The pressure in a champagne bottle or a 75 centiliter bottle of sparkling wine is three times higher than the pressure in a normal car tire and can send the cork flying at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour. The cork can hit the eye within a hundredth of a second or faster. We don’t even have time to blink.
In the study, which is published in the British medical journal The BMJ, researchers from Great Britain and the United States write that it is easy to misplace the champagne bottle when you are a little excited late at night. The result can be devastating.
Can go blind
Unsurprisingly, a cork hitting an eye can cause the retina to detach and disrupt the lens itself. Permanent blindness is not uncommon.
A recent example of a similar accident occurred in May 2022 when cyclist Biniam Girmay was about to open a bottle of prosecco to celebrate having just won a stage in the Giro d’Italia cycling race. He unfortunately bent down over the bottle whereupon the cork flew into one eye. He was lucky. The only injury was a temporary internal bleeding in the eye – but he was forced to cancel the continuation of the race.
45 degree angle
There are basically no figures on how common such injuries are. No country has reliable statistics, but databases from three countries—the United States, Mexico, and Hungary—revealed in a 2004 review of 12,889 cases of eye injuries from accidents involving various types of bottles. Of the injuries related to accidents with different types of corks or caps, champagne corks accounted for 20 percent of the injuries in the United States, and as much as 71 percent in Hungary. In 26 percent of the cases, the people lost the sight of the eye.
The researchers believe that there should be clear warning texts on the bottles with instructions on how to hold the bottle when opening (slanted forward at a 45 degree angle, directed away from all people). If you do, everyone can toast and wish each other a happy new year – without having to call for an ambulance.
Fact: This is how you open the champagne in a safe way
(TT)
To be on the safe side when opening the bottle of champagne or other sparkling wine, you should start by cooling down the bottle ahead of time. Then the pressure inside the bottle decreases. You should also avoid shaking the bottle.
The bottle is then tilted at a 45 degree angle, away from all persons present. Then carefully remove the halter – the metal mesh over the cork – while holding one hand over the cork.
Finally, gently shake the cork until it comes loose. If you want to be extra careful, you can place a towel over the entire bottle during the procedure.
Source: The BMJ