TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Glass In The Water

Sorry in advance for this rant but If nothing else it makes me feel better to say it. If I am out of line here, then please set me straight.

We are headed down in 6 days for our 10 day bareboat out of Road Town. I am so excited, and I just can't stop looking at recent YouTube videos.

Twice now in the past few days I have seen people post new BVI videos of someone on the boat using a large knife to "chop" the top off of a bottle of champagne and of course the glass goes right off of the back of the boat. A few nights ago I saw one that looked to be in White Bay of of JVD (can't find it now) and this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nb2V96z5vmU&t=1s looks to be in the bight at Norman.

I know there were old traditions and rituals of christening boats, and I know that there is probably all kinds of glass in the water from previous storms, but, geez, really? Ever stepped on glass in the surf?

Okay, I feel better. Rant over.

I agree. Deliberately letting broken glass fall into the water is pretty stupid. No matter where you are, there is a very real possibility of it washing up on a beach someday.

Just. Why???

Do they drink the champagne after breaking the bottle? Why would someone even do this?

You are not out of line, IMHO.

Thank you. I don't get it myself. Yes, they then serve it up.

I have never seen this before. It has nothing to do with nautical tradition.

Well, what's SUPPOSED to happen is they are not supposed to break the bottle when they do it. I've seen people do it that know what they are doing and they don't break the bottle. One of those things that you shouldn't do, if you don't know what you're doing..

So I read a few things about it. I love the internet! It is called "Sabering" a champagne bottle. Apparently it is done "to show off " or "to impress people". Funny.

As NCSailor said, It has nothing to do with nautical tradition.

I found this at https://kazzit.com/wine-blog/what-is-the-origin-and-history-of-sabering-champagne.html

Legend has it that this started with Napoleon Bonaparte and/or his men. As the victorious soldiers rode back home, people usually threw bottles of champagne to them as a form of celebration since Napoleon has declared several times that taking some champagne is necessary either in the euphoria of victory or in the trauma of defeat.

While on their horses, it would be cumbersome and difficult to begin to unwrap the foil and open each of them manual uncork the bottles of champagne. So, one of the soldiers successfully sabered his own bottle of champagne and others took the cue because of the convenience involved.

We did this many times on "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous"..back when I had a career.

You know there had to be a video.....

How to open a bottle of champagne with a sword.


Not on my boat.....

Vinnie at Corsairs does this, but the bottle top does not break off.

I'm not seeing how you can "saber" a bottle of champagne without breaking off a part of the glass. I saw this demonstrated at a winery in the Champagne region of France some years back, and cleanly breaking off the top ring of the bottle is what it's all about. Maybe if you carefully loosened the cork first, to the point where it was about to pop on its own, then you could just knock it the rest of the way with a saber. But then, the French would tell you that you are not really "sabering" the bottle if you do it that way. You know those French, they like things to be done the "right" way. :-)

In any case, I would hope we can all agree that if you are deliberately knocking broken glass into the water, you are being very irresponsible.

Hate to say this..but with all the stuff flown into to ocean by Irma and then Maria I serious doubt one clean cut bubbly bottle top will make much difference. Walker actually is farming glass on Anegada these days and letting the ocean smooth it out..

Mal--what does Walker plan on doing with the glass??

So far he's made some beautiful jewelery and windchimes..

I agree with you denverd0n. "if you are deliberately knocking broken glass into the water, you are being very irresponsible."

After watching quite a few videos on sabering now, I am even more convinced that this is just really stupid. A great way to end up with a shard of glass in your hands or face.

Here are a couple of sabering videos that people should watch before trying this. Might change their mind or at least persuade them to put eye protection on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Osa_kK7msSY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcvUcQIMpog

OK, thanks.

If the glass is off a boat at anchor it will be to deep for anyone to stand on and the salt and sand will smooth out the sharp edges in a few days.
The green sea glass everyone talks about are basically broken Heineken bottles that were thrown into the water

I’ve heard they scorch the bottle neck with a glass cutter and with a little blunt force it snaps it off.

Very interesting. I'm gonna go with that "few days" thought and hope that you are right, but continue to wear shoes in the water at the beach. I really just cringe at the thought of putting any garbage in the water, for many reasons, much less broken glass. Saw a pic the other day of a few empty Corona bottles left near the entry at The Baths. Just makes me feel a little sick inside. To me glass and boats go together like glass and swimming pools. Nothing bad happens until something bad happens. Just my opinion. Happy days everyone and thank you for your input.

let's not lose sight of the fact that glass is made from sand...

First, when "sabering" a bottle of champagne you DO NOT loosen the cork. Second, you DO NOT scorch or etch the bottle neck with a glass cutter. Third, yes, the "neck" of the bottle surround the cork breaks off so the cork and a small portion of the the bottle's neck flies off.

Opening the bottle of champagne with a saber is really a fairly simple "trick" to perform. You need a very cold bottle of champagne. The bottle must have been formed from two halves joined together (you have to look for the "seam") rather than a bottle without the seem. You expose the cork by removing the wrapping and "cage". You then hold the bottle at a 45 degree angle with one of the bottle seams facing up towards the sky. Then, using the blunt side of a saber or cutlass you slide the saber along the seam (in a quick and smooth motion) striking the raised portion of the neck causing the neck and cork to separate from the rest of the bottle. If done in one quick motion, the the raised neck portion of the bottle that surrounds the cork will break off cleanly. You are now free to drink the champagne.

Now this is a fun and fairly easy parlor trick to perform that usually gets applause and cheers from the onlookers but it should be performed with care and in an area with plenty of "open space" since the cork & bottle neck do fly off with relative velocity. Certainly you should always police up the cork and bottle neck after the trick and dispose of it properly.