How to Pour Wine Without Removing the Cork

When I saw the video in which Joe Bastianich was talking about the product I'm about to tell you about, I thought "How did I not think of this myself?"

Classic phrase you say when you see a good, in some ways "simple" idea, you'll tell me; well this time it's not quite like that, and to prove it I'll take a brief step back in time by sharing an anecdote from my childhood.

When I was a young boy, my father used to tell me that often, at my grandmother's – the village midwife – people would give food or other products like wine in exchange for home assistance (yes, back then babies were born at home!); with three sons in the house (and one daughter), things often didn't last because in grandmother's absence, the boys would throw parties with everything available.

To keep their mother from noticing the wine "theft" in particular, they acted like this: they bypassed the small locked door by removing the drawer above it and "fishing out the wine," then they would pierce the cork with syringes – always present in the house for obvious reasons – and pour the contents into glasses. When grandmother eventually noticed the missing wine, her reaction was like something out of a comedy: "It evaporated, it's been there so long, you know how alcohol is like that."

The birth of an idea

The Coravin is a device that, however complex, shares with this amusing little story a part of its operating principle (not that my father and uncles cared about preserving the wine! Drinking it was enough!!!); but let's start from the beginning.

Greg Lambrecht, an executive and inventor of medical devices with a background in physics, mechanical engineering and nuclear energy (in short, not a boy who stole wine from his mother!) and above all a wine enthusiast, invented this device.

Every worthy innovation is made to solve a problem, to meet a need, to improve current living conditions – and as hard as many of you may find it to believe, Greg had the same need as simple winelovers like us:

"I learned to appreciate wine in my youth and from there my collection came to life, which during my wife's pregnancy began gathering dust. I wanted to keep enjoying great wines, but I didn't want to waste bottles. I consider wine a meditative drink, something you must contemplate and learn to know. I wanted to taste three or four different bottles, but I didn't feel like opening four bottles in a single evening. I tried various preservation systems, but none of them allowed me to drink what I wanted, when I wanted, without sacrifice. Regardless of the preservation method, every time I uncorked a bottle I knew oxidation would begin, so I felt tied to that bottle. I dreamed of being able to pour wine from bottles without removing the cork."

Unlike many others, though, Greg is a tenacious sort and decided to solve the problem himself, dedicating ten years of study to it: he would use a "non-coring" needle so as not to damage the cork.

The evolution and success

Now Greg can drink any wine whenever he wants, in the desired quantity, without uncorking it, so he can put it back in the cellar and even study how it evolves over the years.

Thanks also to Josh Makower, a successful entrepreneur, Greg's friend and co-founder of Coravin, and to Nick Lazaris whom they hired, today anyone can purchase this device, including wine bars and wine shops.

Meeting a need, an appealing design, and an interested market: Coravin is a success story.

No more saving it for special occasions – simply everything will be driven by the desire to try wines without any inhibition. The business model proves to be a winning one: needle kits and Argon capsules (29 euros for three pieces) are also sold to fill the void left by the extracted product, creating the need to repurchase "consumables"; in short, a constant revenue stream that doesn't stop at the purchase and distribution of the device – a bit like Gilette razor blades!

The cost is not excessive, so as to ensure widespread adoption (around 300 dollars).

It does not work with silicone or screw-top closures – and romantics will be glad of it.

The skeptics

A few clarifications for the skeptics:

- the needle is extremely thin, so the cork from the "hole" does not end up in the wine and no argon will leak out (like the principle behind injections!);

- Argon is a noble gas, therefore inert – it does not interact chemically with other substances; consequently it does not affect the taste;

- It is not necessary to remove the capsule.

Coravin is already available in Italy, purchasable online along with its accessories.

We haven't tried it yet; but I believe we won't wait long to evaluate it; for those who'd like to, the website offers the ability to check not only local retailers, but also the bars and wine shops that use the device.

The image is taken from the official Coravin website.