Where is the Glasvin of corkscrews?

[J_Cangiano]

How and why hasn’t someone created an alternative to the Durand? A knockoff Durand at 50% off would sell like mad.

[William_Anzalone]

having attempted to open 2 bottles with the Legnoart, i’m convinced it was designed by a sadist. i can’t say it’s the worst corkscrew ever invented because that implies that it can actually be used for the stated purpose, but poorly.

this is a dangerous and unwieldy projectile masquerading as a corkscrew. there is no amount of pressure that will make the lever stick in place around the top of the bottle, and the more pressure you apply, the faster this gigantic tool will fly out of your hand. the worm and blade are both long and sharp. normally good things, but crucial design flaws when attached to this … thing.

if anyone wants it, let me know and i’ll ship it to you. use at your own risk.

I agree 100%

[Keith_Levenberg]

How and why hasn’t someone created an alternative to the Durand? A knockoff Durand at 50% off would sell like mad.

There are loads of ah-so knockoffs and they don’t do the job nearly as well as a good one, like the one that makes up one half of the Durand. I’d expect any attempt at knocking off the Durand would have similar issues. Just get the real thing. It costs less than most bottles you’d use it on. And you only have to spend the money once, then you’re set.

[Tom_G_l_a_s_g_o_w]

How and why hasn’t someone created an alternative to the Durand? A knockoff Durand at 50% off would sell like mad.

There are loads of ah-so knockoffs and they don’t do the job nearly as well as a good one, like the one that makes up one half of the Durand. I’d expect any attempt at knocking off the Durand would have similar issues. Just get the real thing. It costs less than most bottles you’d use it on. And you only have to spend the money once, then you’re set.

Right at 50% off why bother? 80% discount for something that works as well 95% of the time would have some attraction, but probably not for you.
Of course, a 50% knockoff might sell like mad.

[Carter_Pelham]

Based on this thread i ordered a HiCoup linked above and I have to say I really, really like it for 13 dollars.

Feels really solid, two-step mechanism is nice, foil blade is nice.

My personal wishlist is a 2 step like this but with a more elongated, durand-like screw.

I would buy multiple of these and use till they broke instead of 1 “nicer” one.

[Troy_Stark]

having attempted to open 2 bottles with the Legnoart, i’m convinced it was designed by a sadist. i can’t say it’s the worst corkscrew ever invented because that implies that it can actually be used for the stated purpose, but poorly.

this is a dangerous and unwieldy projectile masquerading as a corkscrew. there is no amount of pressure that will make the lever stick in place around the top of the bottle, and the more pressure you apply, the faster this gigantic tool will fly out of your hand. the worm and blade are both long and sharp. normally good things, but crucial design flaws when attached to this … thing.

if anyone wants it, let me know and i’ll ship it to you. use at your own risk.

Can’t be returned???

[Troy_Stark]

How and why hasn’t someone created an alternative to the Durand? A knockoff Durand at 50% off would sell like mad.

Won’t be possible until their patent runs out. In the meantime, you can use a pulltap and ah-so to the same effect.

[ybarselah]

How and why hasn’t someone created an alternative to the Durand? A knockoff Durand at 50% off would sell like mad.

There are loads of ah-so knockoffs and they don’t do the job nearly as well as a good one, like the one that makes up one half of the Durand. I’d expect any attempt at knocking off the Durand would have similar issues. Just get the real thing. It costs less than most bottles you’d use it on. And you only have to spend the money once, then you’re set.

i’ve seen this happen to a Durand, and it’s a major point of failure for any corkscrew - the worm breaks off. a better version would include the ability to replace the worm.

patent expires in march of 2026 - just around the corner!

[C_Mc_Cart]

I’ve had for many years a Legnoart (not sure which one but bought from Wine Enthusiast around 2015 for approximately$ 75) and very recently purchased the Château Laguiole Classic in dark horn ($199 with free engraving).

