Who invented the Cork ?
The French Monk Dom Pérignon who has the honour of inventing the Cork for champagne bottles, is said to have stolen the idea of Spanish pilgrims who came to France with leather sacks filled with Cork. Others believe that it was during his stay in an Abbey in Extremadura, that Dom discovered that the Bark from oak trees was a very flexible material.
Where does Cork originate from ?
Cork is made from the Bark of the Oak tree and this Evergreen tree can grow up to thirty meters in length. Portugal boasts production for around thirty percent of the global Cork industry, while Spain lay claim to a further twenty five percent..
A thirty year wait is required from when the Oak tree is planted until the Bark can be removed for the first time. The quality of the Oak tree’s first bark is not of any use so the tree’s are stripped down and a further ten to twelve year wait in expected before the second set of bark can be stripped, This again doesn’t have the quality to successfully make cork so a further ten to twelve year wait is expected before the third set of bark can be removed and produced into the cork you see in wine and champagne bottles today. A lengthy process !
