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Inspection Guidelines
All wine purchased by Vinfolio, whether from a commercial supplier or from a private individual, is inspected and either accepted or rejected according to the following guidelines for:
  • label condition
  • fill levels
  • cork condition
  • capsule condition
  • color
Rejection simply means there is an increased risk of the wine being inferior, and is not a definitive judgment of quality. Vinfolio may choose to adjust these guidelines with detailed information on provenance and storage conditions.
Label Condition
  1. Torn/missing labels
    1. Reject if part or all of the vintage, producer, or vineyard is not legible or missing
    2. Reject if nicks in label exceed ½ inch
  2. Damp-stained labels
    1. Accept if label is slightly discolored from humidity (to be expected for wines that are older than 15 years)
    2. Reject if label is illegible (wine may not be bad but marketability is negatively affected)
  3. Wine-stained labels
    1. Accept if label is stained only with small drops from the breakage of other bottles in a case
    2. Reject if stain is more extensive (for marketability reasons)
  4. Scuffed labels
    1. Accept unless heavily scuffed and illegible
  5. Faded labels
    1. Reject if noticeably faded and illegible
  6. Fake labels
    1. Reject if bottle label is a facsimile/photocopy or otherwise detected not to be authentic
 
Bottle Fill Level or Ullage
Fill levels

BN – Base Neck
TS – Top Shoulder
US – Upper Shoulder
MS – Mid Shoulder
LS – Low Shoulder Fill levels
  1. For wines more than 15 years old:
    1. Bordeaux-shaped bottle: Accept only if fill level is Upper Shoulder (US) or better
    2. Burgundy-shaped bottle: Accept only if fill is 5 cm (2 inches) from cap or less
  2. For wines less than 15 years old:
    1. Bordeaux-shaped bottle: Accept only if fill level is Base Neck (BN) or better
    2. Burgundy-shaped bottle: Accept only if fill level is 3 cm (1 inch) from cap or less
NOTE:  since the Burgundy-shaped bottles have a sloped shoulder, it is not practical to describe fill levels (ullage) of these wines in the same manners as those in a standard or Bordeaux bottle (e.g., Base Neck, Top Shoulder, Mid Shoulder, etc.).  Therefore, the fill level should be reviewed in centimeters from the cork bottom.  Also, the condition and drinkability of a Burgundy is less affected by ullage than other wines and should be considered with the overall bottle and label condition as well as the wine color.
 
Cork condition
  1. Protruding or "pushed"
    1. Reject if cork has pushed through the capsule or is raised 2mm or more from the top of the bottle
      1. Occurs when wine has been exposed to extreme temperature (either too hot or perhaps frozen)
    2. If the cork is raised less than 2mm, the capsule is not breached and there is no other sign of damage, it is likely that it was caused by variations in corking machine settings or manual insertion
  2. Sunken
    1. Accept if depression is minor (less than 2mm) and likely caused by variations in corking machine settings or manual insertion
    2. Reject if depression is 2mm or more, which is likely a sign that the cork may be defective or "easing" and increases the chance that the wine is oxidized
  3. Signs of seepage
    1. Reject
 
Capsule condition
  1. Metal/lead Capsules
    1. Corroded (e.g., appears as white "dust")
      1. Accept if minor (capsule does not have open gaps or holes from the corrosion) since some corrosion is normal due to a substance/chemical in the lead capsules that make them biodegradable
    2. Reject otherwise
      1. If the corrosion on top of the capsule is advanced to the point where there is a hole in the capsule, there is an increased chance that the cork is bad
    3. Missing or cut (vertically)
      1. Reject unless specific reason it is missing or cut is known and acceptable
        •  Note that Vinfolio may request the ability to cut the capsule to check the authenticity of the wine by verifying printing on the cork
    4. Torn or ripped
      1. Accept provided tears are minor and do not reduce likely marketability of the bottle
        • Minor is less than ½ inch
  2. Wax capsules
    1. Chipped or partially missing
      1. Accept as this is fairly common and does not indicate anything in particular about the wine condition
    2. Non-original
      1. Reject for particularly expensive wines as it is often an indication of counterfeiting
 
Color
When a bottle of wine has been exposed to heat, the fruit "dies" and the color pigment of the wine changes.
  1. White Wine
    1. Dry (e.g. Burgundy)
      1. For wines less than 15 years old:
        • Reject if color is deep gold or amber
        • Should be clear, lemon to light gold in color 
      2. For wines more than 15 years old:
        • Reject if color is brownish
        • Should be a shade of gold
    2. Sweet (e.g. Sauternes)
      1. For sweet wines less than 15 years old:
        • Accept if color is a shade of gold
      2. For sweet wines more than 15 years old:
        •  Accept if color is a shade of amber, even mahogany as this is natural
        • If the shade is closer to black, reject as it has most likely been exposed to excessive heat
  2. Red wine
    1. For wines less than 15 years old:
      1. Reject if the color shows any hint of brown as the wine is likely spoiled
        • Note that it is the shade of color that is in question, not the intensity of color, which will vary by variety and a paler shade of red is common for certain varietals and tends towards raspberry in color
    2. For wines more than 15 years old:
      1. Stand up for 24 hours to allow the sediment to settle
      2. Then assess the color using a flashlight
      3. Reject if more brown than red
        • Again, it is the shade that is in question, not the intensity of color since with aging pigment is absorbed into the sediment and “falls out” of the wine


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