Much like people have a “junk drawer” in their kitchen, we have a “corkscrew drawer.” There are many varieties of corkscrews. Over the years, your Two Wine Nuts have narrowed the field to three favorites, depending on the Nut and the cork. Here are the three we keep on hand:
This is one Nut’s favorite. It is the Pocket Model made by Screwpull. When not in use, it collapses to a handy size perfect for drawer, pocket, backpack, or picnic basket. To use it, you slide the handle part out, put it on top of the screw, place the pronged cover on top of the bottle, and spin the handle around as it pushes the screw into the cork. Screwpull calls it a "self-pulling corkscrew’"and that’s exactly what it is. There’s no muscle required, and the screw goes in straight every time. This corkscrew is also very small and light, making it preferred over the popular "rabbit style" corkscrews which always work
but are bulky and often weigh more than the bottle of wine being opened. The downside to this pull is that it is a bit more expensive and does not work well on synthetic corks. The other Nut also dislikes its lack of tradition. You can find the Screwpull Pocket Model in various upper-end kitchen stores like William-Sonoma, or online. Amazon is selling it for $14.95. See Screwpull and Amazon for more info.
This traditional corkscrew is preferred by the other Nut. This is called the Waiter Style corkscrew. It seems all waiters use this style, not sure why. It can be found just about anywhere, including grocery stores, dollar stores, and wineries. Like the Screwpull, this collapsible corkscrew is light and small, very portable and handy. The Nut prefers this screw because it is traditional and effective. It is also the best type for removing stubborn synthetic corks. The other Nut sometimes gets frustrated by this corkscrew because the screw can be inserted incorrectly and end up going in diagonally, often breaking the cork or at least crumbling a small part of it. Practice and using your index finger to guide the screw can help prevent this. This type of corkscrew typically sells for $5-$8.
This final corkscrew is called the Ahh-So corkscrew. The name either comes from it being “ahh-so” easy to use, or more likely, the eventual comment “ahh, so THAT’s how it works!” Like the others, this corkscrew is light, small, and very portable. It seems a little harder to fi
nd these days, although kitchen stores, wine stores, and various online sites will have it. It is priced similarly to the Waiter Style. The advantage that this corkscrew has over the others is that it does not have a screw that pierces the cork. Instead, starting with the longer prong, you place the prongs on either side of the cork and wiggle the prongs down between the cork and the bottle. Then you pull and twist the captured cork and it pops right out. This is a good corkscrew to use if you have an old, fragile cork to remove. The downsides to this corkscrew are that it is miserable at removing synthetic corks, and sometimes, when pushed too hard, the prongs can force the cork down into the bottle. When that happens, there are other tools to try to retrieve the cork but we prefer just to leave the cork where it is and pour around it.
This is one Nut’s favorite. It is the Pocket Model made by Screwpull. When not in use, it collapses to a handy size perfect for drawer, pocket, backpack, or picnic basket. To use it, you slide the handle part out, put it on top of the screw, place the pronged cover on top of the bottle, and spin the handle around as it pushes the screw into the cork. Screwpull calls it a "self-pulling corkscrew’"and that’s exactly what it is. There’s no muscle required, and the screw goes in straight every time. This corkscrew is also very small and light, making it preferred over the popular "rabbit style" corkscrews which always work
but are bulky and often weigh more than the bottle of wine being opened. The downside to this pull is that it is a bit more expensive and does not work well on synthetic corks. The other Nut also dislikes its lack of tradition. You can find the Screwpull Pocket Model in various upper-end kitchen stores like William-Sonoma, or online. Amazon is selling it for $14.95. See Screwpull and Amazon for more info. 
This traditional corkscrew is preferred by the other Nut. This is called the Waiter Style corkscrew. It seems all waiters use this style, not sure why. It can be found just about anywhere, including grocery stores, dollar stores, and wineries. Like the Screwpull, this collapsible corkscrew is light and small, very portable and handy. The Nut prefers this screw because it is traditional and effective. It is also the best type for removing stubborn synthetic corks. The other Nut sometimes gets frustrated by this corkscrew because the screw can be inserted incorrectly and end up going in diagonally, often breaking the cork or at least crumbling a small part of it. Practice and using your index finger to guide the screw can help prevent this. This type of corkscrew typically sells for $5-$8.This final corkscrew is called the Ahh-So corkscrew. The name either comes from it being “ahh-so” easy to use, or more likely, the eventual comment “ahh, so THAT’s how it works!” Like the others, this corkscrew is light, small, and very portable. It seems a little harder to fi
nd these days, although kitchen stores, wine stores, and various online sites will have it. It is priced similarly to the Waiter Style. The advantage that this corkscrew has over the others is that it does not have a screw that pierces the cork. Instead, starting with the longer prong, you place the prongs on either side of the cork and wiggle the prongs down between the cork and the bottle. Then you pull and twist the captured cork and it pops right out. This is a good corkscrew to use if you have an old, fragile cork to remove. The downsides to this corkscrew are that it is miserable at removing synthetic corks, and sometimes, when pushed too hard, the prongs can force the cork down into the bottle. When that happens, there are other tools to try to retrieve the cork but we prefer just to leave the cork where it is and pour around it.
2 comments:
Then there's the battery-powered one by Oster that is a hit with those who have arthritis. Easy,never miss, and lasts a long time before needing to be recharged. I love it! Absolutely no tradition or class, however!
CAh
Here's the corkscrew mentioned above: Oster Opener Beware, however. CAh cautions that the opener is so much fun, her husband claims she is drinking more wine just so she can use the handy gadget!
Post a Comment