Wine Toys for Your LovePad
Submitted by SharpMan Editorial Team on Sunday 10th October 2010- The difference between different wine glasses.
- The difference between types of corkscrews.
- Tips for using wine buckets and more!
Now that you’ve read Navigating a Wine List and know a bit more about ordering wine in restaurants, you may be wondering how this information translates to serving wine at home (during a romantic dinner, preferably — see Hobbies That Drive Women Wild: Cooking). The rules for matching wine to food remain basically the same at home as they do in restaurants, so if you’re trying to impress a date, make an effort to match the wine with the meal you’re serving. If you’re truly wild about a particular wine, however, don’t let a set of rules keep you from enjoying your favorite.
In any case, equipping your LovePad with a few tools of the trade for serving and storing wine can make a big difference in presentation and delivery. If you’re just starting out on your "quest for wine," a few essential wine toys should be enough to get you by. As you progress in your connoisseurship, you will probably want to add additional items to your collection. Check out these SharpToys picks for cool wine toys:
Wine Racks
As noted in Navigating a Wine List, soggy corks are quick clue to improper storage. Wine should be stored on its side to help preserve its flavor, making wine racks vital. Store your wine in a wine rack, rather than in the cupboard of your liquor cabinet or kitchen, and place the rack in a cool, dry area with minimal temperature fluctuations.
The type or style of wine rack you purchase, however, shouldn’t affect the wine’s flavor or longevity. Feel free to choose one that suits your taste and the number of bottles for which you require storage. Some racks are simple and classic, some more elaborate and contemporary; some hold only a few bottles, while others hold dozens. It all depends on your own needs. Wine.com offers an appealing selection of wine racks. (For the wine rack selection, and click on "Wineracks and Displays" on the left navigation bar.)
Glasses
Despite popular belief, handing your date a glass of fine wine served in your favorite NFL mug will not convince her to tackle you. Wine should be served in wine glasses. Period.
Why? Wine glasses are specifically designed to complement wine’s unique characteristics. There is a real science to wine glass production. Have you noticed how the sides of a good wine glass always slope inward? That’s to help contain the delicious aroma, which greatly enhances the flavor. Fill your wine glass only partially (never fill a wine glass completely to the top), and give it a swirl to release the bouquet.
Moreover, wine glasses should be clear, allowing the drinker to discern the wine’s color and clarity. Then there’s the stem. Wine glasses should have a stem long enough to fit your manly fingers without having to grasp the glass by the bowl (where the liquid is) — a dead giveaway that you’re a vino amateur. For the truly discerning, crystal is preferable to glass, since crystal is thought to give the wine a little something more to cling to than the smooth sides of a glass vessel. Again, it all goes back to releasing the aroma and enhancing the taste.
In fact, different shapes of wine glasses better suit particular wines. Champagne, for example, is served in a slim "flute" that allows the bubbles to trail upward in an attractive fashion. Burgundy is typically served in a wide glass that broadens the wine’s surface area, bringing out the aroma for which this wine is so well known.
For home use, unless you develop a preference for one particular type of wine, don’t feel obligated to purchase a set of each glass type; a basic, all-purpose glass should suit you well. See Wine.com’s ample selection of quality glasses. (For stemware, and click on "Stemware and Decanters" on the left navigation bar.)
Corkscrews
Obviously, you can’t get to your wine without a corkscrew — thus making it a crucial wine SharpToy. The type of corkscrew required is a question that has haunted wine newbies for years. There are three main varieties: the Waiter’s Friend, the Ah-So, and the Screwpull.
The Waiter’s Friend is an old favorite that, as could be expected, has long been in use in restaurants. It looks like a pocket knife that holds a screw instead of a blade; the screw is inserted into the cork and pulled out.
The Ah-So consists of a handle with two metal or plastic blades that are squeezed down the sides of the cork, allowing the user to remove the cork with a twisting motion.
The Screwpull is a long steel or plastic auger attached to a small handle designed to be turned by the user.
To get up close and personal with any of these styles, check out Wine.com’s well-priced selection of quality corkscrews. (and click on "Corkscrews" on the left navigation bar.)
