A desire of Champagne? Yes? I understand you, it happens to me sometimes. But what would you say about learning to open a bottle of Champagne in the most stylish
way possible? Yes?
Let's go for a tutorial about make-up the sabrage.
The sabrage ?
Before going for a heroic opening of a sparkling wine, let's begin by explaining a little bit about what we are talking about.
The Sabrage is simply about opening a bottle with a saber (you are still following me?). the idea is simply to pass your blade on the neck of the bottle in order
to make the cork pop out which give us that :
I promise I will make you at least as happy as she is
So you are not going to cut the cork or the glass, you are only going to break the top of the neck (which is the weakest part of the bottle).
The origin of this practice came from the Napoleonian French soldiers in the 17th and 18th centuries. The soldiers used to open their Champagne with their sabers
to celebrate a victory (or to comfort themselves after a defeat …)
Nothing seems complicated on paper, but the practice needs a little bit of preparation and that's exactly what I am going to give you: some advices for sabering.
What do you need ?
>> A bottle of Champagne, a Spanish Cava, an Italian Prosecco or a French Crémant
>> A saber. But if you don't have any weapons, you still can open your bottle with a large kitchen knife. Some people are even able to do it with a
spoon.
>> Gloves to protect your hands and glasses for your eyes. Don't be greedy, you never know what can happen. Safety first !
You are now ready to open your bottle with a sword strike.
Here we go !
First you need to remove the cap around the neck to have only the Muselet and the cork.
Put your bottle in a 45° position by taking it by the bottom with your left hand (if you are right-handed).
Check if your cork is not oriented towards risky areas (people, a vase or a window), an accident can happen very fast.
Put your blade on the middle of the bottle, its sharpen side towards yourself (it will be easier this way than putting the sharpen knife towards the
neck).
Then, slide your blade from the middle of the bottle to the neck by keeping the blade on contact with the bottle (without searching to go too roughly). Do not
forget to accompany your arm until the end of the operation for success.
3…2…1…
PAF !
Normally you opened properly your bottle with a little sheaf of sparkling wine coming out of the bottle.
Now you only have to drink your wine, a step for which you don't really need my help..
Cheers !