Corkscrews

But more than an accessory, a corkscrew is probably the most critical tool in an wine lover's arsenal. Remember, an unopened bottle of wine doesn't pour very well. And it's true that there are many wines produced nowadays using a Stelvin Cap, or a twist-off cap that makes a corkscrew superfluous. Supposedly these twist-off cap wines are produced to drink in the short term and not to put down in the cellar for several years.

It's therefore doubtful that Château Petrus is currently planning to implement a Stelvin cap program in the near future. A reliable corkscrew is still a necessity to get a cork out of a bottle of wine. The fact is a cork in the bottle is a tradition that has created an opening ritual, no, more than that, theater. Nothing can replace the suspense and tension of coaxing that crumbling cork out of that first growth Bordeaux that has gathered dust in the cellar for a decade or so. It would be a pity if it fell apart and left tawdry bits of cork floating in the precious liquid. The final denouement is the pop from the release of the suction when the cork is extracted. That usually perks up a crowd more than the onion dip.

Augers and Levers—Kudos to Archimedes

Give credit where credit is due: the Greek mathematician Archimedes is the inspiration behind the corkscrew design. His Archimedean Screw was an augering device with a rotating helical screw that lifted water through a pipe. This principle, combined with leverage to make it easier, lifts the snugly fit and occasionally stubborn cork out of the wine bottle. A generic corkscrew has a metal helical worm that wraps itself around an imaginary perpendicular line. As the point of the worm spirals down the cork it creates space, and the rest of the worm continues down the same path. The worm does minimal damage to the cork and it remains intact and won't crumble or disintegrate as it's pulled up the bottle's neck. That's the theory at least.

Types of Corkscrews

There are countless corkscrews to choose from. Don't believe me? Check out the historic 1500+ corkscrew collection on display in the main building of the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in Napa Valley's St. Helena. Brother Tim of the Christian Brothers Cellars collected countless corkscrews used throughout history. Many of these are imaginative in design and reminiscent of devices found in a medieval castle's torture room. It's better to stick with the modern versions, ones with a worm about two inches long for longer corks affords leverage to extract a cork without pulling a muscle.

• Basic

Basic is basic. The corkscrew has a regular worm with a transverse handle for gripping. Simply center the worm at the center of the cork and apply slight downward pressure while turning the corkscrew until it is buried deep. (Try not to poke the worm's point through the cork ,which could drop cork bits into the bottle and that will later show up between your teeth, ruining any million dollar smile. Grab the bottle with one hand and pull the cork out with a slow and forceful motion. Opening a bottle with a basic corkscrew can be done in lieu of a visit to the gym.

• Ah-So

This is also called a Butler's friend. It's a cork puller rather than a corkscrew. There are two flat parallel prongs that are inserted and wiggled down on either side of the cork and between it and the bottle. Once fully inserted, the Ah-So is pulled up while twisting until the cork is free. The great thing about the Ah-So is that it's simple and doesn't damage the cork, which can be reinserted later if desired and won't drop those cork bits into the wine. On the negative side, it's difficult to use with loose corks that may get pushed in rather than pulled out. The Ah-So can't help you much after that. That being said, the Ah-So is good to keep around to use with those old, fragile, and crumbling corks that can disintegrate with a regular corkscrew.

• Winged Corkscrew

This one is easy to spot. It has a center worm with two winged levers on either side. Turn the worm handle down until the two wings ratchet up, then push the handles down. The cork should come out. This model doesn't take a lot of strength, but longer corks sometimes don't come out all the way and then one has to put a half-nelson on the cork and wrestle it out.

• Waiter's Friend

This is the one the waitperson pulls out of their apron, uses its folding knife to cut the bottle's foil, inserts the worm in the cork, positions the friend's lever on the rim of the bottle and gently pulls upward. For longer corks, you might reach the end of the leverage point without having yet removed the cork. Don't bend the cork over as it might break and create a sense of exasperation, failure, and self-doubt. The best thing to do is release the lever, turn the corkscrew down again a few times and repeat removing the cork with the lever. There's more savvy technique involved with this corkscrew and it takes a modicum of strength to use but they help create individual style. Waiter's Friends are compact and reliable and the best ones with panache are handmade in France by Laguiole. These use a Teflon worm and have an array of stylish handles and many sommeliers swear by them rather than at them. Personally I have my eye set on one from the Best Sommelier series. The Olivier Poussier model's handle is made from a Yew tree from a grove of Marie-Antoinette's at Château de Versailles. Let them drink wine.

• Screwpull

A Screwpull is a cleverly engineered opener designed by Herbert Allen. It's probably the easiest and most infallible corkscrew available. There are many imitators but the original and best is still the Screwpull manufactured by Le Creuset. The Screwpull has a long, Teflon-coated worm, two handles for gripping the bottle's neck, and a large worm handle for easy extraction. Simply open the two handles, grip the bottle tight, push the worm handle down and pull it up. In the blink of an eye the cork comes out of the bottle and off the screw in two simple motions. Tough to beat, almost impossible to screw up. There are a couple of drawbacks however. One, the Screwpull is larger, bulkier, heavier than other corkscrews, and won't fit in your pocket. The second detraction is the expense. A Screwpull will cost the same as a couple of expensive bottles of Napa Cab. You might consider compromising with other screwpull lever devices that follow similar double-helix self-pulling and auto-extracting designs.

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