I am just getting into wine, why do wine bottles have concave base when the bottles are stored on their sides?!

I am just getting into wine, why do wine bottles have concave base when the bottles are stored on their sides?

I am so glad you asked this question because I studied this! The concave base (called a 'push-up base,' 'kick-up,' or 'punt') goes back historically to how wine bottles were made in the 17th century. The glass starts on a long pole and from the base is blown out into a bottle shape. The bottle is then broken off from the pole, or 'pontil' resulting in the concave base. As to why this continues today with modern manufacturing processes...

Here is a website about the historical process:

http://www.sha.org/bottle/pontil_scars.h...

About modern wine bottles:

"Today a punt [the concave base of a wine bottle] is unnecessary and exists only because many consumers equate the presence of a punt as an indication of quality."

This quote taken from this website:

http://www.cellarnotes.net/punts.htm...