Wall-mounted or tabletop bottle opener: which one for your home bar

An original wall-mounted bottle opener has the charm of a neighbourhood bar: screwed in once and for all, it waits for the bottle in the same spot every evening. A tabletop opener moves from the table to the garden and can put on a show. Before drilling into the wall of your home bar, compare the two on five points: mounting, caps, decor, housing, show factor. The bottle opener comparison gives the big picture; here we settle wall versus table, with the Beer Mortar playing the tabletop role.

In short: a wall opener suits a fixed bar corner (garage, cellar, patio) where you're allowed to drill and have somewhere to catch the caps. A tabletop opener suits renters, frequent movers, or anyone who wants an object that gets the table talking, like the Beer Mortar or Le 19e Trou.

The wall-mounted opener: a fixed point that never goes missing

A wall-mounted opener screws onto a wall, a post, the side of a cabinet or a door frame, as in the cover photo. You slide the edge of the cap under the hook, push the bottle down, and the cap comes off. It takes little force, since the wall absorbs the effort.

Its main strength: it never disappears. No "has anyone seen the opener?" at the end of the night. Our comparison files it as the decor option, often cast iron, very sturdy. Its flaw is just as clear: it stays put. You can't take it on a picnic, and it opens nothing at the far end of the garden.

What to check before drilling

• The surface: a plasterboard partition doesn't hold a screw like a solid wall or a wooden post. Choose suitable wall plugs, because the opener takes a downward pull at every opening.
• The height: at chest height, the bottle stays upright during the move and the foam doesn't end up on your shoes.
• The clearance: you need room under the hook for your hand and the bottle, with no furniture in the way.
• Your home: if you rent, holes in the wall are often settled at move-out inspection. A pergola post or a piece of furniture you own raises fewer questions.

And where do the caps go?

A removed cap drops at the foot of the wall, then rolls under the nearest cabinet. The handiest wall models include a catcher: a tray, a box or a magnet under the hook. Otherwise, a bucket or box underneath does the job. Collected caps can go into craft projects, covered in what to do with beer bottle caps.

The tabletop opener: it follows you, and it can put on a show

A tabletop opener lives on a counter, a shelf or the aperitif table. You pick it up to open a bottle, then put it away. Its limit is the flip side of the wall model: it can get lost, or end up in a guest's bag. Its upside: it moves rooms with you, and it can be more fun than a metal hook.

In between, there's the under-counter version, as on some Japanese trains where an opener is screwed under the table with its instructions drawn on a plate. It's the wall-mount idea at table height: worth considering if your home bar is a piece of furniture rather than a wall.

The Beer Mortar: the tabletop object that makes everyone look up

The Beer Mortar is a rocket bottle opener in reinforced ABS plastic, 17 cm tall and 120 g. You set the bottle on a stable table, place the mortar on the cap, and strike the piston with your palm. The internal spring does the work, and the cap takes off up to about 3 metres with a loud PCHHHIT. The mechanism is explained in how the beer mortar works.

In a home bar, it doesn't replace the wall opener for the tenth bottle of the night: it's for the moment you want to make the table smile. Always aim at the sky, never at a person, an animal or a screen, and keep a clear metre above you (no chandelier, no low ceiling). A launched cap can hurt at short range. Keep it out of children's reach.

For a golf-themed bar corner, Le 19e Trou plays a different card: you open the bottle, then the articulated golfer putts the cap straight into the hole. It works with standard caps (33 cl and 25 cl bottles) and needs no batteries.

Wall-mounted or tabletop: the comparison at a glance

• Mounting: the wall model needs drilling; the tabletop one needs nothing.
• Risk of loss: none for the wall model; real for the tabletop one, especially at parties.
• Cap collection: plan it under the wall model (tray, magnet, bucket); built in on Le 19e Trou; with the Mortar, the cap flies off and gets picked up afterwards.
• Decor: the wall model is part of the decor; the tabletop one is on display for the aperitif.
• Housing: the wall model is easier if you own the place; the tabletop one suits renters.
• Show factor: discreet for the wall model; from a simple move to a full show depending on the tabletop model.

Nothing stops you from having both: a wall opener for everyday use, a tabletop one for evenings with guests. To kit out the rest of the counter, see our beer aperitif accessories, and for the most surprising models, our selection of unusual bottle openers.

Setting up your home bar

• A stable surface: the bottle set down or held upright, on something that doesn't wobble.
• A container for caps within reach: their edges are sharp, and they're better in a box than underfoot.
• Water and alcohol-free drinks on the same counter: the bar is there for everyone.
• Nothing at child height: openers, caps and bottles stored out of their reach.

A good-looking opener is there to open a bottle when you feel like one, not to open more of them. Selling alcohol to minors is prohibited in France. Alcohol abuse is dangerous for your health; please drink responsibly.

Prefer an opener that follows you out of the house? Read our guide to the keychain bottle opener. And if you're caught with no tool at all, there's how to open a beer without a bottle opener.

Frequently asked questions