Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits has been appointed as on-trade sales partner for the Coravin Wine System, a technology owned by Coravin to enable users to pour a glass of wine without pulling the cork.

The system works by inserting a needle through the cork and pushing argon into the bottle as the beverage is extracted, which in turn re-pressurises the bottle. As the Argon is inert, it will not react with the wine. Once the needle is pulled back, cork's natural spongy properties re-seals the bottle.

This proprietary patented technology will enable bars and restaurants to expand their by-the-glass offerings, wine tastings, and pairings. This reduces waste and does not compromise the quality of the drink.

Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits corporate wine division executive vice-president and general manager Steve Slater said: “This is an incredible sales tool for Southern Glazer’s restaurant customers. By using the Coravin Wine System, our customers can offer tastes and glasses of countless wines that guests otherwise would never expect to see sold by the glass.

"[The Coravin Wine System] enables users to pour a glass of wine without pulling the cork."

"Offering the Coravin Wine System as part of our broader wine portfolio is one more thing that sets us apart from any other distributor and reinforces our leadership in wine sales.”

Coravin CEO Frederic Levy said: “Thousands of restaurants have already adopted Coravin to power their wine programmes. Southern Glazer’s has an outstanding reputation for sales, service, and results, which makes it the perfect partner to help bring Coravin wine by the glass lists to even more restaurants all over the country.”

Coravin products will be available in states such as Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, and Hawaii.

Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits is a distributor with operations in 44 US states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and the Caribbean. It employs more than 20,000 people.

Coravin is a privately held company located in Burlington, Massachusetts.