The Legnoart is very big and heavy but I like the double hinged boot lever. However, over time, the hinges on the Legnoart, specifically the boot lever, become loose. The lever also tends to slip off the bottle when applying pressure to open if I’m not holding the lever tightly towards the bottle. I’ve owned 2, 1 came as a gift and both boot levers became loose. It is also rather large to throw in a wine tote and to bring out at a restaurant. It would not be comfortable in a pocket. However, Legnoart makes many different wine keys and I’m sure there are better, more ergonomically designed wine keys available.

The Laguiole is much smaller but with good weight. All moving parts are tight but not overly tight, like some have mentioned. It’s going to take me some time to get used to the size and single boot lever but I think the Laguiole is going to be my wine key of choice. With the very limited amount of bottles I’ve opened, the weight and balance feels awesome in my hand.

My Legnoart is probably going to be reserved for larger format bottles. I have a Durand for older bottles as well.

I was mistakenly sent something similar by an online shop a few years ago. When I questioned them as it wasn’t what I had ordered, they said keep it for the inconvenience. It’s called a Viski by True Fabrications. Looks just like your Legnoart apart from being Ebony wood. Agree with Yaacov, it is comically large and due to the size/weight, considerably more difficult to use on a bottle. I could see it being useful for very large format bottles, but I have nothing larger than a mag. It sits in a drawer waiting to be donated to another poor soul.

[Wes_Barton]

How and why hasn’t someone created an alternative to the Durand? A knockoff Durand at 50% off would sell like mad.

Won’t be possible until their patent runs out. In the meantime, you can use a pulltap and ah-so to the same effect.

Exactly. It’s designed to do the job of those two components in unison. It’s a beautiful design. There would be a lot of cost researching and developing a product as good, without infringing on the patent. That means getting both components right, and working well together. It’s hard to imagine someone could do all that and then attract the sales volume to make it a worthwhile venture charging half the price. I mean, if the market demand is there to do that, then the Durand folks could adapt more quickly and outcompete them in several ways.

The best knockoff is what the Durand is a knockoff of: the two components. You can do an okay job with a $6 ah-so and $6 waiters corkscrew. That would probably be better than some rushed out knockoff product. A quality ah-so with a well designed nimble waiters corkscrew, where both have all the right features/details right, works about as well as a Durand. (For my practical use, that’s actually better. No extra stuff to bring along and worry about. If I encounter an unexpected problem, I don’t have to take the worm back out, reach into a bag and pull out a case, open it, pull out the components and start over. I just add in the ah-so.)

[Keith_Levenberg]

The Durand does its job very well but I wouldn’t describe it as beautiful. It’s a clunky utilitarian alternative to a regular corkscrew that we only tolerate because it does the jobs regular corkscrews won’t do. The standard corkscrew is an elegant design because it uses lever power. The Durand has no lever power and all the power comes from your wrist and whatever leverage you can manually apply at what is usually an awkward angle that magnifies the difficulty. Maybe there is an opportunity for a better mousetrap.

[Robert.A.Jr]

The Durand does its job very well but I wouldn’t describe it as beautiful. It’s a clunky utilitarian alternative to a regular corkscrew that we only tolerate because it does the jobs regular corkscrews won’t do. The standard corkscrew is an elegant design because it uses lever power. The Durand has no lever power and all the power comes from your wrist and whatever leverage you can manually apply at what is usually an awkward angle that magnifies the difficulty. Maybe there is an opportunity for a better mousetrap.

Agree 100%. I use it all the time for bottles 15 years or older, but I would not call it pretty. I actually think it is rather clunky. It just happens to work exceedingly well because it grabs the cork from the inside and the outside. Like Keith, I really appreciate the leverage principle, which this does does not employe. It is awkward to grip when engaged, and to pull out, but again, because of the way it grabs the cork, that part works very well.

