How to Open a Champagne Bottle Neatly

Happy New Years! Celebrate the yearly shift or any major occasion by popping some bubbly with your closest friends and family. Before opening a champagne bottle, take a few precautions to ensure that the champagne experience is safe, neat and enjoyable.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Dish towels
• Long-stemmed champagne glasses

1. Remove the bottle from the refrigerator or the cooler and wipe it down with dish towels to make sure it doesn't slip out of your hands.
2. Tilt the champagne bottle away from your eyes and away from all the other guests in the room. If the cork does happen to jettison out of your hands, you don't want it to hit anyone.
3. Untwist the foil top of the champagne bottle and dispose. Be careful to keep the bottle tilted even when undoing the wrappers in case the contents are carbonated more than normal.
4. Keep the bottle steady. Hold the champagne bottle by the bottom in your left hand (if you are right-handed).
5. Place a towel over the cork and grip the covered cork of the champagne bottle with your right hand.
6. Twist the bottle (not the cork) slowly and firmly. Twisting the cork is a common misconception. Continue twisting while gripping the cork until you feel the pressure of the carbonation destabilize the cork. Keep the towel wrapped over as you completely loosen the cork. If the bottle is well chilled, the champagne cork will remain relatively quiet and the champagne will not bubble over.

Tips & Warnings

• Always open a champagne bottle with care. Try to keep it in a static position before opening so as not to unsettle the contents.

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