Mulled Wine – Spice Yourself Up This Christmas
Mulled wine. It’s such a Christmas tradition, just like cards, trees and gift-giving. It’s a warming drink with a long history that’s made a welcome comeback in modern times. Sometimes known as spiced wine, it’s always served hot, whether indoors or outside, for example, at the European Christmas markets that have become popular in the UK.
All of this conjures festive images of thick woollen jumpers, cosy log fires and snow. Mulled wine is excellent, either as a party icebreaker or just for two. So wrap up warm and make your own!
Origins
The Romans popularised mulled wine, though the origins probably go back further, to ancient Greece. That’s one reason why mulled wine is still sometimes called Ypocras, or Hippocras, after the Greek father of medicine, Hippocrates.
Indeed, mulled wine has many names and variants. These include Glühwein in German-speaking countries, Gløgg in Norway and Denmark, Glögg in Sweden and Iceland, and Glögl in Finland. In northern Italy, it’s called Vin Brulé, and in France, Vin Chaud. The Spanish Vino Caliente was the forerunner of Sangria.
In Britain, the Forme of Curye, a medieval cookery book dating from 1390, gives a recipe for mulled wine. There were similar writings in France and Spain around the same time. For centuries, mulled wine was popular throughout the year because it was thought to have medicinal and aphrodisiac properties. International Mulled Wine Day is now celebrated annually on 3rd March.
Make it!
Now you could buy a supermarket pre-mix that looks like a tea bag. Or even buy a ready-made bottle. While convenient, these commercial concoctions are mostly super-ordinary and expensive compared to what you can easily make yourself.
So with that in mind, here’s a recipe to get you into the Yuletide spirit. It also has the advantage of using up any dull bottles of wine or leftovers you may have.
There are non-alcoholic versions if you prefer, but you won’t get that essential pink-cheeked glow.
Recipe for 4-6
Your Mulled Wine may look a bit like this.
Virtually any red wine 1 will do. Don’t waste money; use something that has fruit and alcohol – it needn’t have any other redeeming features.
Pour the entire bottle (750ml) of wine into a large saucepan or jam pan.
Use a gradual heat and get it to around blood temperature (37°C) before adding the ingredients.
Don’t boil the wine because that will spoil the flavour and also drive the alcohol off.
While that’s heating, stir it occasionally and prepare the spices and fruit listed below.
Two sliced unwaxed lemons;
Two sliced unwaxed oranges;
One small sliced unpeeled apple;
Pinch of nutmeg;
Six cloves;
Four large cinnamon sticks;
One teaspoon of ground allspice.
Don’t worry about exact measures, and feel free to experiment. As a minimum, the cinnamon and cloves are essential.
Once the wine is warm, add the spices and fruit.
Now throw in 100ml of cheap Sherry, Madeira or Port, whatever you have to hand. Alternatively, you can use 50ml of Brandy or Grand Marnier, or up that to 100ml if you prefer an explosive depth-charge effect.
Now for the mulling: keep the mix below boiling, over low heat for around ten minutes.
Finally, sweeten it. Blend in two tablespoons of honey, or slowly add a little sugar to taste.
Let it stand for five minutes, and it’s ready to serve.
Serving
The resultant mulled wine will be around 15-18% ABV. This strength can be deceptive – if you fall over, no one will believe you when you blame the icy conditions.
Serving: strain the coarse ingredients from the mulled wine and serve – using a large cafetière is an ideal way to do this. Then use heat-resistant glass mugs with a handle if you have them, and optionally add a cinnamon stick to each glass for decoration.
Santé!
Notes
- You can also make a white mulled wine. If doing so, use Madiera or Vodka to fortify it; otherwise, it will look a bit sludgy in colour. Mind you, if it’s outside in the dark, who’ll notice?