> FIVE GADGETS TO IMPRESS
Sparkling wine stopper
We’d probably all consume far more Champagne if we could reseal the open bottle without it going flat. This clever contraption cracks the conundrum. Just pop it in, latch it down and that bottle of sparkling will stay fizzy for days. Give this gift and what you’re really giving is the gift of freedom to enjoy a glass of bubbly.
Sparking wine stopper, $11.99. Available at Amazon. ca. Different versions available at Kitchen Stuff Plus, Hudson’s Bay and Bed Bath and Beyond.
Drop stop pour discs
The annoying thing about wine bottle drips is the stains on the tablecloth and rings on the hardwood. Roll up one of these silver discs, slip it on the bottleneck and voila — instant spout that doesn’t drip. Theses discs are handy and reusable.
Drop stop pour discs, $15.99. Available at Amazon. ca and Rosehill Wine Cellars.
Sparkling wine opener
The mushroom-shaped corks you pull from sparkling wine bottles return to their original cylindrical shape in time. The extreme compression keeps the pressurized contents safely sealed. But it also makes these corks tough to extract. This device allows you to remove the cork with remarkable ease. Clutch, twist and presto; the cork slips out with almost no exertion.
Swift Turn Champagne Opener, $12.99. Available at Amazon. com and Rosehill Wine Cellars.
Foil cutter
You know that magic moment when you try to cut the plastic or foil capsule off a bottle of wine, but the corkscrew’s knife is duller than a bad wedding speech? This foil cutter makes the task almost fun. Place it over the top of the bottle, squeeze and turn, and it instantly removes a perfect cap to reveal the cork.
Le Creuset foil cutter, $16.33. Available at Amazon.ca and Le Creuset stores. Other brands available at BestBuy and Kitchen Stuff Plus.
Coravin
Coravin is a hand-held device that removes any amount of wine from a bottle without uncorking it while preserving the remaining contents. It does so by slipping a thin needle through the bottle’s capsule and cork to extract the wine, replacing it with inert argon gas. Remove the needle and the cork reseals itself, leaving only a pinhole in the capsule, Coravin wine system, $400. Available at wineclub.southbrook.com.