The corkscrew, like many other inventions, arose out of necessity. In the late 17th century, inventors began to conceive of a tool to ease the difficulty of uncorking when the first glass bottles appeared in United Kingdom. The first mention of a corkscrew was in the 1680s. In the later 300 years, inventors applied for hundreds of patents and didn't hesitate to improve on these first reinvented corkscrews. 

The First Corkscrews with Patent

In 1795, Reverend Samuel Henshall was patented the world's first corkscrew.

He is a religious official in Oxford, United Kingdom and he cooperated with Mathew Boulton, a well-known manufacturer in Birmingham, to bring his corkscrew to market. Henshall's main improvement on the wood-handled steel worm was the insertion of a concave disc between the handle and the worm. There are two purposes for this concave disc. It is to prevent the user from pulling the cork too far. Once the limit is reached, the cork is forced to turn itself, breaking the seal between the cork and the neck of the glass. 

Invention of One-way Twist

The next key innovation in corkscrew design can be traced to the Englishman, Edward Thompson. In 1802, he recorded a method in patent by using nested screws to turn the corkscrew in opposite directions. When one screw reaches its limit, the second engages, causing the cork to start moving upwards. This design project was carried over many other corkscrew designs, including the famous "zigzag" corkscrew. 

Waiter Friend  

In 1882, the Germany inventor, Carl F.A. Wienke applied patent for “waiter friend”. This slender, collapsible corkscrew uses a screw and a lever. The waiter's handle uses the side of the wine bottle as a lever, reducing the cork's upward pull. 

Modern Innovation 

In 1979, Herbert Allen, a petroleum and aerospace engineer designed and applied patent for the "screw puller". In the 1950s, Allen fell in love with wine while traveling in Europe. He crafted a very elegant corkscrew from polycarbonate plastic and high-grade metal. It became the permanent collection in the Museum of Modern Art.  

This long device wraps around the top of the bottle and is accessed by turning a plastic screw. Another patent of Allen is a one-sided lever corkscrew. It dives into the cork with a series of up and down movements to pulls it out. Then slide off the screw. 

What will the future hold? Maybe one day, the thought of uncorking the bottle will go away. After all, the invention of the screw cap has been sought-after by more and more young people. But it is undeniable that these exquisite corkscrew tools have injected soul into drinking wine, or we all have a sense of ritual.

Lydia Zhao POINT PLUME