# Corks not going into bottle all the way



## Jal5 (Feb 16, 2020)

I am at my daughter's home and tried to bottle some wine we made together using a hand corker but some of these bottles didn't allow the cork to go in all the way and sit above the neck- six bottles. Would it be better to pull these corks when I get home and use my Portuguese corker on new corks or try to reseat the original corks with the Portuguese corker? I am leaning towards just pulling them but is there any reason not to try the other way first?
Joe


----------



## salcoco (Feb 16, 2020)

if extended into the bottle at least 3/4 inch just cut corks off level with top of bottle. If a white or fruit wine I doubt if wine will be long aging so cork depth will not be risky.


----------



## Johnd (Feb 16, 2020)

Since the corks have been in for a bit and have expanded back out, it may be difficult to push them in further with your floor corker, depending upon the cork type. You may find that the plunger will only dent them unless they’re really stiff. I keep a 6” length of wooed dowel around for this purpose, as every so often I don’t get a cork seated properly, usually when I’m going too fast. The dowel should be sized to just barely fit inside the bottle neck, and will give you more surface contact with the cork, avoiding denting it. With the dowel centered on the cork, bottle on a wooden surface, just lightly tap the dowel with a rubber mallet til the cork is seated.


----------



## joeswine (Feb 16, 2020)

I had this problem in the pass it was the corks being an inferior quality,went back to my usual vendor, LD Carson no problems. 
Doesn't have to be your device.jusy a thought.


----------



## Jal5 (Feb 16, 2020)

Good suggestions all. These corks worked fine in another bottling effort using the Portuguese corker. The two hand corker just didn’t seem to be able to seat them far enough down this time. Maybe 1/4 inch above the top of the bottle. White wine that i want to age another 6-9 months. I can try the dowel trick first.


----------



## mainshipfred (Feb 17, 2020)

I just use a rubber mallet when they don't seat just right.


----------



## joeswine (Feb 17, 2020)

I don't think I would do that


----------



## mainshipfred (Feb 17, 2020)

joeswine said:


> I don't think I would do that



Works just fine, do it all the time.


----------



## Rocky (Feb 18, 2020)

I always try to use a 1 3/4" cork. (The Nomacorcs I just received are only 9 1/2" but there is no problem inserting them with my Italian corker.) If the cork does not seat completely, there is still enough contact to ensure that that the wine is protected and I am no worse off than if I had used a 1 1/2" cork. Aesthetically, they suffer and they are marked for internal use and early drinking. If the corks does not seat by more than 1/4" I remove it and re-cork.


----------



## WinoDave (Feb 18, 2020)

I had a leaky bottling wand and didn’t notice it one time, slightly overfilled my bottles and the corks wouldn’t go all the way down until i poured a little wine out.


----------



## [email protected] (May 11, 2020)

Another option is to wax these bottles to prevent CO2 ingress. Additionally you can "hide" any mistakes with the original cork using this method.


----------



## pete1325 (Jun 4, 2020)

Use the floor corker and press them in a little further when you get home. Wet them a little and press them down.


----------



## GR! (Jun 5, 2020)

I normally just flip the bottle so the cork is on the counter and push down, works well to get the corks flush


----------



## winemaker81 (Jun 6, 2020)

Another problem is that not all bottle necks are 100% the same. I use an Italian floor corker and don't have problems putting a cork in ANY bottle, but prior to that I had occasional problems with a double-lever corker.

If a bottle proves to be a problem, I put it in the "wine to give away" category and don't worry if I get the bottle back ....


----------



## Encino Stan (Aug 5, 2020)

I was going to post the same issue, but searched and found this thread. 
I didn't know if it was a problem with the corks, corker, or corkage technique.
Corker and corks.


----------



## winemaker81 (Aug 5, 2020)

@Encino Stan, what kind of corker are you using?

My floor corker is adjustable. I set it to put corks at the correct depth, and have had to adjust it with different types of corks. I seem to recall that my double-lever corker (given away long ago) was also adjustable.

Without knowing more, my first guess is your corker is not set to the right level.


