Seriously? A $220+ corkscrew that isn't even double stepped

http://www.code-38.com/products-page

It’s not even double stepped.

$225 is the cheapest. People will pay for anything with gimmicky marketing and flashy words.

And with a thick, uncoated thread. Amazing!

From here we have fitted a French made precision cold forged un-grooved stainless steel spiral.


'cause French and precision forging go together like…, oh wait!

I think this one came up a month or so ago, in the context of a Durand thread (as in “wow, compared to this, the Durand is a bargain”). As for the Durand, I’m now a convert after biting the bullet and buying one during Berserker Day. Put it to it’s first use this weekend, on a cork that crumbled fairly completely on its top half using a LeverPull. Out came the Durand, problem solved.

yeah, these make most Laguioles seem cheap!

Hey
They have a Pro also!
And still not even double stepped (only double or more priced)!

Cheers
Rip

Personally, speaking as someone who spent nearly 10 years as a sommelier and still opens bottles daily professionally, there is no way I’d ever consider paying that kind of money for a 2-step design, whereas I would–and have–paid triple digit sums for regular, lever equipped keys like these. Those 2-step things are too slow and clumsy for a pro to take seriously. That, and I’ve never even seen a 2-step design attempt to get anywhere near that kind of money…do they exist?

This looks like a beautifully designed and made piece, and one that I’d consider shelling out for, particularly if I still worked a restaurant floor, and didn’t have one more of my beloved Kershaw Sommelier wine keys, which is still the performance standard for me (for cork extraction). The Code 38 looks to be better built and more durable, even though the Kershaw is no slouch in that category.

The more I look at this Code 38 Pro, the more I’m thinking I should get one. If you actually know what you’re looking at, and if you really have performance expectations for your corkscrews, these things are pretty tempting.

If a significant number of wine geeks can regularly be convinced to spend $12 or more per glass (often buying a score or more and a few different shapes each), based on on rather unconvincing claims about the impact of different bowl shapes on scent and where the wine lands on the palate (relative to other less expensive versions), then surely some number of can be reasonably parted from their wages for a $220 corkscrew (what about $410 for vaporised titanium!)?

I don’t get it… I guess I need to be a professional sommelier and open 2000 bottles in a restaurant instead of my own kitchen to really understand…

Believe it or not, it is a totally different performance standard.

Jim, PVD titanium nitride is some very, very useful shit…worth money, in fact. Check it out: Titanium nitride - Wikipedia

I still don’t understand what makes this special. What do you mean by lever-equipped keys versus two step designs? Is a lever just a one-step design? That’s what it looks like in the picture. And wouldn’t the two step design be better because it would reduce the angle on the cork as you were pulling it out?

Jim, PVD titanium nitride is some very, very useful shit…worth money, in fact.

That is not titanium nitride. TiNitride is a very bright gold color. They are using a
Ti coating to achieve the dark grey color on the handle.

You don’t get it because you’re not a “hospitality professional working within the premium end of the industry.”

It’s special because it’s well designed and well executed…that is, if it works well. I haven’t used one.

Yes.

Repeating what I said in a post above, no, the 2-step is not better for me and many other wine professionals, because they are slow and clumsy. The design is basically a kludge for addressing the effects of poor technique and poorly designed wine keys. In other words, a well designed single lever will pull straight up-and-out if used properly, and do so more quickly, elegantly, and, IMO, pleasantly.

Ti Carbon Nitride, whatever…a variant of TiN that doesn’t even warrant its own Wikipedia entry.

That appears to be the case.

I’d only spend this much on a cork screw if it either came with a money back guarantee or I had a chance to try it first, but I agree with Chaad. Having a really well designed, super functioning corkscrew can make a huge difference in the quality of your experience when opening bottles, especially if opening more than one.

Like most of you, I’ve got so many wine openers, it seems like I’m always finding them in strange places. They’re all over the house, car, etc. But my Laguiole sommelier series works SOOOOO much better than any other waiter’s knife I have ever tried. It costs over $200, but was worth it. Funny, side by side with other Laugioule and knives, it doesn’t look that much different but it just works… perfectly.

The Code 38 has a 6 month money-back guarantee. That’s pretty serious!