CORK OR SCREWCAP?
The Williamson Approach
We respect the ceremony of cork.
We choose the consistency of screwcap.
For us, the decision is simple: the closure should protect the
wine,
not become part of the gamble.
A modern screwcap gives every bottle a more consistent opportunity to mature as we intended—preserving the vineyard character, balance and freshness we worked to put there.
Tradition and Ceremony
The Romance of Cork
There is something satisfying about opening a bottle sealed with cork. The cut of the foil. The turn of the screw. That soft final note as the cork leaves the bottle and dinner officially begins.
It has the sound of someone opening his heart to friends.
Assuming, of course, the darned thing dosn't crumble into the wine.
Natural cork has sealed fine wines successfully for centuries. It brings tradition, ceremony and a reassuring sense that something worthwhile is about to happen.
It also brings uncertainty.
What the Closure Changes
What Happens Inside the Bottle
Natural corks are not identical. Their structure and oxygen-transfer rates can vary, which means two bottles of the same wine may develop differently over time.
Cork can also be a source of TCA—the compound responsible for the dull, musty character known as cork taint. Nothing improves dinner quite like discovering that the bottle saved for a special occasion smells like a damp cupboard.
Wine does need the right environment to mature, but it does not need a natural cork to do so. Modern screwcaps use carefully selected liners that allow the winemaker to control how much oxygen reaches the wine over time.
The choice of liner matters. So does careful bottling. This is not simply a cap screwed onto a bottle; it is part of the winemaking decision.
Consistency with Purpose
Why We Choose Screwcap
We make wine from very special vineyards across Napa and Sonoma. By the time a bottle reaches your table, years of farming, harvesting, fermentation, blending and aging have already gone into it.
We are not prepared to surrender all that work to an unpredictable piece of tree bark at the final moment.
Screwcaps remove cork as a source of TCA taint and greatly reduce bottle-to-bottle variation. They help preserve freshness, fruit and the individual character of the vineyard.
They also allow our wines to mature in the bottle without pretending that California needs to borrow every custom from Europe.
European wine traditions have taught us a great deal. They remain the inspiration behind many Williamson wines. But these are California wines, and we use the closure that gives them the best chance to arrive at your table as we intended.
Practical Advantages
No Corkscrew
Open without tools wherever you are.
Easy to Reseal
Reseals securely to save remaining wine.
Flexible
Store the bottle upright or on its side.
Consistency
Every bottle ages as intended.
Convenience is pleasant. Consistency is the real reason.
The Bottom Line
Tradition Belongs in the Wine
A closure should not announce the quality of a bottle.
The vineyard, the fruit and the wine should take care of that.
Cork gives us a small ceremony.
Screwcap gives us greater control over what happens next.
For Williamson, preserving the quality of the wine inside the bottle has always mattered more than preserving tradition outside it.