Plastic stopper from Hell.... or thereabouts.

[Joe_in_CT]

The other night I was opening a champagne bottle of cider that had a
plastic stopper in it. Usually, after removing the wire cage, a firm
twist is all that's needed to start easing the stopper out. Friday
night was different. I twisted, pushed up with my thumbs, twisted with
all my strength and the stopper wouldn't budge. Finally, my wife held
the bottle while I took a pair of pliers to the stopper... it turned
and came out with just a modest psssst of co2.

The bottle was one of the nicest I've had from last year's keeve. It
was well worth the effort to make... and to open.

I was really dumbfounded by the difficulty I had to open the bottle.
Any clues as to why the stopper was stuck?

Joe

[Claude Jolicoeur]

Joe_in_CT wrote:
>  I was really dumbfounded by the difficulty I had to open the bottle.
> Any clues as to why the stopper was stuck?

Happens sometimes...
Some bottles have a neck of smaller diameter - this is one possible
reason.
I usually use a rubber band around the head of the stopper, to prevent
slipping.
Claude

[Funk Factory]

"it turned and came out with just a modest psssst of co2."

You didn't have enough CO2 built up in the bottle.  Champagne bottles and corks are designed to have a good amount of pressure inside the barrel.  Without it, the cork will be VERY difficult to remove.  I've had times where I've needed to cut the head off of the cork and use a wine opener to remove the cork.

If you were bottling regular cider, I would say you need to increase the amount of priming sugar.  However, since you are keeving, this would mean you need to bottle the cider sooner.  This way, before the yeast dies of lack of nutrients, it has a chance to create more CO2 while in the bottle.  Do you know what the gravity was of the cider when you bottled last year?  

[Funk Factory]

sorry, typo.

"Champagne bottles and corks are designed to have a good amount of pressure inside the bottle."  

[Joe_in_CT]

The sg was 1.010 at bottling.

There were nice streams of co2 in the glass.

I have had still cider stoppers come out easier ...