How many times have you pushed the cork inside the bottle? Or cut the capsule into several pieces? Or used more force than necessary and your wine ended up on the floor? It's time to learn how to open a bottle of wine like a pro!
Choosing the right corkscrew
No doubt: you need a corkscrew! And you need a good one! In wine shops you can find different types of corkscrews, simple or modern, fancy or classic, in many colors and designs, including some very modern ones, such as the air pump corkscrew or those with built-in thermometer for measure the temperature of the wine.
Among them only one really deserves your attention. It's a sommelier's corkscrew. It looks like a Swiss pocket knife. The designer of this tool is the German Karl Wienke who patented it in 1882.
Why is it so good and recommended? It is very portable and easy to keep in your pocket or personal bag.
But be careful whenever you have to go through a metal detector. Airports have a whole collection of corkscrews.
Servers and sommeliers love it too because it has two actions in one tool. With this type of corkscrew, you can cut the metal capsule and remove the cork.
Many wine lovers prefer the winged corkscrew, also called a butterfly corkscrew. It has two levers, one on each side of the auger. It was invented in 1939. As you turn the worm in the cork, the two levers lift. The levers are pushed down to remove the cork from the bottle. The advantage of this tool is its ease of use. The cork practically pops off in one smooth motion.
Our tips for successfully uncorking a bottle of wine like a pro
1. Start by cutting the aluminum foil that surrounds the neck of the bottle. Using a knife or bottle opener, carefully cut off the top of the film, being careful not to cut into the cork itself.
2. Once you've removed all the foil, insert your corkscrew into the middle of the cork at an angle and start twisting it until it's almost completely submerged below the surface. Be sure to go slow and stay as straight as possible so you don't damage the cork or bottle when inserting.
3. When you feel resistance, use your thumb to push down on one side of the corkscrew while pulling up on its handle with your other thumb. This will allow the screw to slide further into the cork and possibly puncture it.
4. Finally, once you have pierced the cork, begin to slowly remove it from the bottle using the corkscrew. Again, go slow and steady to avoid damaging the cork or the wine inside.
5. When you feel you are almost at the end of your rotation, gently pull the handle with one hand while holding the top of the bottle with the other until you hear a slight popping sound signaling that the bottle was successfully uncorked!
Congratulation ! You have now successfully uncorked a bottle of wine like a pro! Taste responsibly!
What to do with the cork of the wine bottle?
There are many creative things you can do with a wine cork. One of the most popular is to make DIY projects such as a cork board, keychains, and even jewelry.
If the cap is plastic, you can recycle it by putting it in selective sorting containers, with household packaging. If the stopper is made of cork oak (this is the case for the most expensive wines, but also for sparkling wines), you can make a specific collection of it because this material can be recycled ad infinitum. In addition, it is worth recycling it because such caps are very expensive to manufacture.
But, you can also simply keep them as a souvenir of the bottle. Because for the finest wines, the cork bears the name of the domain or the AOP in question.