Sharper Image also offers two corkscrews of a new design that "effortlessly uncork bottles in seconds;" check out the WineMaster Corkscrew ($64.95) and the Rabbit Corkscrew ($79.95)
SharpMan Tip: Many great SharpMen have tried and failed to elegantly remove the most difficult of corks. If you find yourself tangling with one of these, it is a perfectly acceptable final option to discreetly push the cork back inside the bottle. If your painstaking work results in cork pieces floating inside the bottle, excuse yourself to the kitchen and use a fine strainer (with holes smaller than those in a pasta strainer) to separate the cork from the wine. If you have one, use a funnel to replace the wine into the bottle, or pour the wine in the kitchen out of your date’s view.
Whatever corkscrew you choose, under no circumstances should you buy one of those corkscrews from the grocery store that looks like a guy doing jumping jacks. These sad little items hurt, rather than help, your efforts to look suave in front of the ladies.
For more information on the benefits and limitations of the different corkscrews, see Wine.com’s "A No-Nonsense Discussion of Corkscrews."
Ice Buckets
Ice buckets are an elegant way to keep a bottle of wine cool, and can be an impressive addition to any wine toy collection. Before breaking out the ice bucket on your romantic date, however, make sure you’ve learned which wines are meant to be chilled and which aren’t. (For example, reds are generally served at room temperature.) Also, don’t purchase an ice bucket with an attached lid for use with wine bottles, as you’ll have to flip the lid up on the bucket and rest the wine bottle against the lid, which looks silly.
SharpMan Tip: When using an ice bucket, fill the bucket with a combination of ice and cold water rather than ice alone; the water fills the air pockets between pieces of ice, speeding the chilling.
Decanters & Carafes
Imagine pouring your date a glass of wine from an elegant decanter or carafe. Aside from looking exceedingly Sharp, these vessels help red wines "open up" before drinking — ideal for those romantic evenings when you can’t wait for the wine to "breathe." Decanters and carafes come in many different styles and shapes, and like wine racks, they can be chosen based upon the user’s own tastes. Practically any style you choose will enhance your presentation of the vino. Wine.com offers a tasteful selection that’s worth checking out. (To see the cool decanters, and click on "Stemware and Decanters" on the left navigation bar.)
SharpMan Tip: Decanters and carafes aren’t suitable for storing wine, since the seal is too loose to truly be useful. Plan to recork your wine if you’d like to save it for a few days.
Recorkers/Bottle Stoppers
Recorkers and bottle stoppers are handy little items that can be used to temporarily "plug up" the neck of the bottle, allowing you to save opened wine for future use. Even so, keep in mind that after a bottle of wine is opened it should be drunk within a few days, even with recorking. After a week or so, wine enthusiasts suggest you use the wine for cooking only. Wine.com has an impressive selection of stoppers and recorkers, including a Sharp set of contemporary Italian wine tools. (For the cool Italian stuff, and click on "Recorkers" on the navigation bar to the left.)
Wine Preserver
Wine preserver is a safe, pressurized gas meant to protect open bottles of wine from oxidation caused by exposure to air. While wine preserver probably offers some benefits, a few experts feel that its effects fall short. Nonetheless, if you plan to recork opened bottles of wine for future use, give wine preserver a try and find out for yourself; it’s inexpensive enough to be worth a shot, especially when expensive wine is involved. Check out Wine.com’s primo wine preserver for only $9.00.
Wine Carriers
If you’re the outdoorsy type, or you’d prefer to have something a little more substantial than a "kegger" at your next tailgate party, consider investing in an insulated wine carrier. Carriers will transport wine in style while keeping it cool for several hours.
Sharper Image offers reasonably priced wine carriers that will definitely keep you looking like the Sharpest man at the party. Check out the Wine Tote ($39.95) — it includes plastic glasses, a corkscrew, and a vacuum recorker.
Also check out the higher-end executive wine carrier, the Leather Wine Tote ($59.95).
This article last updated on Sunday 10th October 2010