How to turn potential disasters into effortless elegance with some handy tips from Arthur Charpentier
Most of us how to serve the perfect glass of wine under perfect conditions, but what do you do when it all goes wrong?
Here are our best hacks to get you out of a jam when your back’s against the wall.
Scenario 1: Wines are in the fridge chilled and ready to go when Captain tells you there are more guests than expected… what do you do?
First option; wrap damp kitchen roll around the bottle and put it in the freezer for fifteen minutes. Second option; set up an ice bucket with a mixture of cold water and plenty of ice then add about four tablespoons of salt to the water. If you are in a hurry, a good handful will do ! Spin the bottle slowly in the salty water for a few minutes to achieve ice cold wine in a fraction of the time.
Scenario 2: you are opening an older bottle and – shock horror – the cork crumbles as you start pulling it out. Your initial reaction may be simply to abandon ship… Alternatively try these two tricks.
Out of sight of the guests, remove as much of the cork as you can from the neck of the bottle and then set up your decanter with a coffee filter or tea strainer on the top. Pour the wine through the filter into the decanter to remove any bits of cork from the wine – bonus point here is that you will also trap all of the sediment from the wine too.
Alternatively, the best way to remove potentially troublesome corks is to use a Durand corkscrew. This ingenious device is designed specifically for removing old, fragile corks without them breaking apart. Here’s how to use it. First, separate the two parts of the Durand. Carefully screw the corkscrew part into the cork. Then, slide the two blades of the second part between the cork and the glass of the bottle neck until the two pieces fit together- you may need to slowly rock the blades back and forth as you slide. Take your time doing this part as it can be quite fiddly the first time you try! Finally, gently pull the two parts together, turning the cork from left to right to remove the cork.
Scenario 3: your wine needs to be decanted but you don’t have time (or you don’t have a decanter!).
Ever heard of double decanting? Quite possibly the greatest service hack of all time! Disclaimer – this will not be easy if your wine has a lot of sediment, it works best with white wines and young reds that you want to aerate in a hurry.
Open your bottle and empty it into a clean container. This can be another bottle, a decanter, even just a very well-scrubbed jug! Next, using a funnel, pour the wine back into the original bottle. Easy as that.
The majority of aeration when you decant a wine happens during the initial pour. Doubling up on this in quick succession gives you maximum aeration in less than half the time – plus you can still serve the wine from the original bottle.
At the end of the day, serving exceptional wine on board is not just about knowing your vintages — it’s about mastering the little tricks that turn potential disasters into effortless elegance. Whether you’re chilling bottles in a hurry, rescuing a crumbling cork, or decanting like a pro, these behind-the-scenes gestures are what elevate the guest experience from good to unforgettable.
Because on a yacht, every detail matters — and a perfectly served glass of wine might just be the finest detail of all.
