I recently misplaced my Durand and while I remain hopeful that it’ll turn up soon, I needed a fix for my older bottles. Purchased an Ah So opener and when I tried it on two bottles (recent vintages, as I was trying to get the hang of it not having used it before), each time I pushed the cork down.
What am I doing wrong?
I find…Young bottles sometimes don’t have their corks stuck in the neck as tightly so you sometimes push them into the bottle. After a time, the corks have “seated”, there is enough resistance, and the Ah So type works great.
We have used a Monopol Ah So for several years and it works very well, even with older bottles. I hope you find your Durand!
Ed
You rocked it back and forth, pushing down through the cork right?
Do you gently wobble or rock the pressure back and forth as you work it down the sides of the cork? If you try to push it straight down it’s more likely to push the cork down.
If you are rocking back and forth, as people are suggesting and the cork slips down, here is the next thing to try: the Ah So usually works down some way before the cork sinks. Lift the cork out a little way, Work the Ah So back down a little, then lift the cork again a little way so that you can grasp it with the thumb and finger of your other hand. That way, you should be able to get the Ah So all the way down. If the cork is really old, though, nothing replaces the Durand because when you twist the Ah So to lift the cork out, you may just rip an old cork apart.
an ah-so is terrific for older bottles, a real life saver for me. As others have said, gentle rocking back and forth is the key, slide the tongs gently one side at a time, back and forth.
It’s a skill. You need to practice. I’ve been trying for 28 years and still haven’t figured it out.
If you have an ah so you can make a fake Durand. Not as good as the real thing but almost.
First take a waiters friend and insert the screw at an angle. Then insert the ah so over the screw and use that to extract the cork. Done it many times when no Durand is available.
Nope, haven’t been rocking it. Just gently inserted it. Thanks, I’ll try that.
This works. If you have a Screwpull, the worm piece is an even better supplement to the ah-so.
Here is athe “Durand solution” we use:
I’ll just note than besides the proper technique of rocking it. if you own a “generic ah so” the knockoffs often have thick tines and are awful to use even with the proper technique. Monopol is the only good one. I’ve tried many knock offs and now just toss anything else. They are about $20.
Sounds like a technique issue but you may want to double check the humidity in your cellar.
Using an Ah So? Not buying a second Durand? All of the above?
This is my approach as well. Just need to make sure the corkscrew goes it at an angle, as Jay said, otherwise it gets hard.
Excellent. Thanks.
I’ll try that, thanks
I had been using this technique for years before the Durand came out. And the Monopole is the one to have in your arsenal.