# using and sanitizing zorks



## lieu (Apr 15, 2011)

Hello all
We are going to bottle our first batch this weekend and we are going to be using zorks. Does anyone have any advise on them and do we need to sanitize them? If so should we just use the K-Meta and let the fumes work its magic?


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## Wade E (Apr 16, 2011)

I have never used them and dont know if they come in a bag filled with S02 gas like Georges corks do. If not or unsure just take a bucket and a colander and put the colander over the bucket and pour some sulfite solution over the zorks and then put a lid on to cover then for about 3-5 minutes to let the gases do the work.


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## cpfan (Apr 16, 2011)

Lieu:


How are you planning on inserting them? Mallet? Beer capper? Heel of your hand?


Regardless, please let us know how it turns out.


Steve


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## lieu (Apr 16, 2011)

Good Morning everyone,
Well I made up a K-META solution and put the zorks in a sealed container. Opened up a few hours later and WOW! There is no doubt that the solution is strong enough and working. (this is the first time Ive made up the solution)
Yes we are going to use a mallet to insert them.Thats how we were told to do it by the Company we got them from. 
I bought some corks also but dont have a corker just yet.
OK wel anyway thanks for the replies and Ill keep you updated. ---Lieu.


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## tonyt (Apr 17, 2011)

Leiu, if you can, post some pictures of the Zorking process. I'd love to see the process.


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## Rocky (Apr 19, 2011)

Leiu, I just bottled a batch of Sauvignon Blanc and what I did with my corks was to put them into a salad spinner and then I sprayed them generously with K-meta solution in a spray bottle. I then spun the salad spinner to shed the solution (which then fell to the bottom of the spinner so the gas was still working) and put the cover on the spinner. Worked great for me.


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## Bacci (Apr 27, 2011)

I recently bottled a gallon of Rosso that I had racked down and you need to soak them in hot water for a few minutes, then just sprayed them with KMET before putting them in. I put them in by hand and tap them down with a rubber mallet. Make sure you use the right kind of bottle (with the indented lip on opening) they work great.


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## Rocky (Apr 27, 2011)

Bacci, 


Are you saying that you force a cork into a bottle by hand? Wow, that seems like a lot of work. I bought an Italian floor corker from George and itworks great. I can help you if you are interested. I have an unused and still in wrapperhand corker (also from George) that is yours if you want it. Just hit me with a private message, give me your address and I will send it.


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## lieu (Apr 27, 2011)

Hey Rocky,
I might be way off and please correct me if I am wrong but the hand corkers that I have seen dont seem like they would work on zorks. Dont the hand corkers squeeze the corks to get them in the bottles? If thats the case I cant see how they would work with the zorks.
My father in law wanted to try the zorks because we dont have a corker yet but I am planning on getting a floor corker so we can use regular corks. ( I am more of a traditional guy)


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## Rocky (Apr 28, 2011)

Hi Bruce, 
I have never used this device, but it appears that the way it works is that a piston forces the cork thru a tapered opening which narrows the cork to the size of the bottle opening. It is the one that George demos on his video on bottling. I am not sure whether it works with the Zorks or not. Maybe someone else knows this. I have had (in the past) the corker that you are referencing which squeezes and usually destroys the cork. George seems high on this device for small quantities.


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## Bacci (Apr 28, 2011)

Rocky, thanks for the offer but I've got a A frame hand corker much like the one that you have. I use it, but when I'm bottling a small batch, I'll use the Zorks, you just push them in with your palm and tap down with a mallat, easier than setting up a floor or hand corker. I will soon have over 100 to bottle and considering a floor corker purchase. George would probably send you a couple of samples of Zorks with your next order, if you ask him. They are quite interesting.


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## Rocky (Apr 28, 2011)

I just looked at the Zorks in the online catalog and they are not what I had expected. I made the hasty assumption that a "Zork" was some type of synthetic cork, but it is really much more than than.


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## lieu (Apr 28, 2011)

this is a test to see if I could post a pic


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## lieu (Apr 28, 2011)

yaaaaaaaaaah i did it.
this is a zork for anyone who has never seen one before


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## Rocky (Apr 28, 2011)

Thanks for the close up of the Zork. I assume that is a tear away strip below the cap. Are these re-usable. If one did not "tear away" the tab, could the zork be removed from the bottle? The "zork" seems to be some type of polymer. Is heat involved in the application to shrink the tear away? How long are they good for on a bottle? I mean, would they be okay for 2 years of aging?


