The Durand Corkscrew

The ultimate vintage wine collector’s corkscrew. This genius tool will save the day when you encounter an old, crumbling cork!

From the maker -
Why Use It?
Corks that are more than 30 years old often have begun to disintegrate, and usually it’s the bottom of the cork (the part in contact with the wine) that goes first. Using any conventional corkscrew (waiter’s friend, Screwpull, Ah-So, etc.) on a disintegrated cork will, 9 times out of 10, not get that bottom part, which will crumble into the wine.

If you have a sieve, some cheesecloth, a coffee filter or a paper towel (as we once observed to our horror), you can filter out the detritus. But everything you’ve just inflicted on the wine is sure to diminish it.

How It Works
The Durand consists of two parts which, when used correctly and in tandem, will get out even the most uncooperative old cork. The first part of The Durand—an old-fashioned screw—is inserted all the way through the cork. The second part is a set of two blades that resembles an Ah-So. It is inserted perpendicular to the screw, with the blades going down the sides of the cork (between the cork and glass). Its purpose is to separate the cork from the glass, while the screw holds the cork together.
Extraction is simple. The screw is inserted. And then the blades go in. Once in, they form a cross and lock themselves together. You then gently and carefully pull while turning the entire device counterclockwise until the cork comes out in one piece.