Most pointless product ever? A bottle opener for screwcaps

screwcap_wine_butterflyFrom site reader Jim:

It’s opportunities like this that make me wish I did indeed have a blog, but I don’t, so I’m passing it to you. Go to butterflywineopener.com for the most asinine, pointless product ever: an opener for screwcap wines. If you look at the video, all you do is seal it over the screwcap…and then turn the top of the opener, just as you would the screwcap itself.

I discovered it in a full-page ad in Tasting Panel [home of the “exposure package“–ed.]…strangely, as you’ll see on the website, the only press they’ve received is in the Tasting Panel, who’ve mentioned it at least twice in different issues.

23 Responses to “Most pointless product ever? A bottle opener for screwcaps”


  1. People who are old and weak might like it, like my moms friends. I could have used it after I had an accident where I bruised my arms so badly that I had no strength to open screwcaps. The turn wheel on the top does look like it provides much better leverage than the cap. Although the thing is over done. I’d just use pliers.


  2. I think if people knew all you had to do was twist at the base of the entire screwcap, instead of at the top, this wouldn’t be necessary. I still think it’s a bit ridiculous, but for people like my mom who have bad arthritis in their hands it might be useful.


  3. Serious question: Does this device really help those with arthritis? I watched the video, and you still have to screw the top of the unit to open the bottle. The top of the unit doesn’t look much larger than the cap itself.


  4. I love the tagline “Keep the Romance Alive.” Oh I will, butterfly wine opener, I will.

    Based on the way this thing is marketed on its own site, my guess is it doesn’t make opening any easier than the regular screwtop.


  5. I hope they have an opener for boxed/bagged wine in development.


  6. Would it really “keep the romance alive?” My guess is it would kill it immediately if the person un-capping the wine said, “Hey, mon cheri, look at this clever wine opener I bought.” Immediate reduction in estimated IQ.


  7. Jack,

    Hilarious!!!


  8. […] Dr. Vino) Tag: apribottiglie, Big Picture, butterfly wine opener, tappo a vite, vie del vino So you […]


  9. http://img2.allposters.com/images/TEE_IMPC/MT11.jpg


  10. Jack – nicely played.

    And Boettcher too!


  11. This invention is sure to bas as big a hit as http://winefritz.com/


  12. “the crack is the new pop…” that’s classic. It’s like reinventing the jump-to-conclusions-mat all over again.


  13. As stupid as the butterfly:

    http://www.vinochapeau.com/discs.html


  14. Well, screwcaps can be a huge pain in the ass to remove, however if you grab the body of the bottle with one hand, and the **base** of the enclosure (NOT the screwcap itself) with the other, and twist, it comes off like magic…


  15. Let’s be honest:
    there’s no better, useless Xmas gift in this price range.


  16. Here are some comments from our students:

    Maurjourie Godfrey said:
    “I cant understand why anyone would buy a opener for a screwcap.. You have to turn it anyways… ”

    Kelli Hepler said:
    “I think it was designed for those who are embarrassed to serve wine with a screwtop. (you know that old sterotype that wine with a screwcap is a cheap wine) This gizzmo makes it look like you have a cork . . . just an idea. Who needs it otherwise?”

    John Mcdowell said:
    “This is hysterically funny. That’s all.”

    Maurjourie Godfrey said:
    “There are some good wines out there that are screw top… dont see what the big deal is.. people need to get over it! Its not like we are drinking boones farm”


  17. Maurjourie Godfrey said:
    “There are some good wines out there that are screw top… dont see what the big deal is.. people need to get over it! Its not like we are drinking boones farm”

    lol, boone’s farm


  18. Me and my husband used lots of different wine openers throughout the years. From classic corkscrew, which is really hard to use for petite people like me, to electric wine opener, which seems great at first, however it’s not as practical as it might seem. We decided that the best is Houdini Wine Opener. It has really easy learning curve and what’s most important it’s cheap and does what it has to do: removes corks.


  19. I guess this product is marketed to the non-wine drinker who may be tempted to buy it for one of their wine drinking friends not knowing any better. I can just see the thought process “well, I know they have that corkscrew wine opener, but I bet they don’t have a screwtop…” Amazing stuff there.

    And also, lol on the Boone’s Farm references above.


  20. What a shame Dr Vino has neith imagination nor empathy

    Nobody in my family can grip a wine screw cap tightly enough to open it reliabl. I have had my right hand repaired following an accident that severed nerves and tendons and both my parent are elderly and arthritic

    I came across this completely pointless “review” (it is not a review, it’s cheap sneer) while actively searching for an opener for Stelvin type caps. If you are going to review a product I suggest you try it hands on in future. And engage your brain a little


  21. […] that one should definitely not be without: a “cork screw” for bottles closed with screw cap the Butterfly Wine Opener. How else will you be able to open with flair those challenging screw top bottles?! We dive for the […]


  22. […] som man absolut inte ska vara utan: en ”korkskruv” för flaskor med skruvkapsyl. Den heter Butterfly Wine Opener och ser till att du öppnar skruvlocket utan svÃ¥righet. Vi kastar oss pÃ¥ kreditkortet för att […]


  23. To the nay sayers. I come from the restaurant business. When sales people first started bringing me wines with the screw tops, the biggest concern was for the presentation in serving a bottle of wine. If you know anything about the restaurant business, you know that everything starts with presentation. That is the reson for the invention. The Butterfly wine opener was invented to preserved the romance and ceramony in serving a bottle of wine. The best comlement the opener gets is when sombody orders a bottle of wine and the same presentation is preformed as if the bottle were corked. that is what it is all about “presentation”

    So anybody that knows anything about sales and marketing or the hospitality business, you will understand the concept of “The butterfly”. The rest of you can continue to “screw-off” by hand

    Thanks
    Owner, Inventor
    Michael Levine
    818-516-0425


winepoliticsamz

Wine Maps


Monthly Archives

Categories


Blog posts via email

@drvino on Instagram

@drvino on Twitter




winesearcher

quotes

One of the “fresh voices taking wine journalism in new and important directions.” -World of Fine Wine

“His reporting over the past six months has had seismic consequences, which is a hell of an accomplishment for a blog.” -Forbes.com

"News of such activities, reported last month on a wine blog called Dr. Vino, have captivated wine enthusiasts and triggered a fierce online debate…" The Wall Street Journal

"...well-written, well-researched, calm and, dare we use the word, sober." -Dorothy Gaiter & John Brecher, WSJ

jbf07James Beard Foundation awards

Saveur, best drinks blog, finalist 2012.

Winner, Best Wine Blog

One of the "seven best wine blogs." Food & Wine,

One of the three best wine blogs, Fast Company

See more media...

ayow150buy

Wine books on Amazon: