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Simply Wine
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Gifts For Wine Lovers UK...
We're still site building - but
here's a taste of what's to come...
A good corkscrew is taken for granted – like most things that work
quickly and easily. But when we can’t pull a cork out because the
corkscrew won’t work, the focus moves from the wine to the cork and a
moment of pleasure can become several moments of frustration!
Historians
believe that the corkscrew developed from barrel taps in the 1400s with
some of the earliest models being made by arms manufacturers who were
used to working with metal. Some say that the corkscrew was a natural
development of the twisted spiral of metal that as used to remove lead
balls that were stuck in cannons and other early guns. Blacksmiths and
other craftsmen also became involved as demand for corkscrew grew.
Corkscrews are now collected by “pomelkophiles” – from the Greek “poma”
= cork, “elkein”= to pull, and “philo”= to love. And the number
available is staggering, in many different designs, hundreds of which
have been patented since the first design was registered in 1795.
The plainest design is just a screw with a handle on top – the simple
corkscrew as it is known. Over the years the materials have changed as
stronger steels have replaced iron, and handles have tended to move
away from wood for greater strength.
As soon as a mechanism is added, not surprisingly, it becomes a
mechanical corkscrew, and the number of different designs is staggering.
Winged and lever corkscrews are very popular with the advantage of
leverage to help remove the cork and the little portable corkscrew
should not be forgotten. It can be folded up and tucked in a pocket, or
case for travelling.
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