We commonly add Copper Sulfate to wines that get “stinky”, usually from H2S or other sulpher compounds. A very small addition really zaps the problem and most of the copper just drops to the bottom of the tank.

In my home winemaking days, if your wine got stinky, just whip out that copper penny and drop it in the 5 gallon carboy. Supposed to be a last resort though.

Let’s see…

$100 for Clef du Vin or both of those bottles of great wine you sampled today?

🙂

Nice touch — оÑ?енÑ? Ñ?оÑ?оÑ?ий — adding in that Russian. For a non-scientist, you were fairly methodical. Aren’t some of those metals toxic?

Good fun.

Great episode Gary, although I don’t think I ever want to hear that song again.

Gary:

Loved this show!!! I have not heard Russian since Hunterdon Central . Mr Labashkas class 1986. Ps Just had Baby #2 -Maeve Rose McQuarrie – Newest Vayniac on 7/1/7 and getting ready to turn the big 40 on 7/17/07.

Keep bringing the Thunder!

Woohoo! Awesome show Gary. 🙂 You just saved me at least $100 (I’m sure if I found the Clef here in Toronto it would cost more than that.)

Great epsiode of course!
However, a word of warning when dabbling with “dipping” and alcohol consumption.
Watch how much your drinking, homeboy.
I can see this quickly degrading into Gary’s Wine Teabagging episode.
“ok….now let’s try the right side!”
“yep, the white zin still tastes the same…”
gross.

Actually i was really hoping at the end you were gonna say:
“guys, after 50 seconds of aging, this White Zin tastes exactly like Dal Forno!”

Thanks for showing me the clef. I’ve been wondering what the heck it does.

QOTD: I know a couple of lurkers in Q-town. Paul,Harry, Dad,….ect.

I am wondering if I apply the Clef Du Vin to my teenager son’s forehead if he will mature any, maybe I can save me some headaches that way.

QOTD: Erica S.

Great episode. Along those lines, you might want to try out the Wine Clip (www.thewineclip.com), which tries to do a similar thing with magnets. They sell it all over here in Pittsburgh.

As a member of the CKC and a lover of Mr. Wizard, I’m betting that the Clef du Vin works via an electrolytic reaction, much like a lemon-battery science experiment. I’m betting the silvery part is galvanized (“zinc-plated”) and the coppery part is copper — and when you dump it into the acidic wine, you get both oxydation and reduction (Check out the Wiki article on “Lemon Battery.”). There may be, as the company claims, other metals, such as gold in the thing, but since gold is one of the least-reactive elements out there, I doubt it does anything.

I’ll try making a WineLibrary clef-du-vin for a couple dollars and I’ll let you know what it does…

QOTD: With only one post, I’m lurker enough.

I also wanted to say that my girlfriend and I now covet that Puligny Montrachet. Time to start saving pennies!

Okay, the science geek comes out.
1) Needed to be tasted blind.
2) As somebody else here noted, compare it to a spoon or a penny

Anyway, great ep. Wasn’t planning on spending $100 on this, rather buy wine.

The white zin was the kicker, since it was the only wine one could consider a control. And I was hoping it would make it taste like a well-aged Ridge Zin!!

Where do I get this version of the wristband? Don’t want to be behind the current fashion trend.

I’m very very interested in Clef du Vin!
I want to try it!!
Now I’m wondering if I’ll buy it…

That was really cool….I never really thought it would work but it is good to see you put that into action….
QOTD – Tim Burnham….he loves your show, is a buddy of mine and I never see him comment. How about you send him an email to get him on board. Email me and I’ll forward it to you.

Dave

I’ve never been more entertained by watching someone count to 50!

Thank you thank you thank you for doing this ep! I have seen this metal mystery in wine mags for years and wondered what it does. This was truly an original and informative ep. LOVED IT.

QOD: MsLurker you know who you are!

The Myth buster of the year award goes to the one and only Gary Vaynerchuk!

Excellent Episode! Gary, do you realize you just changed the Wine World!!

With a lot of you today, Now didn’t you..

QOTD: I was one, 15 episodes ago.

MB

Finally the Journey has stopped. I hope that doesn’t stick in my head all day.
Seriously great episode.
QOTD: I don’t know of any lurkers.

QOTD: Probably me.

wow…… that was a very entertaining show on the CLEF! Bottom line.. its a peace of crap….. and your fine store shouldn’t offer it for sale. Drinking wine is fun… playing science games with it with a shiny metal shoe horn is not!

Love the store…… excuse me while i go drink.

P.S. i think you are ready for Food Network.. i’d use that show as an audition tape!

Although a double-blind test would have been nice, it seems clear that the Clef du Vin isn’t dependent on a placebo effect (like many high-end audio and alternative medicine products). However, if the Clef du Vin isn’t junk science, it certainly is a junk product, as it clearly doesn’t do what it claims — help us predict how our wines will age. Thanks for doing this test!

BTW, Gary, were you pronouncing it “vin” as a joke? 😉

Although a double-blind test would have been nice, it seems clear that the Clef du Vin isn’t dependent on a placebo effect (like many high-end audio and alternative medicine products). However, if the Clef du Vin isn’t junk science, it certainly is a junk product, as it clearly doesn’t do what it claims — help us predict how our wines will age. Thanks for doing this test!

BTW, Gary, were you pronouncing it “vin” as a joke? 😉

Great and informative show. Thanks for saving me the $100 bucks. My girls’ college fund thanks you.

QOTD: Not me. I may not be in every comment box, but I am digging you and talking you up on twitter and pownce.

Oh, I note from my “mint” package that you are using WordPress. Nice choice.

Thanks for the visit to my blog this morning and thanks for the nice words about my daughter Kailen (a couple of weeks ago on twitter)…yeah I think she is pretty cute too. Both my girls are pretty cute.

Have a good weekend.

Thanks for another public service.

Thanks for a great episode! Now I can save the 100 bucks and buy some more wine!! You are so informative and interesting…love to see you count to 50!!!

QOTD: Don’t know any….glad I’m not!!!

vino italia!!

I love the experiments, Gary! I would like to see some psychology experiments, too. For example: Why are blind tastings recommended? Is is because we taste what we expect to taste? What would happen if somebody screwed with your expectations by misidentifying the wines (say, by pouring some of the wines into empty bottles that had incorrect but plausible labels)? Would you discern the same characteristics as when the wines were correctly labeled? (And by “you” I don’t mean specifically you, of course. I’m sure that we are all affected by our expectations.)

The Clef du Vin website doesn’t tell what metals are in their product. They say only, “What does the alloy contain? The answer forms the basis of four international patents.” However, I have found a number of websites that recommend using copper or silver to correct wines that are “reduced” and have sulfur-derived off-smells (e.g., burnt rubber; see http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor1/tswa060120.phtml). Tom Ciocco also talks about reduced wines (http://terroir.winelibrary.com/2007/02/12/reduction-augment-your-understanding/), but he doesn’t mention copper or silver.

Great show, Gary!