Bubbly

Spotted this on Doug’s Dynamic Drivel:

Well New Years Eve is almost upon us and many of you will be doing the traditional champagne toasts. Please learn the correct way to open a bottle of bubbly.

Yes there is a correct way! As 20 year veteran of bar tending and a former wine salesman I have opened thousands of bottles of bubbly and it annoys me to no end to see people do it wrong. Basic points if you’re too lazy to follow the link

1. chill the wine thoroughly. This puts the CO2 into suspension in the wine instead of sitting under pressure just below the cork and being wasted when you open the bottle. This is bubbly folks if you want bubbles don’t waste your CO2
2. cover the cork with a towel (damp works best) and turn the bottle not the cork. Do this at approximately a 45 degree angle pointed away from spectators
3. release the cork as slowly as you can to save as much CO2 as you can. If you hear a loud pop congratulations you’ve just wasted the $ you spent on your bubbly. Pulling the cork out suddenly will cause a sudden rush of gas out of the bottle which will result in
   • pulling gas out of suspension from the sudden drop in pressure, and
   • pulling your expensive bubbly out of the bottle and all over the floor, where you should then be made to lick it up from you heathen
4. Do not use wide brimmed glasses, use proper champagne flutes, preferably crystal (see heathen comment above)
5. It’s not beer – you Do Not want a head on it. Pour it slowly down the side of the chilled flute
6. ENJOY