If you have the absolute fascination of having the “best” and the “most” of all things, here’s one to add to your collection: the Sveid custom-made corkscrew, the most expensive corkscrew in the world. With a retail price of $71,000, it certainly gets the spot not only being the most costly corkscrew but also the most expensive kitchen in the world. Find out why this corkscrew costs a fortune and if it is worth the price.
What Makes The Sveid Custom-Made Corkscrew Special?
The company believes that to open a special bottle of wine, one has to use an equally special tool. With this in mind, Sveid designed a great instrument, a combination of old-school know-how, the highest level of cutting-edge technology, elegance, and tradition. This is what you can see and get in the jewel case package and its exceptional content. However, with a staggering price of over $70,000, it is logical to ask what makes the Sveid Corkscrew this expensive. Well, here’s why.
For starters, this perfect screw went through 15 years of development. Another factor of the notably high price is that the raw material used in Sveid custom-made corkscrew is aviation titanium, the same material used in Airbus 380. Its fingertip is made from either 18-carat gold or 28-carat platinum and has a tested tensile strength of over 1000 Mpa. This 52-piece corkscrew was manufactured by master artisans in the Vallee de la Meuse, in Eastern Belgium, where state-of-the-art metallurgy products are designed and produced. Currently, there are only 100 Sveid Custom-Made Corkscrews available which are individually machined by micro-electro-erosion, with 1/1000 precision. Then, each item is hand-adjusted, hand-finished, and polished. Lastly, the owner’s name is engraved on the corkscrew once it has been signed and numbered.
Understanding A Corkscrew’s Anatomy
Corkscrews come in different styles and shapes. In fact, there are several types of corkscrews, but no matter how different they are, they all have at least three similar parts: a corkscrew worm, a handle, and a boot lever.
- Corkscrew worm – this is the pointed metal helix attached to the corkscrew handle. This metal is screwed into the cork and pulled out to remove the pin from the bottle.
- Corkscrew handle – this part of the corkscrew provides leverage and grip to help remove the cork from the bottle. Its length, style, and material differ depending on the type of corkscrew.
- Corkscrew boot lever – commonly found on waiter’s corkscrews, this part gives additional leverage for users to pull corks out of a wine bottle.
- Bottlecap remover – this is an additional feature, however, a common component of many styles of corkscrews. With this feature, users can open wine bottles and pop off the tops of beer and soda bottles.
- Foil cutter – another common component of corkscrews, a foil cutter is generally tiny, either serrated blades or wheels used to remove the foil covering at the top of a wine bottle.
What Are The Different Types Of Corkscrews
Since only a hundred pieces of Sveid Custom-Made Corkscrews are available, only a limited number of people can have them. But there’s nothing to worry about as there are several other kinds of corkscrews that you can choose from.
- Waiter’s Corkscrew – this corkscrew type is considered to be the oldest style. Its compact size, functionality, and affordability make this type the standard tool of choice for many establishments.
- Pocket Corkscrew – like its name suggests, this type of corkscrew is perfect for carrying in one’s apron or pants because of its compact size. Most pocket corkscrews come with a sheath that keeps the corkscrew worm from poking through the fabric of your pocket and also creates a “T”-shaped crossbar that provides leverage when twisting the worm into the cork to remove it.
- Wing Corkscrew – with its small size and easy-to-use design, this type of corkscrew is a popular choice in removing synthetic corks and can also be used on corks of all sizes. However, this is not suitable for open vintage wines with natural, brittle corks as it may leave cork crumbs.
- Electric Corkscrew – using an electric corkscrew is the easiest way to open a wine bottle. This type of corkscrew comes with a simple push-button that allows anyone to open a bottle of wine, making it ideal for those who have arthritis or little hand strength.
- Counter Mount Corkscrew – this type of corkscrew can be attached to a table or counter. With its sturdiness and support, this corkscrew can open bottles faster but with less effort. Counter mount corkscrews are ideal for high-volume establishments and back-of-house use.
- Lever Corkscrews – this corkscrew requires only two motions: a forward motion to insert the worm into the cork and a gentle pull motion to remove the cork from the bottle. This type is becoming popular these days because of its ease of use as it gives the user control as its handle holds the neck of the bottle firmly while removing the cork.
- Wine Cork Extractor – this corkscrew has prongs that work by sliding between the wine bottle and cork to remove it from the bottle. This type is usually used to remove vintage corks from natural corks since it doesn’t damage the vintage wine corks, although it drops crumbs into the wine.
- Wall Mount Corkscrew – just like its name, this corkscrew is used by mounting it to a beam or wall for maximum stability and security in removing wine corks. Another feature of this type of corkscrew is that it can be set for different penetration depths.
- Air Pressure Pump – this corkscrew works by using air pressure to push the cork out of the bottle. The user has to insert the needle through the cork and pump until the cork is removed from the bottle.
Conclusion
Like the famous Japanese tea ceremony, Sveid believes that opening a special wine bottle is one of the simple yet essential graces. This is why they created a hand tool designed explicitly for this purpose.
It is fascinating and amazing how a tiny wine opener, the Sveid Custom-Made Corkscrew, is the world’s most expensive corkscrew slash kitchen tool. But if you consider how it was made and what it is made of, you’ll understand why it is the most expensive item to have in your kitchen. Learn more about interesting and unique kitchen gadgets here!