The Wolftrap, Western Cape (South Africa) 2013

On the first swirl-sniff-sip go around this medium bodied red wine emitted a hint of that vaguely musty-gassy-rubbery characteristic that American and British wine drinkers often claim to detect in South African reds (South Africans themselves don’t seem to taste it–cellar palate perhaps?).  Having read somewhere that this effect might be caused by harmless sulfur volatile compounds known as mercaptens, I dropped a penny into the glass, which is said to be one way to correct the issue.  A few moments later I re-tasted, and to my surprise the problem was solved, or almost solved, since what remained in the glass was a nicely fruity, somewhat tangy and very pleasant wine, with hints of cinnamon and other spice and only the slightest tinge of off-flavor.  (If you want to try this experiment yourself, be sure to use a penny minted before 1982, the year when zinc largely replaced copper in US pennies).  This copper “cure” may be a complete coincidence, and mercaptens may not be the source of the problem at all; it could be another sulfur-related thing or something else altogether.  But no harm in trying–it’s a simple solution.