Get to your wine faster

Yes, there are plenty of ways to get the cork out of a bottle of wine. But before you use them, you have to get the capsule - the foil cover - off the bottle. (And yes, you can push the corkscrew through the top, but that either gets bits of foil in your wine or leaves a ragged hole at the top. You can do better.)

Here's my favorite stupid-kitchen trick for wine. Just grab the capsule, give it a test turn to make sure it will move, and then: Twist it off.

Now, before you get yourself into a bar bet, there are a few things to know:

1. Not all bottles have a capsule that will come off. In my experience, Australian bottles have tighter caps. They either use extra-strong Aussie glue, or they're stronger than the rest of us, or maybe there's some weird effect from being upside down when they put their capsules on.

2. Chilling bottles will make the capsule tighten up. If you're going to open a bottle of white wine, pull off the cap before you put it in the refrigerator to chill.

3. Some capsules take a tight grip. But they're great for working your triceps.

And yes, you can get a cutter thing that tightens around and turns. I have one, too. But if you're out in the wilds of the world with a bottle of wine and no cutter, this will get you a little closer.

(My thanks to Cheryl Carpenter, Andrew Dunn and the four bottles of wine it took to make this Vine video!)