Laying down wine / Corks

[Birchy]

Why is it important that the cork remains wet when one lays wine down? I refer back to an sddsddean answer from a while back, and would like to know if this is to do with ease of opening, or whether the cork and wine have a deeper relationship. Only real answers PLEASE!

[rekstout]

If the cork dries out then it will shrink, potentially allowing air into the bottle and causing oxidation. Laying the bottle on it's side will allow the cork to remain moist and expanded to fit snugly in the neck of the bottle. Alos, a dry cork is more likely to crumble as a corkscrew drives through it.

[ucuccu]

I've been making "real" and "country" wines for years... My advise is:...If you want to store your wine for longer periods and if you want be fancy and cork & label your wine in appropriate bottles.i.e. bordeau, beaujolais etc...that's fine...It is rewarding to show & present your finished product.Make sure that all fermentation is over or you might end up with either a bottle of "petillant" wine or a messy bunch of burst bottles...all depending how much pressure the wine bottles can withstand.!!! However for everyday consumption or for the occasional informal drinking with friends you might want to consider using "re-useable" beer bottles. These are similar to the cider or spruce beer bottles. They come with permanent, reuseable snap on caps.(so you don't keep spending money on labels, corks etc.) and the rubber seals make them perfectly air tight. They are also capable of withstanding pressure should any further fementation take place. If you are like most people you don't usually drink a whole while bottle to yourself. With a standard wine bottle you end up with left over wine and then you have to worry about how to keep the rest. The beer bottles I am suggesting are the perfect size 340 ml..just enough for one person....v/s the standard 750 ml wine bottle. Happy Brewing... John F...Quebec. Canada

[Pinotage]

The answer given by Rekstout is the correct one. You mention 'laying down' wine. This implied keeping wine for years and decades. If so then do keep the wine on its side. But if you're going to keep it only for a few months then it will be alright kept upright.

[sddsddean]

As I got mentioned in the question, I'd better contribute!! Rekstout's answer is correct. However as cork is becoming endangered, more and more bottlers are using plastic corks or even screw lids. These negate the 'drying out' problem and are just as good, although purists are against them.