Skip to main content

Pop bubbly the classy way – with a sword

Want to open a bottle of champagne the safe way? Twist the cage off, wrap a towel around the top, and twist until you hear the cork work its way loose.

Want to pop the top on a beautiful bottle of bubbly, impress everyone at the party, and ring in the new year like the classy badass you are? Try using a sword. Dan Rinke and Trey Starnes from Johan Vineyards, just outside of Salem, Oregon stopped by The Manual office to provide an expert hand and expertise when it comes to opening a bottle of champagne the right way.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The art of champagne sabrage was popularized by Napoleon’s cavalry, who would use their swords to lop the tops off bottles when celebrating military victory. In modern days, the ritual is mostly seen in tasting rooms and lavish restaurants, which makes it all the more appropriate for your party.

Recommended Videos

Sabrage works because the contents of a bottle are under enormous pressure, usually around 90 psi, which is about three times the pressure of the air in your car’s tires. The stress of that pressure builds up at a few key points: along the seams running the length of the bottle on opposite sides, and where the smooth part of the neck turns to a lip by the cork. When you strike at the right spot, the pressure causes the glass to separate cleanly, taking the cork with it.

First, it’s important to chill the bottle well, and invert it into an ice bath to get the neck nice and cold. Hold the bottle with your thumb in the punt on the bottom of the bottle with your fingers underneath, and one of the seams that runs the bottle straight up. Carefully remove the wire cage, leaving the cork in, and then rest the blunt edge of your blade on the bottle, then swing outward, striking firmly where the bottle meets the annulus. It doesn’t have to be too hard, but if you swing right and follow through, the cork will fly 20 or 30 feet and you’ll be pouring bubbly for everyone.

SparklingWineTrey
Image used with permission by copyright holder

For Johan Vineyards, sabering bottles of sparkling wine is a fun addition to the tastings they hold at their 63 acre biodynamic farm. All of their wine is crafted with an eye towards producing the best possible fruit, and intervening in the natural process as little as possible. Their whole farm is designed to operate with as little outside input as possible, a self-sustaining organic hillside with cows, hayfields, and apples.

Oregon has a young wine industry, and Johan Vineyards focuses on creating wines that emphasize the conditions their fruit grows under. Colder weather in 2010 brought grapes that were well suited for sparkling wine, and the result is a drink that’s dry and aromatic, with a subtle fruitiness and a dash of sweetness on the finish.

Brad Bourque
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Brad Bourque is a beer and sneaker writer, retired fantasy football commissioner, and devout Portland Timbers. On the…
Country singer Dierks Bentley is releasing a new, limited-release bourbon
Launched to coincide with his new album, Dierks Bentley is releasing a new whiskey
Whiskey glass

Dierks Bentley is a country music star. He also launched his own whiskey brand, ROW 94, in September 2024 in collaboration with the historic Green River Distilling Co. in Owensboro, Kentucky. Recently, the brand announced the release of a new, limited-release bourbon.
ROW 94 Broken Branches

Named for his new album, it was made in partnership with Lofted Custom Spirits at the Green River Distilling Co. It begins with a mash bill of 70% Kentucky-grown corn, 21% rye, and 9% malted and row barley. It's matured for at least five years in new, level 4 charred American oak barrels using "Branch Aging" with fire-toasted oak staves seasoned for up to twenty-four months.

Read more
Starting tomorrow: Strato Frappuccino brings cold foam and bold new textures
A reimagined version of the classic Starbucks Frappuccino
Starbucks Strato

Starting tomorrow, Starbucks lovers can try a new, reimagined version of the classic Frappuccino. The Starbucks Strato Frappuccino blended beverage features a new layered twist inspired by the Italian word Strato, which means layer. The new drink debuts tomorrow, July 8th, in three sweet flavors, each combining creamy cold foam with familiar flavors. These new drinks are for those looking for a more refined version of the classic Frappuccino, with a fresh take on familiar flavors. The new flavors include:

Brown Sugar Strato Frappuccino Blended Beverage: A blend of Frappuccino® Roast coffee, milk, and ice, layered with brown sugar-flavored cream cold foam. A blend of cinnamon is an elegant finishing touch.

Read more
Kentucky Owl’s new Batch #13 is the final masterpiece from a bourbon legend
Kentucky Owl

Popular whiskey brand Kentucky Owl recently announced the launch of its newest bourbon, Batch #13. It was blended and crafted by former Master Blender John Rhea. What makes the whiskey more unique is that it was the last bourbon blend created by the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame member before his retirement.
Kentucky Owl Batch #13

Batch #13 consists of a blend of five different bourbons. There’s a mix of younger and wheated whiskeys and more mature and higher rye whiskeys. The blend is roughly between eight and nine years old.

Read more