As a lover of wine, I was immediately intrigued when I saw this novel bit of mentalism advertised. Sure, the plot has been around a long time, but the idea of using a wine cork as a prop sounded like a good one. In essence this clever trick enables you to tell which hand a spectator conceals a wine cork in – which sounds like a rather basic effect. But, as people who have seen other variations on this effect performed will know, this can be the starting point for an entertaining routine.
What do you get?
A really nicely made gimmicked wine cork – which will withstand examination – but why would anyone want to – it’s a wine cork! And a little something to make the magic possible. And a DVD with instructions and tips.
What do we like?
For anyone performing in a bar or restaurant environment, this is a really ‘natural’ prop to have around. And if, like me, you have the odd glass of wine at home it would fit in there too without drawing attention to itself. Some people have complained that the size of the cork means you could tell which hand it is in just by looking, but unless your spectator has very small hands I don’t think this would be a problem at all.
The props take up very little space so it is ideal for walkaround, but a stage presentation with multiple spectators is also described.
The DVD
This is the weakest part of the whole thing. It has Japanese and English explanations – but you have to guess which is which if you’re English speaking since the first menu is in Japanese! Fortunately it is easy to navigate through both versions once you’ve got past the first screen.
He starts off by explaining why he doesn’t like mentalism – and why his own effect is better than that – which seems both overly harsh (on mentalism) and bold (about his own effect). The explanation at times feels a bit laboured – and he seems to get confused about which section of the DVD he is in at one point – but this may be because English isn’t his first language. Thankfully the mechanics of the trick are straightforward so this isn’t too much of a problem, but I found his details of the routine were of almost no help.
Does Vino make sense?
Probably, yes! This isn’t a radical new method or something never seen before, but it seems to me a really nice and logical prop for performing this type of routine which would suit certain performing environments perfectly. If you have a different performing style or context, you might go for one of the many variations on this effect. In fact the company behind Vino Sense actually make a ‘kids show’ version called Moloko using sweets too! And we rather like Silver Swindle which achieves a similar effect (using a different method) with a coin. But as long as you have enough confidence to work out your own routine, this is definitely worth a sniff.
Available from MagicDirect for £36 (at time of writing).