| YES | if the statement agrees with the views of the writer |
| NO | if the statement contradicts the views of the writer |
| NOT GIVEN | if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this |
A Corking Row
A. Some drinkers may still think that the term “corded wine” refers to the bits of cork in a bottle where the stopper has crumbled or fallen into the wine. But more and more now know that it actually refers to mustiness or cheesiness in the wine, with overtones of vegetable rot or old socks, caused by a taint which can be raced to 2, 4, 6-trichloroanisole. This contaminant, known as TCA, is so powerful that, according to one expert, half a tablespoon of pure TCA could “destroy all the wine produced in the United States”. And even if the wine is not actually mouldy, TCA can flatten the taste, removing flavours the wine maker has laboured long and hard to provide.
B. The increased awareness is largely due to the battle now waging between defenders of the traditional cork stopper and its opponents, who believe that an unacceptable percentage of wine is affected by “corkiness”. Unfortunately, the battle has developed into a dialogue of the deaf. No one knows exactly how to evaluate the positive contribution made by cork to the quality of a wine, which some claim has to do with its porosity, which allows a desirably slow oxidation — though this is controversial. To complicate matters estimates of the "corkiness” due to defective corks rather than to the wine or to bad storage vary between less than 1% and 8%.
C. In Britain, cork’s defenders have unleashed a ferociously negative (and largely counterproductive) public-relations campaign. They have attacked plastic substitutes as imparting their own impurities and claimed that their use would destroy the cork-oak forests of Spain and Portugal, together with their dozens of rare species of birds. This has merely alerted the majority of wine drinkers who had previously attributed the nastiness of any particular bottle to their own inadequate palates — for the top 5% of palates are 200 times more perceptive to the faults in a wine than the bottom 5%.
D. The public battle started when a number of big British supermarket groups stated flatly that any systematic fault was as unacceptable in wine as it was in any other product They were joined by American and Australian producers more aware of profit margins than more traditional wine makers and less inclined to accept the idea of cork contamination as an inescapable act of God. The battle has, belatedly, forced the cork industry into action. For years, the price of cork had been increasing and the quality declining as the cork oaks were stripped of their precious bark too frequently. The processes remained primitive and continued to rely on the use of chlorine washes which increased the likelihood of contamination. Today washes have been changed, quality control tightened and more care, generally, is taken that the corks are not exposed to moisture which encourages the development of TCA during the manufacturing process. Today corks can be treated in a process called INOS designed to use its inherent sponginess as a way of squeezing out possible contaminants. Amorim, the biggest producer, not only uses INOS but has also introduced a new cork “twin top” based on those used in champagne — where the cork’s centre is made of agglomerated cork (cork granules stuck together) topped and tailed with slivers of pure cork.
E. But even Amorim and other quality-conscious producers such as Sabate are going to have to accept that plastic corks — and the screw caps used in many cheaper wines in the United States and by the Swiss for even their finest bevvies — are going to take an increasing share of the market This is not because they are cheaper. They aren’t, and they create their own problems: the perfection of the seal they provide means that the air in the bottle has to be expensively removed before the stopper is inserted, and they are harder to extract than their natural competitors, although they do provide the expected satisfying plop when the bottle is opened.
F. One obvious winner is the Supreme Corq from America, devised after its inventor had seen plastic bungs being used to seal the casks in some of the classiest estatds in France. It is made from a recyclable, inert thermoplastic polymer used to store medicines — a field where cork was abandoned 80 years ago — thus answering many of the accusations hurled at plastic closures.
G. How likely is the wine-stopper war to end in open hostilities? The fact of the matter is that demand for wine in bottles (as opposed to wine in bags) is growing faster than the supply of properly prepared cork, so there is actually plenty of room in the market for different types of stopper. At the top end of the market, that does not necessarily favour plastic. For nobody can yet tell whether plastic stoppers will remain sound for the 20 or more years during which the greatest wines mature before they are drunk. On the other hand, “the top end" accounts for a very small amount of the total wine drunk, and plastic's chances look correspondingly better. As over 90% of all wine is consumed within a year of being bottled (and within 24 hours of being purchased) for most drinkers the argument about the long-term effects of plastic will seem fairly theoretical. In the end, all the participants in the row ought to be able to agree with Supreme Corq’s marketing director, Brooke Hilton, who says: “We are only in existence to get a better bottle of wine to the drinker.”
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Question Focus: Writer disagrees with the idea that corkiness has only one cause.
Correct Answer: NO
Why this is correct: The writer clearly says corkiness can come from defective corks, the wine, or bad storage. This directly disagrees with the word only in the statement.
Passage Reference: To complicate matters estimates of the "corkiness' due to defective corks rather than to the wine or to bad storage vary between less than 1% and 8%.
Common Mistake: Answering YES because defective corks are mentioned - Extreme language trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'due to defective corks rather than to the wine or to bad storage' = Statement: 'arises only when the corks are defective'
Tips: Always be careful with words like only. They often make statements wrong.
Key Vocabulary:
- defective = faulty
- rather than = instead of
Question Focus: Writer explains the real meaning of the term.
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: But more and more now know that it actually refers to mustiness or cheesiness in the wine, with overtones of vegetable rot or old socks, caused by a taint which can be raced to 2, 4, 6-trichloroanisole.
Why this is correct: The writer clearly explains that "corked wine" means wine caused by a taint called 2, 4, 6-trichloroanisole, which is TCA.
Common Mistake: Choosing NOT GIVEN because the sentence looks technical - Synonym match
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'caused by a taint which can be raced to 2, 4, 6-trichloroanisole' = Statement: 'wine contaminated by TCA'
Tips: When the writer explains a definition, that is usually a YES.
