Check for These Smells to Tell If Your Wine Is Corked

If you’ve ever had a wine that just didn’t smell or taste quite the way you expected, or a wine that just didn’t taste right, the problem may not be your palate. The wine could be “corked,” or tainted with a chemical compound that the wine maker never intended to get into the bottle called TCA. The wine is definitely safe to drink, it just may not taste how it’s supposed to. Here’s what to look for—or smell for—to help you determine if a wine is corked when you open it.

TCA, or Trichloroanisole, is a natural byproduct from a common airborne fungus when it comes in contact with some kind of chlorinated chemical or compound. Sometimes that interaction takes place in the cork that goes into wine bottles, and if it does, TCA can—depending on its concentration—dramatically change the taste of a wine or just obscure and overwhelm some of the subtle flavors that the winemaker intended you to enjoy.

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