Glass stoppers have shot up in popularity, with 14m being sold to 500 wineries worldwide by the end of the year.

The glass stopper, manufactured by Alcoa Closure Systems International, has been selected by 500 wineries globally since it was launched in Europe in 2004. The company expects to sell 14m units by the end of 2006.

Its design prevents oxidation and contaminants from entering the bottle.

Alcoa marketing manager Laura Clark told decanter.com the rising popularity of the glass stopper can be attributed to prevention of cork taint and a consumer preference for glass stoppers over screw-caps.

‘Consumers tend to associate screw caps with value wine. Our stoppers have an upscale image to them and we are going for the upper end wines,’ said Clark.

Sold as ‘Vino-Lok’ in Europe, and ‘Vino Seal’ in the United States, Alcoa CSI is projecting a growth rate of 255% for 2006 and further growth of 170% in 2007 for the stopper, which was designed by a German doctor in the early part of the decade.

According to market research company Euromonitor, the cork market is currently 341.7m closures worldwide, while 20.9m screwcaps are sold in North America.

See also:

New glass stopper for Schloss Vollrads

Written by Emmet Cole

Emmet Cole
Emmet Cole
Decanter.com, Journalist

Emmet Cole is a freelance digital journalist who wrote several wine news stories for Decanter between 2005 and 2011. He has covered everything from the University of Milan’s discovery that wine contains high levels of the sleep hormone melatonin, to the sharp rise in the popularity of glass stoppers in 2006.