How to open a bottle of wine? With a corkscrew, of course! That would be the simplest and most obvious answer that could be given at first. It turns out that this artifact is not always available when the urge to drink good wine hits.
In such cases it is more than possible to enjoy the company of this drink from the gods without necessarily having a corkscrew in hand.
So we brought in this post the best ideas on how to open a bottle of wine with and without a corkscrew, in a safe and reliable way. So you are already prevented for both situations, follow:
How to open wine bottle with corkscrew
There are basically three types of corkscrew: the butterfly shape, also known as the double lever, the sommelier, which has a knife on one end and a lever on the other and, finally, the simplest model of all, the one that only brings the spiral part to be turned in the cork.
Which one to use? Everything will depend on your skill and preference. The butterfly model and the sommelier surpass the simple corkscrew in all aspects, from the ease of opening the bottle, to the most elegant and sophisticated look. Therefore, we will focus only on these two main models:
Opening a wine bottle with butterfly corkscrew
Step 1: Start by removing the seal or capsule, as some prefer to call it, which is around the spout of the bottle. This protective layer serves to protect the stopper from mold and mildew, in addition to allowing a minimum passage of air into the bottle.
To remove this seal, make a small cut just below the spout of the bottle. If you prefer, you can also use a capsule cutter to ensure a straight and uniform cut.
If you want to remove the entire seal, make a second cut, this time vertically.
Step 2: Remove the seal and do a little cleaning on the top of the bottle to remove dust and remnants of the seal.
Step 3: With the spiraled tip of the corkscrew, make a small hole in the cork and start to rotate the instrument until it penetrates the cork, always in a clockwise direction. Some corks are longer, others shorter. When placing the corkscrew try to notice this detail, since the shorter ones do not require the corkscrew to be inserted completely.
You will also notice that as the corkscrew enters the cork, the side levers are raised. When they are parallel to the table or the surface being used, it is a sign that the cork is ready to come out, so stop turning the corkscrew.
One more tip: always keep the corkscrew straight to prevent the cork from breaking or crumbling, causing pieces of cork to fall into the wine.
Step 4: To remove the cork, press the levers downwards, remembering to keep the wine bottle always resting on the table. Start pulling the cork upwards gradually until it comes completely out of the bottle.
Opening a bottle of wine with a corkscrew sommelier
The process for opening a bottle of wine with a corkscrew of the sommelier model is practically the same as that of the butterfly model. The crucial difference here is that the sommelier corkscrew has only one lever and brings a small knife that allows the seal to be cut without having to resort to extra accessories.
How to open a wine bottle without a corkscrew
The tip here is for those days when the corkscrew disappears or is simply forgotten somewhere else. It’s also true when you feel like drinking a wine and you’re there, lost in the middle of nowhere. So make a note of these tips and consider them for emergency situations:
Opening a wine bottle with screw and pliers
Who knew, but a simple screw accompanied by pliers can work miracles when opening a bottle of wine. Here, the technique is simple: just screw a screw into the cork, taking care not to go through the cork, even prefer to use a larger screw than the cork. Then, take the pliers and start pulling the screw along with the cork gently until it comes off and comes out of the bottle. Congratulations! You just improvised the simplest of corkscrews.
Opening wine bottle with shoe
This method may seem a little strange and primitive, but believe me: it works and can save your moment. For that, you will only need a flat shoe with a thin sole.
Place the wine bottle inside it and arrange a vertical surface to give it a light tap, it can be a wall or even a tree. You will notice that the cork will start to rise and gradually loosen. When it is accessible, pull it out by hand. Just be careful not to let the cork out completely, as this way the wine will end up falling on the floor.
Opening wine bottle with knife
The method of opening a wine bottle with the help of a knife is also very common and simple. The tip is to use a flat and sharp knife, but in the absence of such a model you can use the saw knife yourself.
Insert the knife into the cork and carefully rotate it while applying light pressure upwards. Little by little, the cork will loosen. And… tcharam! The wine is ready to be served.
Opening wine bottle pushing cork
This is perhaps one of the simplest methods, but it brings an inconvenience that can be death for anyone who is a natural wine connoisseur.
The technique basically consists of using a pointed object to push the cork into the bottle, but in this movement some pieces of cork can come loose and end up in the wine, not to mention that the cork itself will be submerged in the liquid, which, for many, it means flavor change.
So, which of these methods of opening a bottle of wine will you want to try first?
