Writing and Photos by Greg Mays.
Last month, I introduced you to a warm drink for fall, and this month, we’re almost in to winter full swing, so it’s time for a very traditional winter punch: Mulled Wine. You’ll find Mulled Wine to be another fun stove-top drink, and guests at your holiday parties can serve themselves easily.
The word mull refers to the steeping process that this drink goes through, really to add spices and sweetener and to simmer until all the ingredients are combined. If you’ve never had Mulled Wine, which is less popular in North America than in the U.K., it’s something like a cider or tea in its experience.
If you have taken the time to explore Mulled Wine recipes much, you’ve probably seen hundreds and hundreds on the web, ranging from the overly neat (using cheesecloth filtering for the spices) to a looser, more casual, throw-whatever-you-want-in-the-pot recipe.
World-wide, there are several varieties of Mulled wine, from Glögg to Glühwein, but we’re going to stick with the more traditional English variant for this recipe. You’ll likely note a favorite ingredient in the list below, and as you try your Mulled Wine this holiday season, you can easily adjust the recipe as you like – I’ll probably add some black peppercorns to the tea ball and double the cinnamon sticks next time I brew mine. You might also consider replacing one of the bottles of wine with Port.
It’s important to remember this does take some time to prepare – at least 15 minutes of simmering – before the ingredients begin to truly take to the wine, so make sure you give yourself a little prep time before your party starts.
Enjoy – and happy holidays!Greg Mays is the Managing Editor of www.simple-cocktails.com.
- 2 bottles red wine
- 1 cup fresh-squeezed orange juice (which is about 2-3 oranges)
- 1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 4 cinnamon sticks
- small tea ball filled with about 10 whole cloves
- 6 whole nutmegs
- 1/8 cup orange zest
- Combine the above in a sauce pan.
- Simmer all together on low heat for at least 15 minutes. Leave the burner on very low heat for your holiday parties or transfer to a CrockPot to keep warm and serve. Ladle into mugs with orange peel garnishes.
- Outside of the tea ball, all of the ingredients will free-floating in this drink, but the solids (like the cinnamon sticks and nutmegs) are large and easy enough to avoid when you’re sipping your wine.
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