Sabre Sommelier

Whether it is an important anniversary, New Year's Eve or a simple evening with dear friends, a bottle of sparkling wine or , in special cases, Champagne, manifests all the desire to celebrate a date or event in the best way possible, the important thing being the memory.

Lately, the practice that is coming back into vogue for such situations is not related to the choice of good bubbles, as important as that is, but rather the way of opening a bottle of sparkling wine or champagne, which is a far cry from the simple opening of the cage as traditionally known.... we speak of Sabrage from the French Sabre = Sabre, thus literally "Sabre" hence the concept of "Champagne Sabrage" i.e., the art of uncorking a bottle of Champagne with the help of a sabre, rather than the hands.

The traditional "sabrage" was brought into vogue in France by Napoleon's royal guard, who used to celebrate victories in the field or promotions to their own rank by uncorking several bottles of Champagne with their sabers, until nowadays, it is still considered a noble gesture reserved for the most special occasions.

But what is the proper way to "Sabrage" a bottle of Champagne ?

First of all, it must be said that it is an operation that should be done only by competent operators in the sector, Sommeliers or otherwise experienced personnel, following what are the guidelines refined over time also thanks to the contribution given by the important institution "Confrerie du Sabre d'Or" born in France in 1986 and the only one accredited to confer the diplomas of "Maitre Sabre" to all those who would like to learn the noble art of Sabrage but also to Sommeliers who would like to enrich themselves with a professional diploma and become professional experts in the wine sector.

Before proceeding with the operation that we describe below, it is necessary to make sure that the bottle has a temperature of no more than 4 degrees C. a condition that makes it easier to successfully sabrage :

1) once the bottle has been removed from the ice, it must be freed from the golden paper that covers the cork and the neck part of the bottle on which the saber will then have to slide, but not from the iron cage to prevent the great internal pressure--up to 6 bar--from knocking out the cork before the operation ;

2) having prepared the saber, tilt the bottle 20-25 degrees , then release the neck from the metal cage ;

3) begin to "prepare" by sliding the saber positioned with the back facing the cork up and down the length of the bottle neck ;

4) at this point, leaving the bottle at an angle, give the sharp blow without fear to the bottle cap, which will jump together with the glass crown inside which the cap was captive .

If the procedure is correct, it will be observed that the neck of the bottle has been decapitated, a small flow of liquid will come out of the bottle and most importantly, the detached glass part has not shattered into several parts. Of course, it should be remembered that the necessary condition for carrying out the Sabrage of a Champagne bottle is safety, avoiding anyone standing along the trajectory of the cork that will jump, nor in close proximity to the one who as an expert is about to use the sabrage.