Here are 10 criteria on our test evaluation:
1. Is the corkscrew "ready to go" or does it require some "prep" work?
Most corkscrews are ready to go. Lever Models, such as the Screwpull, the Screwpull Elegance, and the Rabbit, and the bar-mounted Rogars require that you hold the gripping handles together and then lift the lever up and over the unit, to move the spiral into a "raised" position Torque type corkscrews with frames such as the Monopols also need some "prep" work. The reason is that, in advance, you need to position the tip of the worm at the bottom of the frame, so that the frame can help you guide the worm into the cork. Opening two or three bottles is usually all it takes to get the hang of it.
2. Does the corkscrew help you guide the spiral into the center of the cork?
A spiral that is not in the center of the cork or has been inserted at an angle is probably the most common cause of shredded corks or broken spirals. To prevent this, many corkscrews (Screwpull Roll, Vacuvin WineMaster, Brabantias, Screwpull Classic Corkscrew, Screwpull Trilogy Gift Set, Screwpull Table Model, Screwpull Trilogy Table Model, Screwpull Trilogy Travel Gift Set, Screwpull Pocket Corkscrew, several Monopols, Metal and Plastic WAFs, a) have a frame that sits on the neck of the bottle and helps you guide the spiral screw into the center of the cork. Because of their gripping handles, contemporary Lever models (Rabbit, Screwpulls, SwiftPulls) and the bar-mounted Rogars are excellent. The Cedon, Dion, and Zeus Uncorking Machines have cylindrical guides to help center the spiral. With Waiters Corkscrews (Laguioles and other waiters), after inserting the spira in the cork, position the boot lever as far away from the spiral as you can. The multi-lever Zig-Zag does not offer much centering help and has to be positioned carefully.
3. How much force is required to pull the cork out? What mechanisim is used to assist this process?
It may take over 100 pounds of pull to extract a cork out, even more if the cork is synthetic, or even somewhat oversized for the bottle neck. Virtually all corkscrews other than the very simple T-Type straight-pulls provide some assistance to reduce the amount of force you have to apply. All of these corkscrews can reduce the force required by anywhere from a factor of 4 to 10. Here are some mechanical types, and examples of each.
SIMPLE LEVER: The waiter's corkscrews (Forge de Laguioles, Chateau Laguioles, Pulltaps, Boomerang II, and other waiters).
SIMPLE LEVER + GRIPPING HANDLES:The Rabbit, Screwpull Lever models, and SwiftPull lever model corkscrews utilize a single lever, plus 2 gripping handles to hold the bottle. The Monopol Double Lever, or winged corkscrew, consists of 2 levers.
COMPOUND LEVER: The contemporary Pisces and the French Zig-Zag's compound lever systems have the most levers of all!
TORQUE, the mechanism that translates a single-direction turn of a handle into vertical movement: The Monopol Bacchus, the Monopol Barolo, the Monopol Secco, the Sieger 600 and many of the small Screwpulls fall into this category.These corkscrews take a few seconds longer to pull the cork out, but require the least amount of force of the simple mechanical corkscrews..
The small T-shaped pocket models such as the Monopol Pocket corkscrew are most difficult in this respect because of the tiny crossbar handle that makes it difficult to get a good grip. The corkscrew-knife combinations are better, because of their larger handles.
4. Is it easy to grip the bottle while operating the mechanism that pulls the cork out of the bottle?
Unique in this respect, the Vacuvin WineMaster is equipped with a bottle grip that locks the corkscrew onto the bottle, leaving both hands free for easy use.The Rabbit, the SwiftPulls, and Screwpull Lever models and the Rogars all have bottle-grip handles. The Monopol Double Lever is slightly awkward because it requires both hands to pull the levers up; hence you can't be holding the bottle while extracting the cork. All others are very good.
5. How difficult is it to eject the cork from the spiral?
The Rabbit, Screwpull Lever models, SwiftPulls and the Rogars are terrific -- clasp the gripper handles, then lift the top lever up, over, and back into place to eject the cork. Next best are the Monopol Barolo, Monopol Double Lever, Screwpull Table Model and Zyliss, which have internal flanges on their frames that grip the cork while you turn the crossbar. However, sometimes internal flanges will not bite well enough into synthetic corks to hold them in place so you may have to hold the cork with your hands. Monopol Bacchus is probably the best in this regard -- the outer spindle holds the cork in place, while you turn the inner spindle pushing the cork out.
6. How long does the whole process take?
If you regularly open lots of wine bottles, you would appreciate the speed and the firmness of the Screwpull Roll, the Screwpull Elegance, and the Deluxe Rabbit. and the Rogar Uncorking Machines. The Screwpull Lever Professional and the SwiftPull are good, too.
7. If there is a built-in foil cutter, how effective is it?
With one exception, built-in foil-cutters on most inexpensive corkscrews can not be relied on in heavy use. The exception is the Boomerang, and Boomerang II,which has a four disc built-in cutter that works almost as well as separate foil-cutters costing as much as the Boomerang itself. Foil-cutters on the Laguioles are very good. With most other corkscrews, we recommend that you get a separate foil-cutter.
8. Does the spiral penetrate the cork bottom?
If the cork is brittle, a spiral penetrating the bottom of the cork might leave annoying bits of cork in the bottle. Fortunately, most contemporary corkscrews have such a strong, fine point spiral that they can pierce most corks without crumbling them. The Monopol Barolo and Bacchus are designed such that, unless the cork is really short, the spiral does not penetrate the cork bottom
9. Does the corkscrew work well on old bottles with fragile corks or on very dry, hard corks?
The double-pronged Ahh-Supers are often called upon to extract soft corks - the prongs slide down the side of the corks, rather than penetrate it, so the cork stays in tact.
Waiter's corkscrews with fabulous worms, like the Laguioles, can be ffective in the hands of an experienced person. Indeed, these corkscrews allow more fine control over the insertion and extraction processes than more complicated contemporary lever models.
In this regard, the Monopol Bacchus is as good as a corkscrew gets. Its double spindle mechanism ensures that there is no jerky motion when the spiral is being inserted into the cork and you can apply a strong steady force when the cork is being lifted out of the bottle. Especially handy if you are opening a wine in a "wine cradle" - the Bacchus can easily be employed in this "off vertical" position.
10. Does the spiral have a tendency to destroy the cork or to push it into the bottle?
The auger type spirals - essentially, "nails" with flanging - can easily destroy or push dry corks into bottles. We neither recommend nor sell such corkscrews.
Although our testing can not be characterized as being a rigorous scientific test, it does weed out many poorly designed corkscrews that have been sent to us over the years by various manufacturers. You can be confident that any corkscrew you buy from Corkscrew.Com has done very well in our tests. Obviously, pocket corkscrews such as the Monopol Pocket do not pass all our tests. But they are meant to be convenient take-alongs rather than substitutes for a standard household or "elegant dining"corkscrew.
NOTE: Remove Foil and/or Wax Seal before using ANY corkscrew, to maintain sharpness and slickness.
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