Our sabering expert Leo shows you in the tutorial how to properly saber or cut open a bottle with any object.
theory
First, a few words about the theory: The term sabrage comes from French: le sabre is translated as “the saber”. The verb for this is sabering. The process is called sabrage.
A bottle of sparkling wine is under a lot of pressure. There are four to 4.5 bar in the bottle - that's twice as many bars as in a car tire. Anyone who has ever let a cork pop knows that there is a lot of pressure in a bottle like that. Shooting the cork is the least elegant way to open a bottle of sparkling wine. A higher art is to twist the cork out of the bottle almost silently. A slight hissing sound is unavoidable. This is also known as angel fart The highest form of opening is the sabrage - traditionally in upscale restaurants with a small champagne sabre / sparkling wine sabre provided especially for this purpose.
A sparkling wine bottle consists of three parts - the two halves of the bottle, which are joined at the seam, and then the bottle head is placed on top of both halves. Everything is fused together. Where the three parts meet, however, two predetermined breaking points are created. These are the ones that need to be hit.
How to Sabre a Sparkling Wine
Preparation
capsule
Once the bottle has been inspected and it has been confirmed that it is intact and it is clear where the break points are, the protective capsule must first be removed. Please dispose of this.
clasp
The wire frame around the cork is called an agraffe: in a broader sense, it is a clamp to hold the cork in position. In French, the agraffe also means, among other things, a staple. The agraffe is not completely removed for sabrification, but loosened briefly and pushed up a ring. The agraffe thus serves to hold the bottle head and the cork together compactly - it comes off as a package and does not splinter all over the place.
attitude
To sabre the bottle should be held at a slight angle: so angled that the sparkling wine cannot immediately run out of the bottle after the sabre has been carried out. But not so upright that the projectile can then "rain" uncontrollably on those around you. Under no circumstances should you point it at yourself.
We recommend a 40-50 degree angle of inclination - aimed at an open area. Until you have perfected your sabering skills, it is best to do it in the fresh air, where no one else can be injured. Please hold the bottle relatively low down so that if more of it does splinter, your hands will remain safe.
Tool
Ultimately, anything that has a hard edge and is heavy can be used as a tool for sabre cutting. The edge should be hard and sharp enough that you can easily and precisely target the breaking point and not hit the bottle head wildly. It's all about control. Hold and guide the tool loosely but firmly.
Sabration
If you are sure that the preparation is complete, everyone around you is protected and the tool is correctly selected, you can simply "pull through" with a lot of confidence and let the tool fall onto the predetermined breaking point with a lot of momentum and a loose grip. You may need a few attempts at first before it works. But over time, you will become more and more routine.
follow-up
First the sparkling wine flows out - of course you take care of pouring it out immediately. Immediately secure the broken bottle head, including the cork and clasp - good luck in your search.
Notice
Caution: the edges of the broken glass pieces are very, very sharp. Therefore, please find the bottle head immediately and dispose of it. Do not touch the edge of the bottle neck and do not drink from the bottle. It is best to simply pour the sparkling wine into glasses and dispose of the bottle carefully for subsequent users. There will generally be no shards in the sparkling wine itself, as the high pressure forces everything out of the bottle and NOTHING gets in. But it never hurts to take a closer look.
We actually had one failed attempt with a bottle that wasn't cool enough. So the advice is: cool it as much as possible. The cooler the bottle and the wine, the lower the pressure and the more controllable the sabrage.
Have fun and success with sabrification!
