A system that pours a glass of wine without opening the bottle(coravin.com)
coravin.com
A system that pours a glass of wine without opening the bottle
http://www.coravin.com
13 comments
Drinking the whole bottle seems like a much better solution to this problem.
Way more fun, at least.
The Sweethome likes it, but it's expensive:
> "We tested the $300 Coravin system against Private Preserve, comparing bottles of wine that’d been saved for five days against a fresh bottle. While the Coravin-preserved bottle tasted more like the brand-new one, its price makes it impractical for many wine drinkers; it’s better suited for restaurant use, or serious oenophiles. For everyone else, Private Preserve is still the way to go."
http://thesweethome.com/reviews/best-way-to-keep-open-wine-f...
> "We tested the $300 Coravin system against Private Preserve, comparing bottles of wine that’d been saved for five days against a fresh bottle. While the Coravin-preserved bottle tasted more like the brand-new one, its price makes it impractical for many wine drinkers; it’s better suited for restaurant use, or serious oenophiles. For everyone else, Private Preserve is still the way to go."
http://thesweethome.com/reviews/best-way-to-keep-open-wine-f...
> It’s better suited for restaurant use,
I'm a wine enthusiast with a restless palette. Even if I adored the last glass, I'll want something different next. This makes me a bad fit for bottles (in small groups).
Consider the restauranteur offering wine by the glass. On the upside, glasses (should) deliver a larger margin than whole bottles. On the downside, unsold product is thrown out. This is why high-volume low- and moderately-priced wines sell by the glass. Lower-volume wines would be thrown out too often. The higher price point would make that wastage more painful.
In New York, the Coravin system has saved me from having to choose between often mediocre wines and locking down to a bottle. It makes volume less critical, to the wine bar, in choosing which wines to offer by the glass. The palette thus broadens.
I'm a wine enthusiast with a restless palette. Even if I adored the last glass, I'll want something different next. This makes me a bad fit for bottles (in small groups).
Consider the restauranteur offering wine by the glass. On the upside, glasses (should) deliver a larger margin than whole bottles. On the downside, unsold product is thrown out. This is why high-volume low- and moderately-priced wines sell by the glass. Lower-volume wines would be thrown out too often. The higher price point would make that wastage more painful.
In New York, the Coravin system has saved me from having to choose between often mediocre wines and locking down to a bottle. It makes volume less critical, to the wine bar, in choosing which wines to offer by the glass. The palette thus broadens.
That's a great link, thanks. Wine goes bad so fast that I was giggling in excitement when I watched the video. But then my jaw dropped when I saw the price of the machine. And it drop again when I saw the cartridge price.
I can't help thinking that this is a product planned by MBA type. But I rarely spend more than $20 on a bottle of wine, and if the product is head and shoulder above competition out there, the company can pretty charge whatever it wants for people who routinely drink expensive wine, or restaurant establishments.
I can't help thinking that this is a product planned by MBA type. But I rarely spend more than $20 on a bottle of wine, and if the product is head and shoulder above competition out there, the company can pretty charge whatever it wants for people who routinely drink expensive wine, or restaurant establishments.
I was going to say that a $300 one-time cost plus under $1 per glass is totally within reason for someone who has many bottles of good wine. But $10 for 120 bottles is shockingly cheaper.
On the other hand, unsurprisingly, the length of preservation varies. Private Preserve keeps it for a few days; Coravin seems to work for a month or more.
On the other hand, unsurprisingly, the length of preservation varies. Private Preserve keeps it for a few days; Coravin seems to work for a month or more.
Super, thank you for the heads up
$11 per proprietary argon capsule. Each capsule can pour 75oz, or about 3 standard wine bottles. Not too bad, if you're serving high end wines.
I don't know about running cost but there's already a commercial system intended for restaurants etc. called Enomatic. It differs in being continuously attached to open bottles, but it has multiple taps per device. Comparison here: http://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2014/05/is-coravins-new-win...
I wonder if there will be a grey / black market for non-original capsules. Seems promising since, as far as I know, argon is not _that_ expensive to buy.
10 litre bottle of argon is about $45.
The capsule contains 20ml and costs $10 ($500/litre).
So yeah, someone should be able to create non-original capsules for a lower price.
The capsule contains 20ml and costs $10 ($500/litre).
So yeah, someone should be able to create non-original capsules for a lower price.
I've used the Pek Preservino system for years. Their argon comes in the same little cartridges as N2O or CO2 for siphons. In fact, I just started using N2O since it works well enough for just a couple days.
Looked it up. $12 for 4 cartridges, or $80 for 30 cartridges. That's pretty humane.
But given that Coravin has a separate page for their board of directors, each with a full bio and a mugshot, I think it's safe to assume that their cartridges are non-standard.
But given that Coravin has a separate page for their board of directors, each with a full bio and a mugshot, I think it's safe to assume that their cartridges are non-standard.
Chinese knockout will use helium gas :-)
Yeah helium is running around US0.10 a liter give or take in most places, and will sneak out through the cork pretty quickly too.
