The illustrated, step-by-step guide to using a waiter's friend bottle opener

Our favourite tool for removing corks is a good quality waiter's friend like the double-hinged, Italian made Murano design that people who sign up for a Vino Cammino wine subscription receive with their first order.

Step 1: Cut the foil

You can just skip this step and bust the cork straight through the foil, but you'll end up with a jagged mess of foil that can send your wine off in unexpected directions when pouring.

To easily remove the foil, extend the small knife at one end of the waiter's friend and line it up just under the ridge at the top of the bottle neck, per the photo below. Placing the knife under that ridge gives you something to guide the knife as you make a circular cut around the neck, and ensures you remove enough foil so that no scraps are left that might get in the way of pouring later.

Cut all the way around the neck.

Step 2: Remove the foil

Once you've cut all the way around the neck, use the knife to scrape / lever the cap off the bottle.

Step 3: Centre the corkscrew

This is the number one problem we find people face when using a waiter's friend. So that the corkscrew doesn't end up busting out of the side of the cork at some point, you need it to be vertical and to be centred on the cork before you start screwing.

By centred, we mean don't place the point of the corkscrew in the middle of the cork. Instead, line up the hollow centre of the corkscrew over it, per the photos below. If the point of the corkscrew is in the centre, you'll end up screwing down the side of the cork and causing yourself all sorts of problems when removing it.

Step 4: Screw down to the last loop

Now you twist the corkscrew clockwise, keeping it vertical the whole time. Keep twisting until you get to the last of the loops of the corkscrew, per the photo below. Stop earlier and you risk pulling out only part of the cork (especially if it's an old bottle). Go all the way to the handle and you'll bust through the bottom and end up with bits of cork in the wine.

Step 5: Lever the cork halfway out (short lever)

Per the photo below, hook the end of shorter lever onto the end of the bottle neck. Lift the handle to raise the cork halfway out of the bottle. If you have a single hinge waiter's friend you'll have to skip this step, and will risk breaking off the cork because of the angles involved. Get yourself a double hinge!

Step 6: Lever the cork all of the way out (long lever)

Now hook the end of the longer lever onto the end of the bottle neck. Lift the handle again and the cork will easily come all of the way out of the bottle.

Step 7: Enjoy your wine (and a tip for putting the cork back in)

Now the easy part: pour yourself a glass and enjoy!

But if you find you don't get through the whole bottle and want to put the cork back in to preserve the wine for later, here's a tip. It's much easier to get the cork back in upside down. That's because the top of the cork is more compressed due to its position in the neck of the bottle and the bottom swells due to its contact with the wine. If you try to get the bottom end of the cork in first, you'll find it much more difficult as it will be slightly wider than the dry side.