Mulled wine is a classic festive drink that can easily be made ahead of time and as such is lovely and warming for a winter or night picnic.
The smell of hot wine and spices is very inviting and hard to resist!
It’s a traditional party drink in the UK at Christmas time and is also a good choice of alcoholic drink to keep warm with at Halloween or Bonfire Night.
You will find many recipe variations, according to the host or hostess and what they have in their cupboards! However, it is usually made with red wine and is similar to the German Gluewein or French vin chaud, in that it is combined with spices and is served hot.
For mulled wine you can choose any cheap and cheerful rustic red wine, something with a full fruit flavour. You don’t have to spend a lot of money. A Bulgarian Cabernet Sauvignon or Chilean Merlot works well.
To every two 750 ml bottles of red wine, add the following:
60g sugar (or you can use honey)
6 whole cloves stuck into a small orange
a cinnamon stick
grated nutmeg to taste
half an orange, sliced
half a lemon sliced
60ml brandy or a fruit liqueur like Grand Marnier or Cointreau (or use sloe or damson gin if you’ve made some for Christmas)
You can also add water or a citrus tea to dilute the drink and make it stretch further.
Put everything, except the brandy or liqueur, sloe/damson gin, into a stainless steel saucepan or a ceramic slow cooker and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Taste to see if you want the wine sweeter, and add more sugar to taste.
Do not let the mixture boil. If it boils it spoils.
Stir in the brandy, liqueur or sloe or damson gin. This is optional and if you want the drink to be less alcoholic you could substitute (more) citrus tea, or even add orange juice to make it more like a Punch.
Strain into heatproof flasks or keep on a low heat and ladle straight into heatproof glasses.
