Grahams Corkscrew

Old Port bottles have a habit of hiding a surprise in the cork — long, dry and prone to crumbling into pieces if you go at it with an ordinary corkscrew. Graham's Port Corkscrew is built for exactly that problem.

Expert's Description

Graham's Port Corkscrew is an accessory designed specifically to open Port bottles with long, fragile corks, without the cork breaking or crumbling into the wine.

Port is often aged for many years, both in cask and in bottle, and the cork in an older bottle of Port gradually dries out and becomes brittle. An ordinary corkscrew with a spiral worm risks boring straight through such a cork and pushing pieces of it down into the wine — particularly unfortunate if the bottle is being decanted in front of guests. A Port corkscrew is therefore built to grip the cork from the outside rather than drilling into it, so it can be drawn out in one motion.

The tradition of specialised tools for Port bottles goes back a long way: historically, red-hot tongs were even used, heated and clamped around the bottle's neck to cleanly crack the glass, precisely because very old corks were too fragile to be pulled out. Today's Port corkscrews are a far gentler solution for the ordinary bottle of Port.

Specifications

Name: Graham's Port Corkscrew
Producer: Graham's
Type: Accessory – Port bottle corkscrew
Use: Opening Port bottles with long, fragile corks

Did You Know?

Before modern corkscrews existed, red-hot tongs were used to open particularly old bottles of Port — the tongs were heated over a flame and clamped around the neck of the bottle, so the glass snapped cleanly off instead of risking a mangled, ancient cork.

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Frequently Asked Questions about Graham's Port Corkscrew

Why can't I just use an ordinary corkscrew for Port?

An ordinary corkscrew with a spiral worm can easily bore through an old, brittle Port cork and push pieces down into the wine. A Port corkscrew instead grips the cork from the outside.

How do I use a Port corkscrew?

The tool is positioned around the cork and pulls it straight up, without boring into the cork itself, so it comes out in one piece.

Does the corkscrew fit all Port bottles?

It's designed for standard Port bottles with a long cork, which is the most common type on the market.

Is a Port corkscrew durable?

Yes, it's a simple mechanical tool with no moving parts prone to wear, so it can be used again and again with proper storage.

Do I still need to decant the Port if I use the corkscrew?

Yes, the corkscrew only solves the opening of the bottle — older Ports with sediment should still be decanted separately.