that in context, it is the rough equivalent of "a couple dozen grains of salt in an Olympic-size swimming pool" as the Wine Spectator itself reported in its October 31, 2001 issue.

Though we stand by the quality of our wines, BV does take the issue of TCA seriously and will continue to evaluate these recent scientific findings.  While we do know that TCA represents no health risk, as Mr. Laube reports, we intend to take a leadership position in addressing what is an industry issue.

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Copyright © Ric Einstein 2003