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Cork screw on carry on

Can you take a corkscrew in carry-on luggage in Europe. Will fly from Newark to Frankfort then on to Split, Croatia.

Posted by
6810 posts

If your corkscrew has no blade, TSA says it's OK in a carry-on. Corkscrews with a blade must be checked.

Just to be on the safe side, I wouldn't bring one that you would hate to loose (just in case the TSA inspectors get over-zealous).

Posted by
2309 posts

I take a plastic liquor-store giveaway corkscrew that weighs nothing and has no blade.

Posted by
103 posts

I carried a Marriott plastic corkscrew for over 8 years and they finally took it in Lisbon this year.

Posted by
1258 posts

One of those things you can buy locally and leave behind. Or look for screw top bottles.

Posted by
8123 posts

I travel with a plastic one picked up from a hotel in Japan, it has never been questioned, or rather "found".

Technically, TSA will allow corkscrews, however most security points in Europe will not, so your biggest risk is taking a separate flight in Europe, or on your way home.

Posted by
1641 posts

This reminds me of a funny story from 2005. I was returning from a business trip to Portugal to tour the cork industry. Traveling with me were other wine industry people including winemakers.

We connected through Heathrow and the wine maker’s bag was searched and a corkscrew was discovered. The sales rep for the cork company explained that the offending party was a wine maker. The Uk security person demonstrated how the cork screw could’ve used as a weapon and confiscated it. We laughed about this for years.

PS it may have had something to do with the fact the the winemaker kind of resembled Osama Bin Laden.

Posted by
15794 posts

I have never encountered a scenario in Europe where I had a bottle of wine and could not find someone with a corkscrew, either where I bought it or at my hotel. However, I have never been to Croatia.

Posted by
11606 posts

I don’t know how many cork screws we have bought and left in Europe over many years!

Posted by
1037 posts

You can't be serious?!

What exactly are you questioning?

Excellent wines are now bottled with screw tops. Whenever possible if I have a choice, I will select a screw top bottle over a bottle with a cork. Easier to reseal the unfinished bottle, too. For wines I drink at home, on average half of them are screw tops.

The wine snob bias against screw top bottles is seriously out of date.

As for the issue posted by the OP, buy a cork screw in Europe. I would not risk the inconvenience of having the TSA pull my bag off the conveyor for an inspection.

Posted by
10673 posts

No hesitation to buy wine in bottles with screw-top caps. The early days of it being only rot-gut wine are over. And no wine is ruined by cork problems.
Times change. Innovation. Grapes are crushed by machines instead of feet, and a lot of wine is aged in steel vats, rather than handcrafted barrels or clay jars.

Posted by
1682 posts

Good to see you didn't drop your humour together with your old name.

Posted by
6583 posts

Wine bottled with screw tops is more consistent from bottle to bottle. Obviously wine in a screw top can't be "corked". However, the wine that goes into the bottle needs to be quality to begin with. I can't speak to Europe but there are a lot of excellent wines in screw top bottles produced in the U.S. and other places.

We typically carry a cheap corkscrew when we travel. However, when we have found ourselves without one, we have found ways to survive. Often we simply use something to punch the cork into the bottle.

This reminds me of a experience that my FIL had on a business trip. The group was talking over breakfast. They all had found a bottle of wine in their rooms but no corkscrew. They shared how they opened the bottle. The engineers had varying methods. The marketer's method was to call room service.

Posted by
6113 posts

There is a chance that a corkscrew will be confiscated. Many wine bottles (including more expensive wines) these days come with screw tops, unless you are buying French wine. In U.K. supermarkets, 90% of wine has a screw top.

Posted by
20458 posts

Gundersen, humor? I just assumed that we all drank reserve, gran reserva or crianza wines. But yes, correct, MD2020, Ripple, Boone's Farm all come with screw caps. You can get Ripple with a pull tab (my preference).

Posted by
16408 posts

If you're staying at a hotel, and you need a corkscrew, here's an ingenious way to open a bottle of wine.........ask the reception desk if they have one. They probably do.

Posted by
179 posts

I fly to London on Tuesday. I have a picnic kit all packed, but now I think that I will leave the corkscrew at home.

Posted by
471 posts

Some years ago, I was in Australia for three weeks and went to a number of wineries. My big takeaway from that trip was that wine with a screw top could be amazing. It was a game changer.

Posted by
4 posts

I want to thank everyone for your responses. I love how the conversation morphed from wine openers to screwtop bottles. Hilarious! Also thanks to the person who reported the bizarre ad that showed up. Bottom line- I will purchase one once we get to Croatia. But my guess is, as many suggested, I will have no trouble finding access to an opener. Can't wait for this trip. It has been rescheduled four times because of covid.

Happy travels!

Posted by
20458 posts

Interesting I was in Dubrovnik last August and needed a cork screw. All I could find was one of those souvenir corkscrews. Barely functional but desire and need overcame technology and I was eventually successful in pulling the cork without ripping off my fingers. I pack one of these on trips ... when I remember. https://www.amazon.com/Pocket-corkscrew-travel-camping-Set/dp/B07RYSLG1T/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?crid=13SMYVKL6CGQT&keywords=travel+corkscrew+tsa+approved&qid=1662513649&sprefix=travel+cork%2Caps%2C148&sr=8-6

Traveling without a corkscrew and a water flosser is just to primitive for me

https://www.amazon.com/Cordless-Portable-Irrigator-Telescopic-Waterproof/dp/B08J858JXQ/ref=asc_df_B08J858JXQ/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=475773119418&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12033200674755671825&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9028097&hvtargid=pla-1031522812061&psc=1

Posted by
6583 posts

Mister E, regarding the one on Amazon. Is the plastic solid/sturdy? I had one of those I got at a hotel and it broke in my hand while I was pulling a cork. There was some bleeding, but the bigger problem was how to get the cork out while on the beach. Is the one from Amazon the actual cork screw you have? If so, does it seem sturdy?

Posted by
11946 posts

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/whatcanibring/items/corkscrews-no-blade

"Corkscrews (with no blade)
Carry On Bags: Yes
Checked Bags: Yes
For more prohibited items, please go to the 'What Can I Bring?' page.
The final decision rests with the TSA officer on whether an item is allowed through the checkpoint."

That is the US rules. What the German 'TSA' allows....??

https://www.walmart.com/ip/True-Jetsetter-Black-Double-Hinged-TSA-Compliant-Corkscrew-Bottle-Opener-Stainless-Steel-Wine-Key/35006524?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=101017099&&adid=22222222227000000000&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=42423897272&wl4=pla-51320962143&wl5=1027576&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=278524422&wl11=online&wl12=35006524&veh=sem&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsI7R1rGD-gIVPz-tBh2V3wWAEAQYCSABEgK1cPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

My apologies for the interruption of the cork vs screw top discussion, BUT... Rule 1- Stay on topic. Make your contribution relevant to the original post :-)

Posted by
20458 posts

jules m I have been carrying one around one for years with no problems. But ................. QC isnt what it use to be (in China).

Worst case, some over sensitive TSA or German Equivalent takes away your $4 cork screw. Best case you can land and get down to business. The souvenir one cost me twice that and it broke on the third bottle that evening.

I want to thank everyone for your responses. I love how the
conversation morphed from wine openers to screwtop bottles. Hilarious!

Glad the OP enjoyed. Never take life too seriously.