PlasticLess.com

Cork is mostly produced in Portugal and it is a sustainable industry. Wine producers turned to synthetic corks for economic reasons, but consumers (the snobby ones) don’t like them. Natural cork has regained 60% of the market.

There are some viral videos starring bad actor Rob Schneider that promote real corks as the best choice for social justice and for the environment. Trees that are being used for harvesting cork absorb more CO2 than comparable trees that are left alone. Biodiversity in cork forests is exceptional. If demand for cork diminishes, you could assume that some forests would be developed in less friendly ways.

My local table wine is stopped with cork, but it has plastic capsule. Capsules are sometimes made of tin or aluminum. They used to be made of lead and some decades old bottles may still have a lead capsule.

Metal screw caps contain some non-recyclable plastic.

If you can find a wine that suits your taste and budget that has a real cork and no plastic capsule, cheers. I could choose to buy wine from the fruit truck. It comes in reused bottles. I have been served the local home-made wine on occasion and the alcohol content is a bit over the top.

Yes, there is a patent. Specifically, IBM holds a patent on card reading technology that stores a holders preference and displays it at cash points in stores. I personally think that having at least four words pass between a shopper and a cashier is a good thing, and we don’t need any technology to alleviate us of that onerous task.

I am given plastic bags occasionally. As often as possible, I tell the vendor that I do not want one. I have to confess that social awkwardness prevents me from doing so. I still have a small number of tasks that involve reusing plastic bags. My neighbor was happy to receive my compost for his fields and he specifically requested that it be placed in a plastic bag before being tossed over the wall.