Founded in 1902, Incorporated in 1911, “Amstar” began by serving the wine, beer, and beverage industries. We manufactured finished products using the bark of the Quercus Suber (cork oak) at a facility in Brooklyn, New York – close to many of the N. Y. beverage producers of the time. In 1947 manufacturing was moved to Lisbon, Portugal and operated until 1974. Today American Star purchases from a variety of specialists, Portugese manufacturers of specific cork products.

Cork is a natural, renewable resource. Most of the Portuguese cork forests are South of Lisbon. The first “stripping” of the cork oak occurs in about the 15th year of its 150-year life. After the first, a harvest from the same tree usually occurs about every 9 years, allowing the tree time to regenerate its bark. The farmers use axes and harvest techniques that have been passed down through generations.

The bark is pealed from the tree in cylinders, passed through super-heated steam, flattened, boiled, baled and aged. Most gets transported to the North, near Porto, the city made famous by the Port wine region. It is in this area that the cork planks are processed much as any wood product, by slicing, drilling, sanding, turning and shaving. Most products then go through a selection process by trained grading specialists. Like lumber, the fewer the imperfections, the higher the grade. By-products aren’t scrapped, but ground and, when binder is added, made into agglomerates and composites (one of which is the ablative tiles on space vehicles). Lower grades go to decorative and or functional products, the higher to essential oils, perfumes, parts for musical (wind) instruments, etc.

Very early Greek and Roman vintners knew that using cork to seal their vessels allowed their wine to mature and improve without spoiling. Today, most experts demand a cork finish on fine wines intended to improve with time. Consumers have always associated fine wine with the pop of a real cork!