The 14 Best Wine Bottle Openers, According to Pros - Buy Side from WSJ

Sidestep crumbled corks and hand strain with these quality picks

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Written by

Contributor, Buy Side from WSJ

Hannah Selinger is a contributor to Buy Side from WSJ.

Updated October 16, 2024, 6:31 PM EDT

$10 $9

$34

$38

$160

$365

$8 $7

$145

$30

$29

$149

$220

$130

$89

$23

Maybe you didn’t spend a lot of time mulling which wine opener to buy in the past, yet there are many differences. An opener designed for young bottles, for instance, may not be appropriate for wines with older corks. Wine openers are also about personal preference: levers, wings, single-hinge, double-hinge, electric, gift-worthy and on and on.

To help narrow down the choices in a sea of openers, we talked corkscrews — and more — with a panel of experts. From the best openers for old bottles to the best for everyday use, these are the picks our sommeliers, beverage directors and restaurant owners recommended for every possible scenario, whether you’re shopping for yourself or for a gift.

$9 at Amazon

$10 save $1

For an everyday corkscrew that works for both restaurant use and at-home bottles, Randy Forrester, owner of Portland, Maine’s Radici, uses the Pulltap’s Double-Hinged Waiter’s Corkscrew. “It’s well-made, durable and, most important, it works so well and is very user-friendly.” Pulltap’s double-hinge extracts corks seamlessly, and the serrated knife blade on the edge of the opener helps to cut the foil from the bottle top.

$34 at Hart and Cru

Laura Staley, wine director at Row 34 in Boston, acquired her first Cartallier Deluc wine opener 15 years ago as a gift from a master sommelier. “It’s the only corkscrew I’ve used ever since,” she says. The wine opener’s slim design is a rarity in the wine world, and fits into smaller pockets with ease. The opener also has an extra-long worm — the “screw” part of the corkscrew — making it particularly handy with challenging corks. Although the Cartailler Deluc is a single-hinge opener, which can take some more practice than some of the double-hinged corkscrews that swiftly maneuver the cork from the bottle, Staley maintains that this is the best tool for the job. “There are lots of electric, vacuum, fancier options,” she says. “But I think if you can learn to use a simple waiter’s key, you’ll save yourself a lot of money and headache.”

$38 at Amazon

When it comes to professional use—in restaurants and high-impact situations—Eylül Candan, food and beverage manager for Susona Bodrum, LXR Hotels & Resorts in Bodrum, Turkey, prefers the Zwilling Henckels Sommelier Accessories Classic Waiter’s Corkscrew. The opener, Candan says, is easy-to-fold and combines three functions in one: foil-cutter, corkscrew and bottle-opener. The worm is covered in a nonstick coating to help with all kinds of corks.

$160 at Amazon

“I love the simplicity of this corkscrew, which ensures a smooth open with minimal fuss,” says Giovanni Tallu, head sommelier for Beaverbrook and Beaverbrook Town House in Surrey and London, England, respectively. The L’Atelier du Vin Oeno Motion Corkscrew, a classically designed opener, is the only one he trusts when presenting Petrus — one of the world’s priciest bottles of wine — to guests. “When serving such an expensive bottle of wine, I need a corkscrew that I can rely on for a smooth opening,” Tallu says. The easy mechanism — the jaw grips the bottle’s neck, the lever pulls back and the cork is extracted—prevents any accidents or expensive mishaps. It helps, too, that it’s beautiful to look at, with a wood and chrome finish.

$365 at Code38

When it comes to reliability, Madeline Jimerson, master sommelier and wine director at Casa Tua in Aspen, Colo., recommends the Code38 Wine Key. “It is easy to use and reliable, even on the toughest of corks,” she says. “Its compact size allows you to use all of its features with just one hand.” The Code38 is specifically weighted to work well in the hand, and the design ensures that even those with smaller hands can flip open the corkscrew and knife blade with a single-hand maneuver. “One of my favorite features of the Code38 is its stainless steel blade that gives you an ultraprecise foil cut.” It’s worth the price, she notes, if you crave efficiency, durability and a piece that can go the distance.

$7 at Amazon

$8 save $1

$10 at Walmart

Oenophiles looking to personalize their wine openers may appreciate the Truetap Soft Touch Double Hinged Corkscrew, says Alyssa Mikiko DiPasquale, owner of The Koji Club in Brighton, Mass. “We have them personalized to say ‘Drink Sake Instead,’ for when we gift them to our beverage friends.” DiPasquale is also a fan of the opener’s signature soft touch, which, she says, makes it a pleasure to use on an everyday basis. “This particular wine key has a handle that is so soft to touch that it makes using it every day a moment to look forward to.” It’s worth noting that, apart from the soft grip, the Truetap Soft Touch is pretty much identical to the Pulltap’s.

