So, how do you remove wax capsules?

In my decades of buying, drinking and cellaring wine, I have never had to deal with a wax capsule, until now.

Just bought some Belle Glos Clark and Telephone Pinot Noir 2009 and red wax is covering pretty much the top half of the bottle. I am in no hurry to pop the cork, but when the day comes, what do I do?

Most of the time I just drill right through with a waiters corkscrew. When it starts to lift, just brush off loose bits so they don't fall into neck.
If you don't want to do that, and it's the harder/stiffer kind of wax, you can soak a towel in hot water and wrap around for maybe 30 seconds, will soften

[Robin Garr]

Most of the time I just drill right through with a waiters corkscrew. When it starts to lift, just brush off loose bits so they don't fall into neck.

That's my technique, with the additional advice that I put the bottle on paper towels (or even in the sink) to catch the shrapnel.

Hold the corked end over the lit burner on a gas stove for a few seconds, then you can just scrape aside the soft wax. Simple & clean.

Hold the corked end over the lit burner on a gas stove...

What could go wrong!

Hold the corked end over the lit burner on a gas stove...

What could go wrong!

Hell, if I can do it with a 100% success rate anyone can. It's not rocket science.

Hold the corked end over the lit burner on a gas stove...

What could go wrong!

Hell, if I can do it with a 100% success rate anyone can. It's not rocket science.

LOL.

If bothering to be neat about it (and avoid wax crumbs), take a knife (or the knife tool on a waiter's friend) and cut (at an angle) the wax around the lip of the bottle top, then cut (with the knife edge parallel to the cork face) the remaining "cap" of wax away from the top of the cork. Clean and simple.

I'm with Dale: just drill right through and blow the wax bits aside. It's too much fuss to try to remove it.

Some old bottles with wax ( e.g. some Ports) are hard to 'drill through'. Gently whacking the coating with the back of a knife over the bin works pretty well as long as you don't tap too hard.

I think its best to just try to push the auger through the wax. If it is just decorative colored sealing and canning wax the auger should pass right through it. If it is a harder or more brittle wax it should just ‘shatter” enough so that the cork auger makes contact with the cork.

Salute

What is the reasoning wineries do this? I know of no research that shows it helps the wine in any way, doesn't prevent cork failure, wouldn't prevent forgery, and most of these listed suggestions stir up the wine-so forget decanting from the shaken debris. Why??

ost of these listed suggestions stir up the wine-so forget decanting from the shaken debris. Why??

Not especially a fan of wax, but curious re this part of statement. Going through wax (by far most common) doesn't stir up sediment. Wrapping in warm towel doesn't either. Never done the gas burner, but if you carefully tilt over front burner shouldn't be any more disturbed than a normal decant.

Dale, the more one mucks around with the bottle the more chance one stirs up the sediment. Over a burner? Really?? Blowing off all of the broken wine capsule bits takes some more mucking around with the bottle. But my question is Why?

What is the reasoning wineries do this? I know of no research that shows it helps the wine in any way, doesn't prevent cork failure, wouldn't prevent forgery, and most of these listed suggestions stir up the wine-so forget decanting from the shaken debris. Why??

I know one winery that did it because the (half) bottles they were using for a dessert wine were not compatible with their bottling line (hand corked, too). In other cases, I think they may be going for a ye olde handcrafted wine effect?

With a lot of grumbling and obscenity at the geniuses who put form so far above function.

With a lot of grumbling and obscenity at the geniuses who put form so far above function.

Exactly. "Wow, dude, it makes the bottle look really up-market." Some Jura producers are into this, too: