Patent ID: 7210592

Claim:
Method for overcapping a bottle of sparkling wine with a cover comprising a head and a skirt, the sealed bottle of sparkling wine having a neck with an opening therein surrounded by a glass ring, the opening being sealed with a cork having a head which protrudes from the opening and which is secured to the neck with a metal tightening wire, the tightening wire being removably secured under the glass ring and including a wire loop, comprising the steps of: providing a cover having a skirt with upper and lower lines of weakness defining a opening strip with a gripping tab at a free end of the strip, the lower line of weakness dividing the cover into an upper portion and an lower portion, and being disposed at a distance H from a top of the cover, distance H corresponding to an axial height between the protruding head of the cork at its top and the glass ring at its bottom, the skirt having a width L between the upper line of weakness and the lower line of weakness, wherein L is at least 0.5×H; and overcapping the sealed bottle of sparkling wine with the cover, wherein pulling on the gripping tab enables removal of the upper portion of the cover, and thereby exposes the loop, the tightening wire and cork to enable opening of the sealed bottle.