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, and color. Any rejection of a wine simply means there is an increased risk of it
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
Reject if part of the label is missing.
Reject if part or all of the vintage, producer, or vineyard is not legible or missing.
Reject if nicks in label exceed ½ inch.
2. Damp-stained labels
Accept if label is slightly discolored from humidity (to be somewhat expected for wines that are older 15+ years).
Reject if label is in poor condition or barely legible from damp cellars (wine may not be bad but marketability is negatively affected).
3. Wine-stained labels
Accept if label is stained only with small drops from the breakage of other bottles in a case.
Reject if stain is more extensive (for marketability reasons).
4. Scuffed labels
Accept unless heavily scuffed.
5. Faded labels
Reject if noticeably faded.
6. Fake labels
Reject if bottle is a facsimile/photocopy or otherwise detected not to be authentic.
Note: For particularly rare wine only and where the only reason for rejection would be label condition, Vinfolio may elect to accept the wine to provide customers with a buying opportunity they may not easily have otherwise.
Fill levels
Note on Burgundy bottles: The steeper slope of the bottle shape has led to a practice of measuring the distance between the bottom of the cork (or bottom of the lead capsule) and the wine in centimeters.
1. For wines from the 1960s or earlier
Bordeaux-shaped bottle: Accept only if fill level is upper-shoulder or better.
Burgundy-shaped bottle: Accept only if fill is 5 cm (2 inches) or less.
2. For wines from the 1970s and 1980s:
Bordeaux-shaped bottle: Accept if fill level is base of neck or higher.
Burgundy-shaped bottle: Accept if fill level is less than 3-3.5 cm (less than 1¼ -1½ inches).
3. For wines from the 1990s or later:
Bordeaux-shaped bottle: Accept only if "into neck" fill or better
Burgundy-shaped bottle: Accept only if fill is 2.5 cm/1 inch or less.
Cork condition
1. Protruding or "pushed"
Reject. Corks that are protruding have forced their way through the capsule. Wine has been exposed to extreme temperature (either too hot or perhaps frozen).
2. Sunken
Reject unless very minor depression (could be from corking machine settings or variations when inserting manually). Otherwise, more likely that cork may be defective or "easing", increasing the chance the wine is oxidized.
3. Signs of seepage
Reject if visible but only possible to check if capsule is missing or cut. Stained cork is sign of poor storage (excessive temperature variation).
4. Stained
Reject if visible but only possible to check if capsule is missing or cut. Stained cork is sign of poor storage (excessive temperature variation).
Capsule condition
1. Metal/lead capsules
Corroded (e.g., appears as white "dust")
Accept if minor. Some corrosion is normal since there is a substance/chemical in the lead capsules that makes them biodegradable.
Reject otherwise. If the corrosion on top of the capsule is advanced to the point where there is a hole in the capsule, there is a increased chance that the cork is bad.
Missing or cut (vertically)
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.
Torn or ripped
Accept provided tears are minor and do not reduce likely marketability of the bottle.
2. Wax capsules
Chipped or partially missing
Accept as this is fairly common and does not indicate anything in particular about the wine condition.
Non-original
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
Dry (e.g. Burgundy) - Reject if color is brownish or amber. Should be clear, lemon to light gold in color.
Sweet (e.g. Sauternes) - For sweet wines of under 20 years in age, accept if color has not become dark. As sweet wines age, they take on a more amber color, even mahogany. This is natural for a wine that is 20+ years so accept. If any wine is closer to black in color, reject as it has most likely been exposed to excessive heat.
2. Red wine
Reject if the wine is a brownish color and less red (use a flashlight to check) as the wine is likely spoiled. This is primarily for wines from the 1970's and older.