Monday, September 19, 2011

What the Heck is Ullage?




Ullage is the word used to describe the air space above the wine and under the cork or cap. The word comes from the Latin word oculus, by the Romans for the bung hole of a barrel. This was taken into French and the verb ouiller was created, to fill a barrel up to the bung hole. (When wine ferments in the barrel, evaporation through the wood can create unwanted bacteria causing off fermentation.) English, ullage came to refer to any amount by which a barrel is unfilled and it is also applied to the unfilled air space at the top of a bottle of wine, which in this case is essential to allow for expansion of the contents as the temperature changes.
High fill or Normal fill - Level of young wines. Exceptionally good in wines over 10 years.
Into neck - Perfectly good for any age of wine. Awesome for a wine of 10 years.
Mid neck fill - In bottles over 10 years of age, indicates good storage conditions.
Base neck fill - The fill is at about the bottom of the neck. Indicates excellent storage for any wine. For wines over 25 years of age, indicates exceptional storage conditions.
Top shoulder - Not unusual for wines over 40 years of age, but most older wines should be refilled, with the same wine from other bottles, and re-corked before the wine gets to this point! High-risk-undrinkable!

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