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It’s Thanksgiving. You’ve just picked up a bottle of wine for an after-dinner toast with your family and friends. But you don’t know anything about wine box – what sorts are available, how to choose one, or even how to open it! So before you head out to buy any bottles, here are some helpful tips that will turn you into a wine-snob in no time!
On this page, we’ll explore all aspects of what makes a good wine box – from color coordination to content diversity to the wines themselves. But first, let’s address the most pressing question: how do we open this darned thing?
Wine Box and Cork: What You Need to Know Before Picking One Up
We all know about the old switcharoo: you remove the wire from around the cork, put it back through the hole, and presto – cork is sealed tight! This trick does often work, but why risk it? Save yourself time and frustration (and wine!) by reading these few tips first.
A waiter’s corkscrew or a ‘waiter’s friend’ are both great choices for handling wine boxes. They’re compact, easy to use, and are designed to fit in your pocket so that you’ll always have one handy when you need it. There are also two different types of lever mechanisms that can be used to open the box – the ‘winged’ type that works with the base of the barrel, and the ‘wingless’ type that works with its mouth. Either will do – your choice comes down to personal taste rather than effectiveness. These corkscrews can be bought online or at any wine shop for less than ten dollars apiece .
Another option is the traditional corkscrew, which uses a worm-like screw to remove the cork. This style of corkscrew works by putting the screw at an angle over the cork, which will eventually bore through it if you apply enough pressure. It’s cumbersome to use, but if you are only opening one box, it could be worth it.
for less than ten dollars apiece One way to avoid peeling or breaking any cork is to simply cut it with a knife before removing it completely . Wrap your fingers around the barrel of the bottle and twist the wine box to one side – this should separate the cork from its plug tightly enough that cutting will be unnecessary.
Wrap your fingers around the barrel of the bottle and twist the wine box to one side – this should separate the cork from its plug tightly enough that cutting will be unnecessary. Another option: if you like to save corks, make sure you get a good knife after you’ve extracted it. This will make carving out a hole in the cork much easier!
Now we know how to open our wine box, but how do we go about choosing one? Here are some important details that set various types apart from each other.
The World of Wine Boxes
Not all wine boxes are created equal! Below we explore the many different types and how they stack up.
The Single Bottle –
This is the classic bottle-in-a-box, and is by far the most common type these days. These usually come with a foil cap (to replace the cork) and a wire cage that holds the bottle in place. The disadvantages of this kind are that it’s not resealable (if you don’t finish it) and that there’s no second bottle to go along with it if you like your wine cold right away! However, there is one advantage: you can often find them for less than $10 per box .
This is the classic bottle-in-a-box, and is by far the most common type these days. These usually come with a foil cap (to replace the cork) and a wire cage that holds the bottle in place. The disadvantages of this kind are that it’s not resealable (if you don’t finish it) and that there’s no second bottle to go along with it if you like your wine cold right away! However, there is one advantage: . A Wine Rotation – While the single bottle will hold one wine for its entire existence, some people prefer to rotate out their wines in order to create more unique tasting experiences.
