Welcome to part 2 of MetroWize Guide to Champagne. If you haven't seen part 1 yet, read this first.

Now that you know a little bit about the bubbly, it’s time you learn the correct way to pop the (cough) top. For starters, pop is just a term, try not to pop anything otherwise you'll risk losing to much Co2. Instead firmly grip the bottle by the neck, holding the bottom on your thigh, put a linen over cork end. Undo the wiring and aim the bottle away from everyone in the room - what you'll need to do next is hold down the cork and turn the bottle while keeping pressure down on the cork. If you do it right, the cork should pop of silently and retain all its bubbles. If you do it wrong a frothy stream of champagne will burst out of that bottle covering you and your party buddies in a G rated version of Ron Jeremy’s “Sexy Time Christmas Party.” No, we don’t have a link.

Sabering is the ultimate way to open up a bottle. This is dangerous, completely unsafe and probably one of the coolest things ever. Take the bottle and leave it in an ice bucket for about an hour making sure its extra cold. This is so the bottle becomes brittle. Take off the foil wrapper around the neck as well as the wire covering the cork. Next, find the seam of the bottle - it’s a line running vertically down the bottle. Next, get a saber or some other big ass blade and place it against the bottles shoulder - that’s the thick part before the neck. In one smooth, swift motion run the blade along the seam and bask in the admiration of your peers.

Now that we've popped the cherry on popping bottles, let’s move into the different brands. There's no way to sugar coat this part so we're just going to say it outright, Cristal is kind of like the 80's super group, Journey. It was hugely popular, and quickly went out of style - then through some great placement like the Sopranos it came back only to get played out harder then ever before. Go for the Dom Perignon if you've got money to burn on some Champers. It’s like a Bentley compared to an Escalade. For your money, go with Veuve Clicqouot, yellow label. It’s tasty, it shows you have class and it won't hurt your wallet too hard.

Want more? Become an expert on all types of alcohol and cocktails, your friends will love you:

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For more info on popping bottles and what champagne to choose, check out what our friends have to say:
2 B A Snob: Guide to Champagne
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Know Your Champagne for New Years
Gomestic: Get to Know Your Champagne
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