Key Vocabulary:
- taint = contamination
- refers to = means
Question Focus: No writer opinion about other drinks.
Correct Answer: NOT GIVEN
Passage Reference: This contaminant, known as TCA, is so powerful that, according to one expert, half a tablespoon of pure TCA could 'destroy all the wine produced in the United States'.
Why this is correct: The writer talks only about wine. There is no opinion or statement about other drinks, so the writer does not express this view.
Common Mistake: Answering YES because TCA sounds general - Not Given trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'destroy all the wine produced' = Statement: 'many kinds of drinks'
Tips: If the writer never talks about the topic in the statement, choose NOT GIVEN.
Key Vocabulary:
- contaminant = harmful substance
- pure = not mixed
Question Focus: Writer says TCA affects wine even when it is not mouldy.
Correct Answer: NO
Passage Reference: And even if the wine is not actually mouldy, TCA can flatten the taste, removing flavours the wine maker has laboured long and hard to provide.
Why this is correct: The writer says TCA affects wine even if it is not mouldy. This contradicts the idea that it makes mouldy wine taste worse.
Common Mistake: Answering YES by linking mouldy and bad taste - Contradiction trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'even if the wine is not actually mouldy' = Statement: 'mouldy wine'
Tips: Watch for phrases like even if. They often signal contrast.
Key Vocabulary:
- flatten = make dull
- laboured = worked hard
Question Focus: Writer says awareness is a result, not the aim.
Correct Answer: NO
Passage Reference: The increased awareness is largely due to the battle now waging between defenders of the traditional cork stopper and its opponents.
Why this is correct: The writer says awareness happened because of the battle, not that the battle was intended to increase awareness.
Common Mistake: Confusing result with purpose - Causation trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'increased awareness is largely due to the battle' = Statement: 'waging a war to increase awareness'
Tips: Do not confuse cause with intention.
Key Vocabulary:
- due to = caused by
- waging = fighting
Question Focus: Writer criticises the campaign as harmful.
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: In Britain, cork's defenders have unleashed a ferociously negative (and largely counterproductive) public-relations campaign.
Why this is correct: The writer clearly criticises the campaign and calls it counterproductive, showing a negative opinion about its effects.
Common Mistake: Missing opinion words - Writer opinion marker
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'counterproductive public-relations campaign' = Statement: 'might impair the wine industry'
Tips: Negative adjectives often show the writer's opinion.
Key Vocabulary:
- counterproductive = causing harm
- unleashed = started strongly
Question Focus: Writer says they are more profit-focused.
Correct Answer: NO
Passage Reference: They were joined by American and Australian producers more aware of profit margins than more traditional wine makers.
Why this is correct: The writer says these producers are more aware of profit margins, not more focused on quality. This directly disagrees with the statement.
Common Mistake: Assuming modern means higher quality - Paraphrase trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'more aware of profit margins' = Statement: 'more quality-conscious'
Tips: Do not add your own assumptions. Stick to the writer's words.
Key Vocabulary:
- profit margins = money earned
- traditional = old-style
Question Focus: Writer reports defenders' claim as a serious risk.
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: They have attacked plastic substitutes as imparting their own impurities and claimed that their use would destroy the cork-oak forests of Spain and Portugal, together with their dozens of rare species of birds.
Why this is correct: The writer reports the claim that cork alternatives could destroy the cork-oak forests, showing this environmental damage is presented as real.
Common Mistake: Thinking reported opinions do not count - Context shift trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'destroy the cork-oak forests of Spain and Portugal' = Statement: 'damaging environmental impact'
Tips: In YNNG, reported views still show what opinions exist in the text.
Key Vocabulary:
- destroy = badly damage
- claimed = said
Question Focus: Writer contrasts traditional and modern views.
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: less inclined to accept the idea of cork contamination as an inescapable act of God.
Why this is correct: By saying modern producers are less inclined to accept it as unavoidable, the writer implies traditional wine makers do believe it is inevitable.
Common Mistake: Missing implied meaning - Reverse meaning trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'inescapable act of God' = Statement: 'inevitable'
Tips: Comparisons often show opinions indirectly.
Key Vocabulary:
- inescapable = unavoidable
- inclined = likely
Question Focus: Writer links chlorine washes to contamination.
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: continued to rely on the use of chlorine washes which increased the likelihood of contamination.
Why this is correct: The writer clearly connects chlorine washes with increased contamination, which damages wine quality.
Common Mistake: Overlooking cause-effect language - Causation trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'increased the likelihood of contamination' = Statement: 'degraded wine quality'
Tips: Look for verbs like increased to show negative effects.
Key Vocabulary:
- likelihood = chance
- contamination = pollution
Question Focus: Writer states typical usage.
Correct Answer: YES
Passage Reference: plastic corks - and the screw caps used in many cheaper wines in the United States
Why this is correct: The writer clearly links plastic corks with cheaper wines, especially in the United States.
Common Mistake: Thinking exceptions cancel the rule - Partial truth trap
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'used in many cheaper wines' = Statement: 'largely used in cheaper wines'
Tips: Words like many usually support general statements.
Key Vocabulary:
- cheaper = low-priced
- used in = applied to
General Tips:
- YNNG tests the WRITER'S VIEW, not just facts.
- If the writer does not comment on the idea, choose NOT GIVEN.
- Be careful with extreme words like 'only' or 'always'.
- Follow passage order to save time.
- Look for opinion words like 'unfortunately' and 'counterproductive'.
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