How to Remove a Wine Cork Without Tools

Introduction

There are several ways to remove a cork from a bottle of wine without a corkscrew, however, most of them require other tools. Should you find yourself in a situation where you don't have any implements at your disposal, there is still a way to open a bottle of wine, but it requires a little free time and some perseverance.

By: Soren

Length: 0:29

Comments: 12

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Instructions

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Difficulty: Moderate

Tips & Warnings:

This trick may not work on some cork-substitute materials many vineyards use. It is most ideal for actual cork.
Opening a bottle of wine this way takes a considerable amount of patience. Stick with it and eventually you will see the cork start to move.
Check every once in awhile to be sure that you aren't damaging the wall.
The wine will froth and bubble after repeated hits. You may want to let it settle for a few minutes after you finally open it.
Performing this trick could cause the wine bottle to crack or shatter. Always turn your head away from the bottle while striking it against the wall.
Be sure the cloth you use to cushion the blow is thick enough to fulfill its purpose. You may have to double it up if it is too thin.

Step1

Remove any covering over the cork. Most wine bottles will have an aluminum or plastic cover over the mouth and neck. If you don't have anything sharp that can tear the cover, you can eventually work it open using just your fingernails.

Step2

Wrap the base of the wine bottle in the towel. The towel is only there to preserve the surface you'll be striking.

Step3

Find a solid wall or other vertical surface on which you can pound a wine bottle over and over. Wood cabinets and dry wall are not the best options. The most ideal surfaces are brick or cinder block. In fact, it's entirely possible this trick was invented in prison.

Step4

Strike the bottom of the bottle against the wall rhythmically. It will take awhile for anything to happen, but if you find the right rhythm, the pressure of the liquid slamming against the cork will cause it to gradually move.

Step5

Once the tip of the cork protrudes from the bottle, bite it with your teeth and pull.

Comments

Elfenaura said

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on 1/14/2008 Interesting. Gee - it sounds like an experiment needs to be done to see if the wine 'suffers' from this beating. I'm willing to be a guinea pig. I'll get two identical bottles of wine, open one this way and use a corkscrew on the other. Then I'll try glasses of both to see if there's a difference. It may take several glasses of wine to adequately perform this experiment - and maybe more bottles of wine. Hmmm. Sounds like a party to me.

JoeRivera said

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on 1/9/2008 This is a bind I have definitely found myself in and with no way except to push the cork into the bottle. But for that you still need a knife or something.Thanks to you if I ever find myself with a bottle of wine and no corkscrew..I'll know exactly what to do.

Keyguy242 said

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on 12/31/2007 Ive often resorted to trying to smash the top off. This leaves glass in your gut.

mhhx said

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on 12/31/2007 Surprising method. Seems to work very well. But: never do this with really good wine. Never.

bmi57 said

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on 12/30/2007 I have never heard of this before. I have had broken cork in my wine bottle before because of not haveing a cork screw, I will have to try this just to see it work. Thanks.

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