Comments on: Wine Openers

By: Annie

Annie — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:31:27 +0000

I’ve got a cheaper version of The Rabbit and I never have a problem with it. Before getting that opener, my problem was less the broken cork and more the muscle power. I could get a cork about 1/4 of the way out and then the negative pressure in the bottle thwarts me.

time to go back to the gym i guess?

By: philip

philip — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:43:47 +0000

I use a basic lever corkscrew (I believe its the ‘waiters friend’ type) and it’s served me well, although at the wine messenger we’d basically wear them out, opening 2,000 bottles or so a year.

The other type that is worth having around, particularly for cork collectors or for getting a crumbly cork out, is the amusingly named Ah-So corkscrew. Basically, 2 prongs which slide around the cork and pull it out intact.

They look unique and people who’ve never seen them are sure to doubt of their utility, but they are a very good backup.

By: mark

mark — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 20:41:36 +0000

I was gifted a Rabbit at some point and I have to say I only use it when I really want to spoil myself. They’re so easy to use it makes it seem like I’m cheating — right down to the point where it grabs onto the cork to pull it off the corkscrew after you’ve already extracted it from the bottle…

By: Clint

Clint — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 02:42:08 +0000

First of all, I think one of the two famous devices has to give up the name “The Rabbit” because the overlap is disconcerting and uncomfortable, especially since I’m about to talk about my parents. That aside, my folks have a Rabbit and it’s awesome. But it does feel like cheating.

They also have a neighbor (not a new kind of corkscrew - the “person” kind of neighbor) who is some sort of big shot in an international corkscrew collectors club. This is a real thing. They apparently have a convention once or twice a year in different parts of the world - they just came back from Australia for the yearly show out there. Must be nice.

By: CNSmith

CNSmith — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 17:41:08 +0000

Ditch the Rabbit!!

Get a waiter’s Pulltap. Had one for five years with no breakage.

Best,
Charles Smith

By: philip

philip — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 17:48:11 +0000

Charles - thats what i use. As long as you get a semi-decent one (ie. not $2 disposable kind) it’ll last a few thousand bottles for sure.

The key for these is to get the hinged lever one to minimize your heaving, and to get one with a good worm. Good means that it follows the thread shape, not the kind that the point centers. Those are for drilling our a bore hole!

By: Alesha

Alesha — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 20:01:02 +0000

Hmm… sounds like I need to wish list a good wine opener along with my favorite wines.

By: Victor

Victor — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 15:34:51 +0000

Without a doubt the waiters friend pulltap type of corkscrew is the best. It’s simple, small and easy to use. Try puting yor rabbit into pocket I only use pulltaps in my work and to open my own wines. Sometimes I get the broken cork but it’s not a problem to take out the rest of broken cork from bottle with pulltaps, and with rabbit it can be kind of tricky. Oh, and the neighbor mentioned by Clint is really the Real Thing, but only for conservative professionals!