A crumbled cork need not spoil the enjoyment of the wine. If the cork has been broken when opening the wine bottle, the cork crumbs should be filtered out when pouring into the wine glasses.

For larger pieces of cork, a normal kitchen strainer will do, but if you want to prevent small pieces from sneaking into the wine glass through the holes, there is a better and more thorough filtering method.

You pour the wine through a coffee filter. The coffee filter has tiny pores that are small enough not to let any coffee powder through. So the wine flows well through the filter and even the smallest pieces of cork get caught in the filter.

It is best to use a fresh paper filter stabilised with a funnel. When using metal coffee filters, which are usually used for making coffee, there is a risk that some coffee aroma will be absorbed by the wine.