----------



## SpoiledRotten (Aug 5, 2020)

And to you folks, especially new WM out there, be careful with those hand corkers. That’s what I started with almost 10 years ago. After about four bottles shattering (randomly), the loss of wine, and fear of cutting myself, I quickly went to a floor corker.


----------



## pete1325 (Aug 5, 2020)

Some local brew shops rent the floor corkers. That's what I did before buying one. it really makes a difference. JMO.


----------



## Encino Stan (Aug 5, 2020)

winemaker81 said:


> @Encino Stan, what kind of corker are you using?
> 
> My floor corker is adjustable. I set it to put corks at the correct depth, and have had to adjust it with different types of corks. I seem to recall that my double-lever corker (given away long ago) was also adjustable.
> 
> Without knowing more, my first guess is your corker is not set to the right level.


Corker: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1&tag=forumyield-20 
and corks: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1&tag=forumyield-20.

Corker description claims "Adjustable plunger depth", but don't see how to change.


----------



## wpt-me (Aug 5, 2020)

How much space are you allowing between cork and wine in the bottle? If not enough space you are compressing 
the air and cork won't go in all the way.

Bill


----------



## Boatboy24 (Aug 5, 2020)

Encino Stan said:


> Corker: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1&tag=forumyield-20
> and corks: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1&tag=forumyield-20.
> 
> Corker description claims "Adjustable plunger depth", but don't see how to change.



In my experience, the #9 corks are darn near impossible to get all the way in with that two handed corker.


----------



## winemanden (Aug 5, 2020)

Strange though it may seem, I read a tip in one of my old winemaking books recently. For what it's worth? I'll pass it on.
Don't forget to hang a piece of string over the neck of the bottle when inserting the cork. After the cork has been inserted, pull out the string and you will release the compressed ait beneath the cork.
Real homespun advice from when people used to make a gallon (6 bottles) at a time. A lot of people still do that, The amount I mean not the string.


----------



## winemaker81 (Aug 5, 2020)

Encino Stan said:


> Corker description claims "Adjustable plunger depth", but don't see how to change.


I looked at the Q&A on Amazon, according to the seller:

_That's a good question. There is not an automatic height adjustment. However, it does allow you to modify the depth based on how far you extend the handles. If you extend the handles all the way down, you can achieve a depth of about 1/8in below the top of the bottle. If you prefer to have the cork rest higher than that, then you can just stop pushing down on the handles when the desired depth is reached. _

This explanation doesn't use the word "adjustable" as I expected it would.  [Queue up a quote from Inigo Montoya]

Next time you bottle, ensure the bottom of the corker is tight to the mouth of the bottle, and when you move the levers down, ensure the contact remains tight, and push the levers all the way down. It's been several decades since I used a double-lever corker, so I'm dredging up memories. I do recall that it took a bit of practice to seat the corks even with the top of the bottle. I purchased my floor corker, gave teh double-lever to my brother, and never looked back. [until now]

My unit looked like the picture, and it seated #9's with no problems. I tried #8's briefly, but used long #9's after that.


----------



## joeswine (Aug 5, 2020)

Rocky said:


> I always try to use a 1 3/4" cork. (The Nomacorcs I just received are only 9 1/2" but there is no problem inserting them with my Italian corker.) If the cork does not seat completely, there is still enough contact to ensure that that the wine is protected and I am no worse off than if I had used a 1 1/2" cork. Aesthetically, they suffer and they are marked for internal use and early drinking. If the corks does not seat by more than 1/4" I remove it and re-cork.


----------



## Sailor323 (Aug 6, 2020)

If they are 1/4 inch proud of the bottle, Use a rubber mallet to drive them in the rest of the way


----------



## KCCam (Aug 6, 2020)

Sailor323 said:


> If they are 1/4 inch proud of the bottle, Use a rubber mallet to drive them in the rest of the way


*Gently. *I would use the "wooden dowel trick," or possibly the "inverted bottle & tap the bottom" trick first. I would also do it in some sort of bucket on the off chance of the wort-case-scenario: bottle breaking.


----------



## mainshipfred (Aug 6, 2020)

The rubber mallet works pretty well.


----------

