Aussie wine brand addresses overlooked recycling flaw

South Australia’s Nepenthe Wines has introduced fully removable aluminium tearaway capsules across all its still wines — a permanent shift aligned with World Environment Day 2025.

The new closure system, developed by packaging supplier Interpack, features a split-design capsule that can be easily separated from the glass bottle. Traditional wine sleeves are often missed during recycling due to poor separation, meaning many end up in landfill despite being made of infinitely recyclable aluminium.

“With something like aluminium, the recycling potential is enormous, but only if it’s sorted properly,” said Tamar Bourke, Senior Brand Manager at Nepenthe. “By making the cap fully removable and guiding people on what to do, we’re making the sustainable choice the easy one.”

With around 75% of all aluminium ever produced still in use today, proper sorting is essential to maximise its environmental benefit. Yet many Australians don’t realise wine closures affect the recyclability of the entire bottle.

“We knew our packaging could do more,” Bourke said. “When we reviewed our life cycle impact, closures stood out as a key area for improvement. CAPR offered a low-cost, practical solution that made a tangible difference without compromising wine quality.”

The decision followed a detailed life cycle analysis conducted by Nepenthe in 2023. As part of its review, Nepenthe switched to lighter bottles for its Altitude and Elevation ranges and adopted labels made from 100% recycled content.

CAPR closures were tested over three months to ensure they met the brand’s standards for product integrity and storage, and the cap designs themselves were updated to include clear removal instructions.

“Wine can be stored for years, so we needed to be confident the new cap wouldn’t compromise quality,” Bourke explained.

Nepenthe’s campaign ‘Naked in the Vines’, launched in March, supports this packaging shift with creative storytelling and consumer education across the company’s website, social channels and retail partners. “We’ve focused on education across all touchpoints,” Bourke said. “We want our customers to understand not just what we changed, but why.”

The change is part of Nepenthe’s broader sustainability journey. In addition to switching to lighter bottles and recycled labels, the brand is currently exploring the use of 100% recycled glass for its flagship APEX range — although sourcing in Australia remains a challenge, with most suppliers only able to achieve 70–90% recycled content.

Tips to recycle aluminium packaging correctly include:

• Fully remove aluminium sleeves or caps before placing bottles in glass recycling.
• Scrunch smaller pieces (like foil) into a tennis-ball-sized lump so they can be picked up by sorting equipment.
• Collect smaller closures like wine caps or kombucha lids inside an aluminium can before recycling.
   

Nepenthe’s Elevation and Altitude wines featuring the new closure are available nationally.