Any other nerds here that buy antique corkscrews?
No, you are crowned Nerd Emperor. Master of Corkscrews.
Has anyone here even seen a corkscrew that turns counter-clockwise going in?
In answer to the original question, I guessed six, since that is how many I could mentally locate, but I used to have a lot more before they were broken by synthetic stoppers (AKA plastic corks).
P Hickner
Like the corkscrew, I am a tool.
great idea–I will try that with cases of wine!
There are left handed Laguiole!
https://www.laguiole-imports.com/products/chateau-laguiole-left-handed-corkscrew-grand-cru-series
I only counted those we got before we owned the shop and not the one we brought home from the store and use daily. There in the bottom of the drawer was a flimsy old can opener/beer bottle opener/cork screw combination tool. It was under 3 ah sos, the opener with wing handles, 8 promo openers from wineries we visited, 4 plain Jane cork screws, a fancy sculpted wood Laguiole knock off and a wood T handle opener.
Proper technique with antique corkscrew
(how do you get a youtube video to show? I pasted the URL between the youtube tags but it doesn’t work)
I need to show my wife this thread. She thinks that I am crazy for having three.
- 2 Ah-sos
- 4 of those waiter thingies with the folding ratchets (what are they called?)
- 1 Screwpull
- 1 Leverpull, recently replaced for the second time under lifetime warranty
- 1 backup Leverpull
- 1 Rabbit in reserve
- 2 crumbled/severed cork removal devices
- 1 treasured Zig-Zag, which is one of the best devices of all
Now I’m waiting for someone to challenge Durand’s patent and make a knockoff.
Oh yeah. I forgot there’s a Rabbit in the cupboard.
has to be more than 10, but only 2 get regular use: Laguiole and Ah-so.
Make yer own!
(Post #23)
only include the characters after the equal sign. Method changed some time ago
Ok, my inner-nerd is gonna come way out, but I gotta applaud my good friend John, whom I’ve always known to be a man of class and distinction! ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
The Zig-Zag is awesome. The first patent is from 1920, and then a subsequent patent with the bottle opener on top, like what John has, is from the late 1930s.
Here is mine, it’s mint and works flawlessly. Not great with older corks, though, it eats them up with the bladed screw (typical of any large ones):
These lever-action tools have been around for decades with many variations. Many call them “Concertinas”.
The original patent is from 1885, issued to Weir’s. Here is one of the several variations I own, an original Weir’s Patent manufactured by Henley & Sons, who produced some of the best mechanical screws from the 1800s:
This one still works as well, but it’s delicate. Most of the copper has worn off, it’s been used much over the years.
My Zig-Zag, from the 1980s, does not have a bladed edge. It is a coiled wire, in effect. It’s not my first choice for delicate older corks, but I’ve used it on many. The reverse leverage of the Zig-Zag (a long pull of the handle for a short movement of the cork) allows you to pull quite gently.
We do similar. See no point in spending the money on a Durand when we’ve been using a combination of ah-so and waiter’s friend for more than 20 years. Works like a charm, and has the advantage of being able to put the worm in at whatever angle you want.
Zig Zag? Mine aren’t wine accessories
That’s the argument against the patent – it was obvious and in prior use!
The tools that I use every time to open the bottles, all being used together are there :
I have also the Durand, but I prefer to use my tools because the Durand hurst the corks.
I have added a new tool, a spoon that I have bended which helps to remove the very thin pieces which would have fallen in the liquid. But in 95% of the cases nothing falls in the liquid.