From time to time I receive wine related products (mostly books mostly) for review.  Tim Edison of Wine Turtle  (where I was included in last year’s 103 Wine Blogs You Can’t Miss) reached out to me and offered me the opportunity to sample the  Vinomaster Wine Bottle Lever Screwpull.

As a wine lover I’ve used a variety of devices to open bottles of wines over the years.

I started with tried, tested and found true two-prong Ah-so cork puller (a.k.a Butler’s thief). It works well, especially with sensitive and broken corks, but it requires a moderate amount of muscle to use. 

Then I moved tried the (inexpensive) Waiter’s friend corkscrews.  They work well (though you generally get what you pay for up to a point IMO), and require less effort that an Ah-so. They are also the most portable, but do require a moderate amount of skill to use. Plus, I dig the ritual of using it. 

Then I moved on to the wing corkscrew (you know the ones with the meme that look like they’re exercising).  Meh…even though it required slightly less effort to open the a waiter’s friend corkscrew,  and require less skill, they have an annoying habit of shredding cork. I don’t care for them one bit.

Then I tried an electric corkscrew (This seems to be a popular and ubiquitous gift once your loved ones find out you “into” wine)

The most recent wine opener I’ve tried is the Vinomaster Wine Bottle Lever Screwpull (SRP; $28 at Amazon).

It’s presented in a sleek 3-Piece (the Vinomaster, a foil-cutter and an extra teflon coated spiral worm) buckle box.

After trying it over the course of a few  months, here’s what I think:

Pros:

• It removes corks quickly with minimal effort
• Fantastic tool for opening up multiple bottles
• The foil-cutter is first class and works well
• I dig the box it’s presented in. Not only does it look cool, it makes it pretty transportable.
• This is a great wine opener for beginners
• More durable that an electric opener or wing corkscrew

Cons:

• If you keep it in a drawer, it will take up a fair amount of space (I keep mine in a cabinet near my wine cellar)
• It’s doesn’t work as well as a waiter’s corkscrew for synthetic corks
• The worm will need to be replaced periodically for optimal performance

After years of trying different wine openers, I still tend to use a waiter’s corkscrew for single bottles, primarily because I enjoy the ritual.  And I use an Ah-so for sensitive or broken corks. But the Vinomaster is also among my favorites.  It’s an efficient and easy to use wine-opening machine!  I appreciate it most when opening multiple bottles at our wine-tasting club events.

I use all three…depending on the situation, and my mood.  Cheers!

Product sample received for review. Opinions are my own

_________________________________________________________________________

Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Vivino and Delectable, for all things wine. As a wino with latent foodie tendencies, you’ll also find food and wine pairings, and food related stuff! Become a fan and join ENOFYLZ Wine Blog on Facebook. Cheers! This article is original to ENOFYLZ Wine Blog.com. Copyright 2016 ENOFYLZ Wine Blog. All rights reserved.