Page Springs Cellars unveils the Wineleopard Corkscrew Gallery, a globally sourced collection that blends winemaking, craftsmanship and centuries of innovation.
The Wineleopard Corkscrew Gallery is an impressive and dramatic display of corkscrews from all around the globe and from just about every era. Highlighted in groups of collections with descriptive notations and elusive tales, some corkscrews date back to the 1700s.
“There are 20 individual collections here and they all have a story, either geographical or based on a theme,” said Leopardi, who noted that the museum inventory is about 15% of his total collection.
The corkscrew gallery at Page Springs Cellars is a cozy room just a few steps from the winery. The surrounding walls exhibit a combination of old wine bottles and pictures of antique corkscrew and wine art derived from bark. “We wanted the room to feel warm and inviting,” said Leopardi.
Well-lit display cases of the corkscrew collections are eclectic, from legs to other figural designs, mechanical (from the industrial revolution), animals, miniature corkscrews and even a pocket corkscrew made by Bing Crosby that features his dog.
From San Francisco to Australia and across Europe, the collection holds significant moments of yesteryear. “There is a collection of Israeli corkscrews made by Jewish immigrants who left Europe after WW1,” said Leopardi.
Though the wine corkscrew museum is not the only one in the nation, it may be the only one with such an extensive inventory and historical representation. To dive deeper into the story behind each corkscrew collection, Leopardi provides QR codes that link to his website.
“The corkscrew evolved from a steel worm gun tool used to pack gunpowder in Muskets in 1681,” said Leopardi. “The first official patent was in England by Reverend Samuel Henshall in 1795. That made him the father of modern design. This simple but effective design became the foundation for countless variations,” he said.
The oldest corkscrew at the Wineleopard Corkscrew Gallery is a silver corkscrew from Amsterdam, circa 1760.
According to the Wineleopard website, Celluloid was the first commercially successful plastic invented by John Wesley Hyatt in the 1860s. German and English corkscrews used this material at the end of the 19th century for molding figures of human heads.
Also during that time period, ivory was popular, but an alternative to the endangered elephant and walrus tusks was the corozo nut from South America, and in turn, corozo nut corkscrews became the rage.
“This has been such a thrill to see what Bob has done at the Page Springs Wine Cellars corkscrew museum,” said Sarah Alyea, who represents Stem Wine Company. “I’m so impressed but also excited to learn about all the different places he has collected corkscrews. The dedication and passion that he has for corkscrews is just incredible. My favorite was the leg corkscrews.”
Leopardi lives in Tucson and has been involved in the wine industry for more than 40 years, mostly in sales. He says the Wineleopard Corkscrew Gallery at Page Springs Wine Cellars is the most serious one in the United States. FBN
By V. Ronnie Tierney, FBN
The Wineleopard Corkscrew Gallery at Page Springs Vineyards and Cellars is located at 1500 North Page Springs Road in Cornville. For more information, visit www.wineleopardcorkscrewgallery.com.
Photo by V. Ronnie Tierney, Fresh Focuses Photography: Robert Leopardi and Eric Glomski proudly present the Wineleopard Corkscrew Gallery at Page Springs Vineyards and Cellars.
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