Put a Cork in it! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Oak

The Cork Oak (Quercus Suber) that produces cork is a close relative of the common oak that many have seen in forests, parks, or even their own garden. It is easily recognised as such by their leaves and acorns, it is basically a common oak adapted to a drier and warmer climate.

Note that the Phellodendron is also sometimes called cork-tree because of the cork-like bark. It is, however, not a pine, mahogany or baobab, and is not used in cork production.

Answer: Ireland

The largest and, realistically, the only Cork that matters in the world, is the Republic of Ireland's second largest city. The name doesn't have anything to do with cork, but with corcach, the Irish word for swamp. Since cork oaks require a warm and dry climate, this indicates that cork oaks are not part of the local flora.

Answer: Portugal

The Cork Oak is native to the Western Mediterranean and is grown commercially in the Iberian Peninsula, Italy, France and Africa north of the Atlas mountains. By far the most cork is produced by Spain and Portugal, of which Portugal was and is the largest producer and exporter.

Answer: Bark

One of the most interesting facts about cork, is that it is the bark being harvested. After 25 years, a thick layer of bark is stripped from the tree, but unlike most trees, this doesn't kill it. It takes about 10 years to regrow its bark, after which it can be harvested again, a procedure which can be repeated every decade or so for well over a century.

There is a portuguese saying: "Plant a wine tree for yourself, an olive tree for your children and a cork tree for your grandchildren".

Answer: Wine

Bottles sealed with cork are excellent for shielding liquids from outside influences for longer periods of time. The flip side is that it is relatively expensive. Since milk and orange juice are not supposed to be kept for a long time, a carton with plastic cap will suffice. Even though some beers are still sealed with a cork, by far the most beer bottles have a crown cap made of metal and plastic.

Answer: William the Silent

William I, Prince of Orange, is better known as William the Silent. In the mid 1500s, at a time when Protestantism and Catholicism clashed, every leader in Europe had an opinion, leading to a widely accepted policy of whatever religion a territory's leader has, that is the religion of all his subjects. Being the de facto leader of the Netherlands, William was the exception to this rule, having the then revolutionary opinion that religion is an individual choice, not the responsibility of the leader.

Even though the precise origin of the nickname isn't known, he received it mainly for not taking sides in the religious debate, which would have alienated him from half his subjects and half of the crowned heads of Europe.

Answer: Floor

Cork flooring, for many a favourite way of covering floors. It looks nice, it's a good insulator and most of all, very environmentally friendly.
Even though it isn't highly flammable, it will burn when held over fire for hours, so using it to build a chimney is not recommended.
Since cork is very poor at letting light through, making windows out of cork appears to defeat its purpose.
Furthermore is cork not structurally strong enough to support the weight of a human being climbing the stairs.

Answer: Baseball Bat

Sammy Sosa is a very well-known baseball player, famous mostly for hitting a lot of home runs. In 2003 he was caught using a corked bat. 'Corking a bat' is a way of making it lighter by drilling a hole in the bat and filling it with lighter material like cork, supposedly making it easier to hit a ball quicker and with more precision. Sammy Sosa is not the only one who has been caught using a corked bat, but he is probably the most famous one.

Answer: Close, but the real song title was "I've Got a Dark Alley and a Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth (Summer Song)"

Fall Out boy were perennial contenders at award ceremonies (MTV, TMF, Teen Choice) during the late 2000s. The album 'From Under the Cork Tree' also contains such fantastic titles as "Our Lawyer Made Us Change the Name of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued" and "I Slept with Someone in Fall Out Boy and All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me".

Answer: Corkscrew

Generally speaking, using a corkscrew is the only correct way to remove a cork. Theoretically it is possible to use the other options, but it may lead to broken bottles, equipment and teeth.