The 2010 ‘world championship of wine’, the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, has added further weight to evidence of a dramatic decline in cork-related wine faults.

Of almost 7000 bottles opened at the prestigious event only one per cent were identified as being affected by 2,4,6-trichloroanisole (TCA).

Staged in Palermo Sicily in April, the competition attracted wine samples from more than 50 countries and as in previous years event organisers conducted an analysis of wine faults. 

Of the thousands of wines tasted the panel of about 270 international judges rejected 120 samples. From this batch 68 were identified as being affected by TCA, commonly referred to as cork taint.

This figure represented 1.03 per cent of wines opened and is consistent with findings from several recent wine events that have shown the incidence of cork related taint to be either at or less than one per cent.

At last year’s Concours Mondial de Bruxelles the wine faults assessment recorded TCA at just below one per cent, representing seven years of sustained decline in line with the anti-TCA measures steadily introduced by major cork producers during this period.

“While the TCA-taint controversy is progressively dying out, the cork stopper is more than ever quality wines’ natural companion,” said Thomas Costenoble, oenologist and director of the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles.

Late last year at WineFuture in Spain, internationally renowned wine critic Robert Parker conducted a grenache tasting for almost 600 guests at which the incidence of TCA was less than one per cent. During the event Parker stated that cork quality had clearly improved.

In January, The Great Claret Tasting — a review of over 200 Bordeaux wines from the 2006 vintage — had “hardly any cork-tainted bottles” according to a report in Britain’s Financial Times.

And last October the Washington-based French Wine Society emphasised that cork-related taint was not an issue at its annual conference. Over 500 bottles of wine were opened and only four were affected by TCA.

The French Wine Society announcement followed a report in Vineyard & Winery Management by Dr Christian Butzke — a leading American professor of oenology and wine judge — that stated TCA was no longer a major problem for the US wine industry. Dr Butzke drew this conclusion after reviewing thousands of wines at the Indy International Wine Competition.

Oenologist Michel Rolland — widely regarded as the world’s foremost wine consultant — echoed Butzke’s views when he told Argentina’s Clarín newspaper that today winemakers can use corks “without any problem”.

Amorim’s chairman and CEO António Amorim said the 2010 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles had confirmed cork’s improved performance.

“In recent years several major wine competitions have demonstrated the fact that cork quality has improved significantly,” he said.

“The industry has made great progress on TCA and some of cork’s loudest critics are now recognising that and quietly acknowledging cork’s improved performance.”