Wine openers and closures
Many people enjoy a quick glass of wine after a hard day’s work, and then want to keep the wine fresh for another day. Opening and then sealing a bottle of wine can be difficult, particularly for those with problems such as arthritis, and so there are a variety of different wine openers and wine closure devices available. From the simple corkscrew which can be found at any supermarket, to specialist wine closure systems designed to prevent oxidization of the wine, being able to get into the bottle and then seal it again are two requirements for the drinking of wine, whether a single glass or among company.
For many years, the basic corkscrew was all that was needed to open a bottle of wine. The bottles were sealed using 100% cork stoppers, and the simple corkscrew could manage this well. However, in recent years, a few bottles have started to be sealed with a synthetic cork, often known as a ‘closure’. These synthetic corks are made from plastics, and are less likely to be at risk from fungus, but they can make using a corkscrew more difficult, because they are more likely to be damaged by the opener.
There are a variety of different corkscrews which can be used, depending upon the type of cork in your bottle. Assisted pull corkscrews are probably best used with ordinary wine corks. This type of bottle opener has a mechanism which allows the ‘screw’ part to grip the cork, and then be pulled out of the bottle. For those with mobility problems in their hands, an electric corkscrew will help you to get the bottle opened without causing too much pain. Traditionalists might prefer the Double Lever corkscrew, which has two metal bars which pull the screw upwards as they are pressed downwards. This is an easier way of lifting the cork out than a traditional direct-pull corkscrew device.
On the other side of the bottle, so to speak, wine closures are a vital tool to helping you keep your wine fresh until you want to use it again. Bottle stoppers are very useful, and can be bought in a range of designs, from the basic cork with a wider top to something like a vacuum seal which can be placed over the top of the bottle, and then a handle used to secure it inside the bottle. As many wines now have screw-caps, this type of extreme wine closure system can seem a little expensive, but the cap can only keep a basic seal, and sparkling wines may still lose their fizz. There are other stopper which can help to keep the pressure inside the bottle, preventing the loss of air bubbles and retaining the sparkle.
There are other types of wine openers and closures which can be perfect for when you want to ensure that you can open the bottle easily, and that the wine will keep its flavour once it has been opened and some of the wine drunk.
