I'm pretty sure they did test on site in China with a variety of similar herbs that were available. But without the sticky "real deal" being available, my guess is that's what lead to the do-over on the current model.
Current feedback and reviews clearly indicate that they got it right and the grinder performs very well.
Regardless of what anyone says about their business acumen, it's very clear they nailed it with the current design. Holding back an inferior product was the right thing to do.
I think lighting will strike twice in the same place and the cork is going through the same process of refinement. A lot of the current bashing about the cork is the same as what was said about the grinder earlier this year.
When Yaniv put out the early video of the grinder a lot of people panned it, said it was fake, too big, too loud, etc. With that kind of warm welcome it's no wonder he has pulled back on his social media presence.
As I read the recent PR, it struck me that the one thing most large companies are concerned about (other than image and quality) is cost. I'm sure they have hundreds of cork variations and models that were abandoned for a variety of reasons. None of us care about the failures, it's the successful one that we all want to see. Just like the grinder, I'd prefer to see a well designed, cost effective product come to market late, rather than a costly or immature product that flops.
If the cork is getting the same level of design scrutiny that the grinder did, waiting a bit longer is fine with me.
