Mulled Wine

Mulled wine is a traditional drink, especially during the winter, and is enjoyed by the grownups to warm themselves when the weather turns colder. This wine is usually made at home, by adding an assortment of spices...

Mulled wine has been enjoyed as a holiday tradition for over a thousand years. There are many variations of this beverage, one of them being hot mulled wine, which are quite popular around the world. This is usually red wine which is mixed with spices and consumed warm.

This drink is served as a holiday special during Halloween and Christmas in the United States. Mulled wine is also popular in other countries like Germany, the Czech Republic, Italy, Romania and Latvia etc.

The recipe for is different in various countries. Spices like peppercorn (in Romania and the wine used is either red or white wine), black pepper, cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, etc. are used. Other ingredients used to sweeten the wine are honey, grape juice or black currant juice.

You can make your own wine at home because the process for making mulled wine is simple and hassle-free.

• Pour a wine of your preference (be it red or white wine) into a medium-sized saucepan (it should not react to the wine and make it burst) and place it on a burner. Heat the saucepan on a low flame, but make sure the wine doesn't boil.

• With a sharp knife, cut the zest of half an orange and remove the bitter white pith.
• With the help of a rolling pin, lightly pound the zest, just enough to release the aromatic oils.

• Squeeze a few drops of orange juice into the wine and add these pounded zest pieces.

• Add the mulling spices like cinnamon sicks, cloves and pepper to the wine. If you want a sweeter taste, add sugar or honey and stir the wine occasionally till the ingredients combine properly. Ensure that the wine does not boil over, as it would spoil the taste and flavor.

• After five minutes, the wine will become very hot and begin to steam over. Switch off the burner and pour the wine into mugs or glasses. Let the seasonings remain in the saucepan itself.

Ingredients

• 1 bottle red wine
• 1 orange
• 16 whole cloves
• 2 tablespoons runny honey
• Water - wineglass full
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 heaped teaspoon of ground nutmeg, allspice and coriander mixed together (or mixed ground Christmas cake spices)

Method
In a medium saucepan, heat the water on a medium flame. Add the spices, honey and cinnamon sticks. Cut the orange into eight pieces and push the cloves (two each) into the orange slices and add them to the water. Increase the heat and pour the wine into the saucepan.

When the wine begins to bubble up, turn off the heat and remove the pan from the burner. Allow the wine to cool down for at least one hour. You can add sugar to the wine if you prefer the wine to be sweet.

Warm the wine gently, before serving. Pour the wine into mugs or wine glasses, leaving the orange pieces and seasonings in the saucepan, and garnish it with a fresh stick of cinnamon, a slice of lemon or a sprig of mint. You can also add cognac or brandy to the concoction, but just make sure you don't boil the wine.

There must be a limited intake of mulled wine, or any other alcoholic beverage for that matter, as there are chances you might get drunk. Mulled wine is alcoholic, as it is just warmed and not boiled, the process which gets rid of alcohol. Enjoy drinking this wine with your family and friends on a cold winter evening, sitting by the cozy fireplace. Cheers!!!