# I can't get the cork out... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 24, 2006, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687 "2006-03-24T04:56:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/1 "2006-03-24T04:56:50Z")
I have a bottle of Chimay in the fridge and for the life of me, I can’t get it open. It won’t pull out, even a little, nor will it spin. I don’t know what to do. I tried prying a table knife between the lip and the cork, no such luck. I’m thinking that I may saw off the top of the cork and then use a corkscrew. Any suggestions? ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/2 "2006-03-24T05:02:25Z")
Wine lovers don’t read: Push it into the wine bottle. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/3 "2006-03-24T05:04:25Z")
[QUOTE=bouv] Wine lovers don’t read: Push it into the wine bottle. [/QUOTE] Good idea, but Chimay is beer. And the cork is more like a champagne than a wine. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/4 "2006-03-24T05:04:41Z")
To do that, you have to cut the cork. Chimay is a Trappist beer… and the cork is mushrooom shaped. Got to cut it before you can even attempt what you are saying 😉 If you can’t get it out by twisting, try the cut and corkscrew method. That sounds like the best bet. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/5 "2006-03-24T05:05:08Z")
Like **bouv** said. You could pick up one of those cork removers that have the thin blades that slide down between the cork and the glass. They’re cheap, and it might work. Otherwise. . . ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/6 "2006-03-24T05:05:42Z")
Btw, I think I used the cut the cork (bottom of cork though) method to get the cork back INTO the beer to keep it for the next day :D. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/7 "2006-03-24T05:09:06Z")
[QUOTE=bouv] Wine lovers don’t read: Push it into the wine bottle. [/QUOTE] Chimay is a [Belgian beer](http://www.chimay.com/www/chimay/site8/en/a_abbaye/a0_frameset.htm) , not wine. I believe it has a champagne-style cork, so it cannot be pushed into the bottle. I think the saw and corkscrew method is probably the best. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/8 "2006-03-24T05:15:28Z")
Hmm…using my intense mind powers, I think I have figures out that you have some kind of beer, and the cork is mushroom shaped. Perhaps you can cut the top off and push it in? 😛 have you tried jsut using a corkscrew in it’s normal state? I mean, you shouldn’t have to cut the top off to use a corkscrew normally. but if that doesn’t work, then cut, clear off as many little bits as you canm that might fall off into the beer, and push in, my friend. It really will not affect the taste at all if you pour it out quickly. ---
**Author:** ![Campion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@Campion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Campion)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/9 "2006-03-24T05:22:59Z")
Wrap a towel around the bottle, and bang it gently against a door jamb. Maybe the pressure of the banging will force the cork out. (This was the “camping” method of getting corks out of wine bottles that the grown-ups used when everyone forgot cork-screws.) ---
**Author:** ![Gaudere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e495f1/32.png) [@Gaudere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gaudere)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/10 "2006-03-24T05:28:33Z")
When I get a stuck cork in a beer bottle, I use a corkscrew to loosen it a bit (I don’t cut off the end of the cork, either ) and then grab the cork, corkscrew and all and pull it the rest of the way out. If you can’t pull it out after loosening, loosen it more; you just don’t want to launch the corkscrew into your ceiling. Wrap in a towel and point the cork away from you when you pull, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/11 "2006-03-24T05:28:59Z")
[QUOTE=Campion] Wrap a towel around the bottle, and bang it gently against a door jamb. Maybe the pressure of the banging will force the cork out. (This was the “camping” method of getting corks out of wine bottles that the grown-ups used when everyone forgot cork-screws.) [/QUOTE] I have a corkscrew. I’ll just give it a try with the screw as is. Or maybe I’ll have a Guiness and wait until tomorrow to retry the cork. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/12 "2006-03-24T05:30:19Z")
[QUOTE=Gaudere] When I get a stuck cork in a beer bottle, I use a corkscrew to loosen it a bit (I don’t cut off the end of the cork, either ) and then grab the cork, corkscrew and all and pull it the rest of the way out. If you can’t pull it out after loosening, loosen it more; you just don’t want to launch the corkscrew into your ceiling. Wrap in a towel and point the cork away from you when you pull, of course. [/QUOTE] I had considered pulling it with my teeth, but I can’t imagine how painful that would be if it shot out into my mouth. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/13 "2006-03-24T05:34:24Z")
Alright, Guiness it is for now. Tomorrow, I’ll try **Gaudere** s idea with the corkscrew starter and ol’ manual power to finish. ---
**Author:** ![MrJackboots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MrJackboots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrJackboots)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/14 "2006-03-24T05:37:26Z")
Maybe you can sabre the bottle? It’s nice and frosty, right? And it has bubbles? Point it away from anything fragile, turn the bottle seam-up, and slide the back of the biggest kitchen knife you have down it. Get a good hard strike, and it often snaps open pretty cleanly. ---
**Author:** ![Ass\_For\_A\_Hat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ec9cab/32.png) [@Ass\_For\_A\_Hat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ass_For_A_Hat)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/15 "2006-03-24T14:57:44Z")
Channel locks. One person holds the bottle, the other grabs the top of the cork with the pliers. Don’t try to pull it out, just try to rotate it. You should be able to loose the cork with the pliers, then finish the job with your hands. The drawback of this method is that you’ll have to share the bottle with your helper. Worst case, you rip the top half of the cork off, and then use a corkscrew to finish the job. Anyone think there’s a chance that the problems with the cork indicate a larger problem, and that the contents of the bottle may be compromised? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/16 "2006-03-24T15:12:19Z")
Pliers, dude. **AFAH** called it. A pair of channel-locks and that cork is coming right out. Otherwise…explosives. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/17 "2006-03-24T15:30:39Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] Otherwise…explosives. [/QUOTE] Hey, it’s Chimay not Bud. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/18 "2006-03-24T15:53:01Z")
Hell, it’s just beer; bust off the top and strain the broken glass through your teeth. Be a _man_, fer cripes’ sake. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/19 "2006-03-24T15:54:35Z")
You did take the wire off, right? I’ve never met the bottle of Chimay that I couldn’t open. If it’s really jammed in there, clamp the bottle between your thighs and prise the cork out using both thumbs. Rotate the bottle 45° and repeat. It will come out eventually. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687/20 "2006-03-24T16:05:40Z")
[QUOTE=Tapioca Dextrin] You did take the wire off, right?. [/QUOTE] Please give me just a little credit. 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-cant-get-the-cork-out/349687.md?page=2)