Corked Trimbach: Is TCA a Riesling Thing?

We planned to open a 2003 Trimbach Riesling last night to accompany a sesame chicken dish. The cork broke off and the bottom half disintegrated as my wife tired to pull it. I didn't think too much about it until she said that her first taste was "strange". I poured a glass and picked up the unmistakeable "wet cardboard" odor of TCA taint without even putting my nose to the glass.

This wine was from a half case of the '03. We have already consumed two bottles which were fine. This is the first corked Trimbach of the many, many bottles we have consumed over the years. Bummer! The interesting thing is that approximately 90% of the corked wines we have opened over the years have been Rieslings. What gives?

Following the failure of the Trimbach I snagged a good 'ol Kim Crawford SB under screw cap to prevent more pain and suffering.

Was there not a similar problem posted here a month ago, Trimbach too?

[James Roscoe]

Was there not a similar problem posted here a month ago, Trimbach too?

The problem there was that the Trimbach in question was under screwcap. I believe that Trimbach had a minor TCA problem at the winery a few years back. It isn't always the cork's fault.

I think borderline taint is more evident in whites in general (and Riesling, possibly the most transparent grape, in particular). No reason there should be more taint, but more likely to get noticed. Of course, what one drinks and sheer chance can also color results.

[David M. Bueker]

Was there not a similar problem posted here a month ago, Trimbach too?

The problem there was that the Trimbach in question was under screwcap. I believe that Trimbach had a minor TCA problem at the winery a few years back. It isn't always the cork's fault.

Trimbach does not use screwcap, and there has been no discussion that I can recall about TCA issues at Trimbach. Where was this discussion?

I think borderline taint is more evident in whites in general (and Riesling, possibly the most transparent grape, in particular).

Good point Dale. I don't consider myself super sensitive to TCA. The wines that I have set aside for TCA taint in the past, including this Trimbach, were quite noticeable. In this case the bottom of the cork literally fell apart. I have to believe we just happened to get a Trimbach with a really lousy piece of cork stuck in it.

Was there not a similar problem posted here a month ago, Trimbach too?

The problem there was that the Trimbach in question was under screwcap. I believe that Trimbach had a minor TCA problem at the winery a few years back. It isn't always the cork's fault.

Trimbach does not use screwcap, and there has been no discussion that I can recall about TCA issues at Trimbach. Where was this discussion?

David,
Here is a link to a recent Trimbach TCA discussion: TRIMBACH

(and Riesling, possibly the most transparent grape, in particular)

That's a very nice comment about Riesling.

I haven't seen any correlation between TCA and rieslings. If anything, the opposite--the rieslings I've had have been more reliable than the rest of the wines in my cellar, as regards TCA taint. I think it's a totally random phenomenon.

-Paul W.

[James Roscoe]

Was there not a similar problem posted here a month ago, Trimbach too?

The problem there was that the Trimbach in question was under screwcap. I believe that Trimbach had a minor TCA problem at the winery a few years back. It isn't always the cork's fault.

Trimbach does not use screwcap, and there has been no discussion that I can recall about TCA issues at Trimbach. Where was this discussion?

David,
Here is a link to a recent Trimbach TCA discussion: TRIMBACH

My mistake. It was synthetic cork. Thanks to the Ol' Redwinger for loading up the link to the previous discusion. It still really puzzles me.

[Robin Garr]

Trimbach does not use screwcap, and there has been no discussion that I can recall about TCA issues at Trimbach. Where was this discussion?

As others have pointed out, there was a fairly extended discussion here, but it was about a Trimbach stoppered with a synthetic. I summarized the discussion in a <i>30 Second Wine Advisor</i> article, got a lot of E-mail, and I did get a nice E-mail in English from Jean Trimbach, who basically said, "Geez, #### happens, don't know how that came to pass, but I'm sure sorry." He said it was a NomaCork. I don't know if it's possible to distinguish Noma from Neo by casual examination, but they're both made in the slick-skin, foamy-interior style.

[David M. Bueker]

And just for what it's worth, I have not had any more corked bottles from Trimbach than normal. In fact two wines have given me the most cork problems: Beaujolais and...wait for it...Donnhoff.

David, By my count I have had approximately 52 bottles of various Trimbach wines that is the first one to be corked.