The 12 Best Wine Openers To Buy In 2021

Your preferences and abilities will determine which wine opener is the best for you. Our first day of life after learning to open a bottle of wine was the day we learned how to open a bottle. It’s the same for everyone we know. It is not uncommon for people to speak about wine bottle openers. A screwpull wine opener, a needle wine opener, and an electric wine opener.

A corkscrew was an invention that came about out of necessity, like so many others. We have been selling wine in glass bottles with cork stoppers for as long as we have sold wine. Consumers have struggled to remove those corks for as long as wine has been sold in glass bottles. Early in the seventeenth century, English inventors began dreaming up methods of removing corks from glass bottles as soon as they arrived.

In the 1680s, the first reference to a corkscrew was noted. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, gunsmiths manufactured crude cleaning tools (gun worms) to clean musket barrels. In the following 300 years, the patent system would produce hundreds of patents, with dozens of improvements made to these first corkscrew adaptions. Here are a few of the most significant advances over the years.

Types of Wine Openers

• Waiter’s Corkscrews / Wine Key - Besides being at the top of the list for affordability, compact size, and feasibility, they are also considered the oldest method of opening a wine bottle.
• Wing Corkscrews - Wing corkscrews are popular for removing synthetic corks, as they are easy to use. The drawback is that wing corkscrews do not work well with vintage wine or wines with natural corks that tend to crumble. This corkscrew’s small size and easy-to-use design make it perfect for use by waiters at the front of the house.
• Counter Mount Corkscrews - The counter mount corkscrew has the advantage of being able to be attached to a table or counter for stability and support. It can open bottles faster and with less effort than most other types of the corkscrew.
• Wine Cork Extractors - An extractor for wine corks contains prongs designed to slide between the wine bottle and cork so that they can be removed.
• Pocket Corkscrews - The small pocket corkscrews make them ideal to carry in an apron or pants pocket. The corkscrew worm of many pocket corkscrews comes with a sheath to prevent it from poking through the fabric. Additionally, this sheath also provides leverage to enable the worm to rotate into the cork and be removed from the cork using a “T” shaped crossbar.
• Electric Corkscrews - This corkscrew helps you open wine in a matter of seconds using its simple push button feature. It is great for use behind the bar or back of the house where you need to open wine quickly.
• Lever Corkscrews - A lever corkscrew requires only two motions: a forward motion that inserts the worm into the cork, and a reverse motion that simultaneously removes the cork. The handle of the lever corkscrew allows the user to have a great deal of control over the bottle while it is being used, which is very beneficial.
• Wall Mount Corkscrews - A wall mount corkscrew can be set for a different penetration depth. The method can be used at banquet room functions where wine will be placed on tables before the event kicks off and part of the cork can be extracted.
• Continuous Pull Corkscrews - A continuous pull corkscrew works by driving the worm into the cork with a twisting motion. They are designed for use by bartenders and servers at the front of the house due to their small size and easy handling.

Things To Consider Before Buying Wine Openers

The Price

If you have a high-volume wine operation, you should consider the more expensive corkscrews such as the wall mount, counter mount, and electric corkscrew in order to have an easy time opening many bottles simultaneously, therefore, recouping your cost. Small establishments or those with staff trained in removing wine corks may opt for a corkscrew in the waiter’s pocket.

Type of Opener

Cork (opener) is classified into two: synthetic and natural.

1. Natural corks - These corks have a brittle texture and are more difficult to remove than those made of synthetic materials.
2. Synthetic corks - This type of cork requires more effort to twist the worm into the cork because it is denser than natural corks.

Ease of Use

If you have a difficult time using a corkscrew, you might end up with cork crumbs in your wine, broken corks, or you may not be able to remove the cork at all. As a result, many large operations have moved to counter mount, wall mount, or electric corkscrews as these styles make cork removal incredibly simple.

Now that we already have our knowledge with wine openers, we have compiled you list of the best of the best. Below are our top picks.