$145 at Amazon

Persnickety old bottles with crumbly corks require a little extra care. The Durand, says Jimerson, is the perfect opener for bottles that may have drier or more delicate corks. The opener’s two-piece mechanism first coils a corkscrew into the cork. A secondary metal piece, which places pressure against the edges of the neck of the bottle, provides cork extraction without ancillary breakage. “It gives me peace-of-mind when opening any bottle with a fragile cork, knowing I’ll be able to extract it easily and in one piece,” Jimerson says of this opener.

$30 at Wine Enthusiast

Although he doesn’t consider it an everyday wine opener, Forrester likes the L’Atelier du Vin Bilame Twin-Blade Corkscrew for specific types of bottles. “I would heavily recommend it for the older vintages of corks that may have suffered some damage and oxidation,” he says. The opener, which wedges itself between the cork and the sides of the bottle, uses pressure to slowly turn the cork upward toward the surface, in what Forrester refers to as an “old-world opening style.” One of the advantages of this particular opener, he says, is that it does not damage the cork, meaning the user can reseal the bottle afterward.

$29 at Amazon

$40 at Cusinart

Blackwell-Calvert recommends the Cuisinart CWO-25 Electric Wine Opener from Cuisinart to those who prefer electric over analog. A sleek design, she says, is just one of the great parts of this functional opener, which also includes a foil cutter. “The down-button winds the internal corkscrew inside of the cork, while the up-button removes the cork from the bottle.” She describes the Cuisinart as the “easiest electric instrument to open wine,” and good for younger wines, and on both natural and synthetic corks.

$149 at Coravin

$149 at Amazon

The Coravin Pivot is a wine opener for wine that is already open. Open a bottle with a traditional wine opener, replace the cork with a Coravin stopper and insert the Coravin device, which pumps argon gas into the bottle, preserving it for up to four weeks (the gas prevents oxygen from ruining the wine). Wine can then be poured directly from the bottle, one glass at a time. The Pivot, says DiPasquale, is useful for both wine and sake. “I recommend the Coravin Pivot to preserve the freshness of your sake for as long as possible,” she says.

$220 at Amazon

“Laguiole is best known for its tableware, but they know their way around a corkscrew,” Forrester says. For those in search of a bespoke gift, he suggests looking toward the brand’s upscale arm of wine openers, including the Grand Cru Series Stainless Steel Sommelier Corkscrew with Oak Barrel Handle, a French piece made from old oak barrels. “It’s beautiful sitting atop your bar and feels great in your hand,” he says. If your budget is on the higher side, and your giftee includes a selective wine lover, this item should be toward the top.

$130 at Artemest

“The Saladini,” says Gabriele Del Carlo, sommelier director at Le Royal Monceau — Raffles Paris, “represents the Italian Dolce Vita for me.” Del Carlo appreciates the Italian craftsmanship of this Coltelleria Saladini corkscrew, a stainless steel piece made with an ox-horn handle. Master knife makers based in Florence, Coltelleria Saladini brings expertise and precision to the table with this piece of art, which could easily become a family heirloom.

$89 at WebstaurantStore

$95 at Amazon

Equipped with a special double-lever system, the Pulltex Brucart allows users to open a bottle in two stages without breaking or damaging a cork. “It is a real jewel for wine-enthusiasts and collectors,” says Candan, who appreciates its “exclusive design.” A metric scale attached to the opener prevents the auger from passing out of the cork, so the cork comes out in one piece.

$23 at OXO

$23 at Amazon

This still-lightweight opener is a great alternative for those who prefer a winged device, says Blackwell-Calvert. The knob of the Oxo Good Grips Winged Corkscrew with Removable Foil Cutter is easy-to-turn, the wings are comfortable in the hand and the worm lines itself up with the cork’s center every time. It is, she says, a “great instrument for beginners,” with a foil-cutter that does good work of scoring the seal. It’s a solid choice if you’re looking to add a workhorse tool to your kitchen and wine cellar arsenal.

Hannah Selinger is a contributor to Buy Side from WSJ.

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The 14 Best Wine Bottle Openers, According to Pros - Buy Side from WSJ