Equipment

Wine Glasses

Wine glasses are like your hockey stick. Make sure you have a wine glass that feels comfortable in your hand. Hockey WineUp recommends using a Universal Wine Glass for all types of wine. Just like your hockey stick, it is important to know how to hold your glass of wine.

Be sure to purchase Universal Wine Glasses that can be put in the dishwasher – this is the safest way to wash wine glasses without breaking them.

Wine Key

If your wine glass is like your hockey stick, your wine key is like your skates. You might not feel comfortable using a wine key at first, but practice makes perfect and this is an essential piece of equipment for your Hockey WineUp Ritual.

Decanter

The first step of the Hockey WineUp Ritual is to decant your wine after opening it. Most wine is made for drinking today and will be considered “young”. Decanting “young” wines will allow for air to interact with it releasing more aromas and flavours. This Universal Wine Glass article by Jancis Robinson has a great section about decanting wine and what you are trying to achieve by decanting “young” and “old” wines.

Wine Stopper

There are two very good reasons for having a wine stoppers in your Hockey WineUp bag. First, if you have decided that you are not going to continue drinking the bottle of wine you can use a stopper for sealing the wine once you have returned it to the bottle. Second, using a stopper with a decanter is important if you are drinking older wines that are more delicate and could become damaged from increased contact with air – this won’t be as much of a concern at Hockey WineUp as we will mostly feature younger wines that you can drink now.

Funnel

A funnel will make pouring your wine from your decanter back into the bottle much easier!

Ice Bucket

An ice bucket is the ideal way for cooling white wine, bubbly wine, and red wine that is too warm. Your Ice Bucket should be filled with half ice and half water. White wines and bubbly will usually take about 15 minutes to drop down to around 49°F/9°C if it has been at room temperature.

Jigger

It looks like a shot glass, but is used to measure liquid. Find a 4 oz jigger and use it until you are comfortable pouring 3-4 oz glasses of wine without it. You will also be able to use the jigger for measuring out cocktails that use wine, ex. French 75

Microfiber Cloth

You might want to give a light polish of your wine glass prior to your Hockey WineUp Ritual. Having microfiber wine glass polishing cloth is the best way to achieve clear glassware.

*Use steam from a kettle for a final polish and wipe once your glassware is removed from the dishwasher.

Coasters

Would you play hockey without a cup? Coasters will protect your wood, so use them.

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