The "de Gaulle" winged corkscrew and foil cutter

The “de Gaulle” Corkscrew: an Iconic Bottle Opener

This must-have corkscrew, with its head and two big levers that look like arms, comes in all shapes and sizes throughout the world. It owes its name in France to General de Gaulle lifting his arms into the air while addressing the public.

Robust Components and a Foolproof Mechanism

“de Gaulle” corkscrew and sturdy spiral worm enables to effortlessly extract any type of cork without damaging it. The ingenious self-centring base helps to position it correctly on the neck, before plunging the metal into the soft cork.

We deliberately kept the body – made out of particularly hard-wearing zamak – in its original raw state, with a simple coat of transparent varnish and no chrome or paint, to emphasise its rugged nature. Its powerful matte black rivets and oversized gears further highlight its strong personality. The sturdy and authentic aspect of L’Atelier du Vin’s “de Gaulle” winged corkscrew can thus be seen at a glance.

This iconic corkscrew, both an everyday and precious object, will fit anywhere in your house, whether presented in a yellow and white decorative case, or carefully packed in a colourful gift box with a custom note.

How to Use a Winged Corkscrew

1. Place the tip of the worm in an upright position at the centre of the cork.
2. Twist the handle without touching the “wings”, or levers, so that they rise up by themselves.
3. Push both levers down to extract the cork from the bottle’s neck.

The Most Popular L’Atelier du Vin Corkscrew

L’Atelier du Vin, a French wine tool manufacturer since 1926, is a family business whose savoir-faire can traced back to the Champagne wine region, from father to son. We decided to create a strengthened version of the traditional winged corkscrew to share our passion for the art of living wine.

This popular bottle opener, with its instantly recognisable silhouette, is among the French’s favourite table utensils. From one generation to the next, the “de Gaulle” corkscrew is used at family dinners or to share a good bottle of wine with friends.

It therefore holds a particularly special place in our collection of sommelier tools and oenology accessories, where each of our corkscrews has its own story and personality.

History of the Winged Corkscrew

The very first winged corkscrew was invented at the end of the 19^th century in England by William Baker. A few years later, Neville Heeley perfected its mechanism by connecting the bottle opener’s arms with a steering collar that slid down the middle as the worm entered the cork.

This double lever mechanism was dependable, but Dominick Rosati added the finishing touch in the 1930s with the foolproof rack and pinion system.

This wine tool was particularly popular in France after the war and was even named after General de Gaulle. Our creators at L’Atelier du Vin added a certain je ne sais quoi to this historical corkscrew, while staying true to its original design and equipping it with a Teflon-coated worm to make it even easier to open bottles.

A User-Friendly and Multipurpose Corkscrew

The de Gaulle winged corkscrew is multipurpose, like a sommelier bottle opener. The head includes a large bottle opener to gently remove beer or lemonade caps of any size. Which means you only need one tool to uncork or uncap any type of wine bottle or fizzy drink.

This sturdy and user-friendly corkscrew’s two lever mechanism enables to extract corks efficiently and effortlessly. Indeed, its renowned mechanism combines the benefits of an endless corkscrew and those of a lever corkscrew. The pressure required to extract the cork is spread over both arms, thus reducing the effort by half compared to a single lever system.

From an Everyday Corkscrew to a Collector’s Bottle-Opener

Winged corkscrews can be used to gently open any wine bottle. Simply screw the worm into the cork and press down on the wings to extract the cork. Our “de Gaulle” corkscrew is a signature L’Atelier du Vin design in raw zamak and Teflon. Whether tucked away in a kitchen drawer or standing proudly on the family dinner table, this bottle opener is the ideal tool to open a bottle of wine and embark on a tasting experience.

The luckiest wine lovers and wine tool collectors may get a nice surprise upon opening our collector’s boxes and discovering a vintage winged bottle opener. Indeed, L’Atelier du Vin has restored rare, limited edition winged corkscrews, with working original mechanisms and intact spiral worms, just for you. Our collector’s corkscrews, just like any great vintage, only get better with time.