[Rich_Brown]

The Durand does its job very well but I wouldn’t describe it as beautiful. It’s a clunky utilitarian alternative to a regular corkscrew that we only tolerate because it does the jobs regular corkscrews won’t do. The standard corkscrew is an elegant design because it uses lever power. The Durand has no lever power and all the power comes from your wrist and whatever leverage you can manually apply at what is usually an awkward angle that magnifies the difficulty. Maybe there is an opportunity for a better mousetrap.

Agree 100%. I use it all the time for bottles 15 years or older, but I would not call it pretty. I actually think it is rather clunky. It just happens to work exceedingly well because it grabs the cork from the inside and the outside. Like Keith, I really appreciate the leverage principle, which this does does not employe. It is awkward to grip when engaged, and to pull out, but again, because of the way it grabs the cork, that part works very well.

I could not agree more! Love my Durand because it does its job on older corks and does it incredibly well (near perfect track record). But sexy, it is not

[Wes_Barton]

Okay. German-pretty, not French-pretty.

Don’t recall needing leverage when I’ve used a Durand. A Laguiole with the worm between the fore and middle fingers fits the form of my hand elegantly and allows great control. With a Monopol Ah-so next to it, I work with the screw on the palm side and it feels about the same. A quarter turn, then gently pull up and rotate. Easy-peasy. Total control and feel of exactly what’s going on, so you can adapt in the moment. Not clumsy at all. But, you can spazz out and break a cork if you aren’t careful. Pulling up to rapidly, or without rotating to the needed degree, or giving a little nonlinear finish. Seems like some things that may improve for some situations would be problematic for others, and likely bulky/awkward.

So, I suppose if you want leverage, what’s better than a winged opener? How about a design for an ah-so-like devise that works with a good winged opener? Not sure if that’s feasible as a stand alone product, but a pull could be designed in conjunction with a pronged devise.

[ybarselah]

here’s your chinese knockoff…

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002253331435.html?_randl_currency=USD&_randl_shipto=US&src=google&memo1=freelisting&aff_fcid=c8498b9cf73140c28e5e59ae69e4ae2c-1644450037913-08128-UneMJZVf&aff_fsk=UneMJZVf&aff_platform=aaf&sk=UneMJZVf&aff_trace_key=c8498b9cf73140c28e5e59ae69e4ae2c-1644450037913-08128-UneMJZVf&terminal_id=1d48e377688e479babd79ee45123a15c

[Keith_Levenberg]

wow, they even knocked off the box!

[todd_waldmann]

Theirs Sommelier. I’ve had this for maybe 12 years? I paid probably $80-100. It gets used daily. The worm is tapered, which is nice for older corks, but the Durand has eliminated the need for me to use this on older corks.

[Wes_Barton]

here’s your chinese knockoff…

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002253331435.html?_randl_currency=USD&_randl_shipto=US&src=google&memo1=freelisting&aff_fcid=c8498b9cf73140c28e5e59ae69e4ae2c-1644450037913-08128-UneMJZVf&aff_fsk=UneMJZVf&aff_platform=aaf&sk=UneMJZVf&aff_trace_key=c8498b9cf73140c28e5e59ae69e4ae2c-1644450037913-08128-UneMJZVf&terminal_id=1d48e377688e479babd79ee45123a15c

Look at the third photo…

$85, “ships from China”. Um, no thanks.

Ooh, lots of fun stuff to poke at if you scroll down and read that link.

[ybarselah]

22C997E1-CB08-4604-9B27-341CABE95B03.jpeg

Theirs Sommelier. I’ve had this for maybe 12 years? I paid probably $80-100. It gets used daily. The worm is tapered, which is nice for older corks, but the Durand has eliminated the need for me to use this on older corks.

this looks terrific - i really appreciate the machine-y aspect of it. seems to be $150+ these days!

[A_Mishaan]

I love the Rösle waiter’s friend style corkscrew. Solid, oversized, heavy. Not sure if they are still in production, but it’s what we use daily. The Waiter's Friend is your Friend too | Stark Insider

Edit: Oh, and it was about 50 bucks when we bought the ones we have, but that was probably a decade ago.