As of: February 19, 2024, 8:00 a.m
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If you don't have a corkscrew on hand, there are other options.
You can also remove corks from wine bottles using screws or lighters.
An unfortunate situation that you wouldn't want to have at a party: the guests are there, you've already been offered wine and then you realize that the corkscrew is missing.
Now you have to act quickly so that the visit doesn't become impatient.
It's an advantage if you know a few household tips with which you can get corks, the clearly more environmentally friendly alternative to metal closures, out of wine bottles, even without a corkscrew.
A screw, lighter or even an air pump can help.
Toolbox: screws, nails and fork, pliers or hammer to remove corks
An alternative way to remove a cork from a wine bottle without a corkscrew is to use your home toolbox.
You take a screw from it and screw it into the cork.
This method is most similar to using a corkscrew.
You can then carefully pull on the screw with a fork or pliers to remove the cork.
If you don't have a corkscrew, you have to get creative.
© imagebroker/Imago
If you don't have screws, you can use some nails instead, which are drilled into the cork at an angle.
You then grab the nail heads with a fork or pliers and pull carefully.
According to
Edeka.de,
you can also use the recess in a hammer head to pull it out and the method also works for removing a broken cork.
Keys not only open locks, but also wine bottles
You can also remove corks, especially synthetic ones, from bottles with a sturdy key.
To do this, push the beard of the key as deep as you can and at an angle into the cork.
It's best to use a towel to help you grab the key more easily and painlessly and use it to carefully lever out the cork.
Lighter: When the air is heated, the cork pops out of the wine bottle by itself
It's called the soldering iron method: removing a cork with the help of a lighter.
A lighter is held against the bottle in such a way that the air under the cork is heated.
Because the air then expands, the cork is pushed out of the bottle.
However,
Weinfreunde.de
points out that the wine also suffers with this method.
Not only is the air heated, but also the drink - which, in case of doubt, can change the taste of the wine.
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Knock the cork out of the bottle: use a shoe or towel as protection
If you don't have any tools to pull the cork out of the bottle, you can also use the wine itself as a tool.
The hitting method involves either tapping the bottom of the bottle with your hand, or hitting the bottom of the bottle on the floor or against a wall.
However, the bottle should be wrapped in a towel or put in a shoe so that it does not break.
You should only use the hitting method until the cork sticks out far enough to be pulled out of the bottle by hand - otherwise the wine risks flying out of the bottle along with the cork.
By the way: Why champagne and wine bottles have a hollow at the bottom.
Air pump: let the cork pop out using excess pressure
A more unconventional method requires a bicycle pump or air pump with a small valve.
The tip of it is drilled into the cork and then you should pump carefully so that air slowly flows into the bottle.
According to Neunweine.de
, the additional pressure that is created in the bottle causes the cork to pop
out of the neck of the bottle by itself.
Incidentally, wine corks can be popular collector's items, as Volker Kullmann proves.
Wooden spoon: Do not remove the cork, but press it into the bottle
Another method that wine connoisseurs will probably turn up their noses at is pushing the cork into the wine bottle.
You can use a wooden spoon or another sturdy, elongated object to push the cork into the bottle so far that it floats in the wine and can be poured out at the same time.
However, a cork in wine changes the taste of the drink.