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## lieu (Apr 28, 2011)

Rocky,
You are exactly right. That is a tear away strip. The person who showed me these told me that he replaced the zork back in a bottle and opened it up a year later and the wine was perfectly fine. I have no reason not to believe him. Like I said before I like the idea of traditional corks. My father in law wanted to try these because we don't have a corker yet. A bag of these zorks are about the price of a bag of corks that i bought. there was a 100 corks in the bag and 30 zorks in that bag. They were both around 13.00 a bag. There is no heat needed for the tear away. I have not acually inserted any of these yet. Hopefully will be doing it sometime soon and will let you know.


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## Bacci (Apr 29, 2011)

They insert better if soaked in hot water for a few minutes. You should tear strip to open and they are resealable. I wouldn't try to rebottle with a used zork. No problem with oxidation after a 9 months of aging. Crosby &amp; Baker website has a great pdf brochure on bottle specification and application, and test results. A good cork and cap cost about the same as a zork.


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## Bacci (Apr 29, 2011)

http://crosby-baker.com/downloads/Zork_brochure.pdf




All you want to know about Zorks


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## Rocky (Apr 29, 2011)

Bacci said:


> They insert better if soaked in hot water for a few minutes. You should tear strip to open and they are resealable. I wouldn't try to rebottle with a used zork. No problem with oxidation after a 9 months of aging. Crosby &amp; Baker website has a great pdf brochure on bottle specification and application, and test results. A good cork and cap cost about the same as a zork.








Now that is a good point! My first inclination was that they were too expensive, but if one considers the cork and the foil, it is not so expensive. It is also more convenient to open. Thanks for the info.


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## cpfan (Apr 29, 2011)

I'd like to see sombody's pricing on this.


30 Zorks for $13 (as per above)
30 shrinks cost me about $3
Total $16


100 corks for $13 (as per above)
100 shrinks cost me less than $10 (I think)
Total $23


Zorks still look much more expensive. Obviously it depends on which corks.


Steve


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## Bacci (Apr 29, 2011)

I guessing at your local shop, 10 bucks for package of 30 corks and 30 caps.As aFVW member, Zorks are around 11.75. I use them to fill in and as anovelty. My Testarosso label (CC - RF)with the red zork looks and taste pretty good.You're paying forconvenience once you'vetryed them.


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## cpfan (May 1, 2011)

at FVW. Member prices in brackets


Corks $5-$6 or up ($4.49-$5.39)
Shrinks $3 (2.69)


So corks + shrink combo$7.98-8.98 ($7.18 - $8.08)



Zorks $13 ($11.69)


So, Zorks roughly 50% more than cork-shrink combo. depending on corks bought


Steve


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## Bacci (May 1, 2011)

Don't forget your corker!


VFW ($15.29 - 57.59) not including shipping +++
roughly .07 per closure for over 250 bottles. Like I mentioned, convenience for few cents more.


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## cpfan (May 1, 2011)

I've had my current corker since Oct 2008. It's only done about 450 bottles, so far. Cost around $100. So 22 cents per cork inserted so far, or $6.60 per batch of 30. Price dropping constantly. Hopefully another 60 this sumer, bringing price down to about 20 cents per cork inserted. 


I view the corker as equipment (like a carboy, and an Auto-Siphon), so it's not counted in the cost of a batch of wine.


But if you're just starting out, and TOTAL price is a big concern, sure go with Zorks. I'm not even sure if I can buy them easily at the moment. Got some at an LHBS in Buffalo, but haven't seen any since. Not sold at my regular store.


Steve


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## tonyt (May 2, 2011)

I can see benefits to recorking a bottle or two with Zorks, say replacing very old corks in a wine collection. And even for bottling gallon size batches, not dragging out the floor corker. Here's my question: does it bother anyone except me that they are so BUTT UGLY?


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## lieu (May 2, 2011)

Hey Tony,
Don't know if I should have an opinion or not (I'm so new to this forum and to winemaking in general) but as for the "traditional" look of the corks I do like the way they look more so than the Zorks. As far as the over all function of the zorks I only know what Ive been told. I havent bottled with them yet.


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