Seems like a great way of injecting poison into an unopened bottle of wine. I'll have to look into this for my next job.
Eh, any $1 hypodermic needle is sufficient to inject poison into wine. If you're worried about potential poisonings, your first priority should be to eliminate what's worrying you about potential poisonings.
I've used this a couple of times. It's good to test whether you want to drink the wine at a certain; they had some problems with breaking bottles but according to them it was a problem with the bottle.
I lost my faith in >$100/bottle wines though, so I don't care of this any more.
I lost my faith in >$100/bottle wines though, so I don't care of this any more.
>Coravin’s proprietary argon gas capsule
good lord. Why must every product do this? Why? Whyyyy? Just make something good. Make something that works and is practical. I don't want to be taken for a ride. I don't want to be on a treadmill. I want something that doesn't make me dependent on a company that could go under at any time.
Every time I see stuff like this, the more cynical I become.
good lord. Why must every product do this? Why? Whyyyy? Just make something good. Make something that works and is practical. I don't want to be taken for a ride. I don't want to be on a treadmill. I want something that doesn't make me dependent on a company that could go under at any time.
Every time I see stuff like this, the more cynical I become.
Has anyone tried any of these systems for anything other than wine? I like scotch but it also reacts with air after the bottle is opened. Obviously this system wouldn't work because the cork on a bottle of scotch has a plastic cap attached at the top. At $100+ for a good bottle of scotch I'd be willing to invest this kind of money for something that worked.
Private Reserve works for this as well - but really, the most important thing when it comes to whisky is how you store it. The less air that's in the bottle, the longer it will last - also keeping it out of light. If your bottle is down to 1/3rd or 1/4th remaining it will change sooner than a full bottle. Changing isn't spoiling though - it's somewhat the same as the wine oxidation issue, but it has a different chemical reaction to the oxidation. It's still OK to drink, and some whiskys actually improve this way.
The high levels of ethanol in spirits slow the oxidation down tremendously. Unless you're taking over a year to go through a bottle I wouldn't sweat it. If you're worried about it, you could always transfer the spirits to smaller bottles after opening to minimize the air space.
I would say taking over a year to go through an expensive scotch isn't unreasonable if you have multiple bottles open.
If you're not a wine enthusiast, this simply doesn't seem like a product worth anybody's time of day. However, it must be noted that this is an excellent idea for wine preservation. Just think about how great it must be to save an expensive bottle from needing quick consumption before it experience's the perils of too much oxygen.
Looks pretty cool, but isn't cork on the way out? Will it work with a screw top as well?
The cork should be on its way out, but if it is, it will be really slow. The better technologies (screw tops, bag in a box) are associated with cheap wines. It will be a long time before any substantial number of $20+ wines use them as a result. The wine makers would quite rather 10% of their product go bad and have to be refunded than have it be thought of as Franzia. (I have seen a lot more synthetic corks popping up, and this product might work with those.)
It's the same with beer and cans.
It's the same with beer and cans.
Depends where you live. Here in Australia twist top is king. Most bottles you buy that are <$40 from 2011 onwards are twist tops (excluding carbonated, people like to pop the cork even if it's a synthetic one). In recent trips to the US I've noticed that it isn't as popular. People there seem to think twist top is cheap or tacky.
Cork only. Read how it works and you'll see that it can't work with a screw top. You can use Private Preserve with screw tops.
Do you know how private preserve compares to just pumping the air out, which is what I currently do?
My feeling is that PP works better. I think this because the gas displaces all the oxygen, where pumping the air out only removes some of it.
Best idea is to try a can for yourself.
Best idea is to try a can for yourself.
For the person who has no time to put the cork back in the bottle ...
No, air in the bottle after opening it still affects the wine, even if you put the cork back on. That's why they use argon.
And who wants vendor lock-in with "proprietary argon gas capsules".
Yeah, it only makes sense for bottles costing upwards of 100$
Or very limited vintages. I have a few bottles that were $35-50 when bought, but only had 150-300 cases made. No way to get another of that same kind and same year...
Which makes the bottle now worth probably a few hundred at least.
Probably not. There are many small wine producers that will only produce a few hundred cases of wine each year. Despite being scarce, this wine won't be specifically valuable unless it's good or otherwise unique, because it's only a very small part of a very large market. The $35 wine will still cost $35. You won't be able to buy it any more, but there'll be little interest from others.
The real innovation here is they've invented an even more irritating and powerful way of breaking the back button.
Well, to be honest, they also managed to pull off another feat: They overcosted initial price PLUS insanely costed consumables.
Truly, a gadget fit for a king(or people that don't like money).
Truly, a gadget fit for a king(or people that don't like money).
I really consider this a failing of the browser. Clicking back should take me to the previous page I interacted with, never a redirect page.
I was able to get back with the back/forward pulldown(on Firefox).
Yes, I finally gave up and re-typed the HN URL.
I'm looking forward to the face of the guy who uses this to open the $2500 wine bottle and then gets the needle stuck in it...