| Whatever be the motives behind Keith Stewart's health warning against the indiscriminate use of screw caps, the damage has set in. Britain's daily, The Daily Mail is exhorting consumers not to drink NZ Sauvignon Blanc. But, Rajeev Samant of Sula protests strongly against this overplay.
In a story that features environment damaging packaging, the newspaper identifies Nobilo Five Fathoms Sauvignon Blanc for, "packing and environmental offences, and other crimes".
Nobilo is imported in India by Sula who also uses screw cap closures for its Sauvignon Blanc.
The Daily Mail, recommending that wine drinkers avoid buying this particular wine, and others like it, says that the failure to use cork is considered a negative environmental impact by this second largest selling paper.
'The plastic cap and seal can't be recycled and it's not necessary to have both, as the screw-off cap needs to be broken open before use. The trend towards plastic caps or corks is damaging the environment. Cork - which is just bark from a tree - is far more environmentally friendly. Cork plantations also provide great habitats for wildlife, help to stop soil erosion and trap rainfall. But these plantations are being cut down as more wine bottlers turn to plastic.'
In a rather contrived fashion, the newspaper also cites the long distance travelled from wine producer to market as another reason to avoid buying this wine. Instead it recommends ' why not buy a Sauvignon Blanc from our near neighbour, France instead .'
The news should gladden the hearts of cork producers in Portugal and Spain as also wine producers in France . The controversy may affect the sale of New Zealand wines in the short run, especially if the British media like the Daily mail choose to voice strong opinions against it. UK is a big market for the NZ wines and of late has shown marked preference for the screw cap as closures as they keep the wine fresh and the corking problem is also non existent.
For the report click http://www.truewines.co.nz
When delWine contacted Rajeev, he was not aware of the controversy. But he was categorical that 'we had done a lot of research on the subject before launching them for our wines. We had found a lot of reports on the advantages but not a single one against it. Besides, it has been used by the Australian and New Zealander wine makers for 30 years with no known bad effects.'
'With due respect to the writer, it is not fair for on his part to overplay without any evidence,' he added. This is not going to change their plans. Sula's Sauvignon Blanc of 2005 and 2006 is a lot more fresh and crisp, since they switched to screwcaps.
Subhash Arora |
