Mulled Wine

Red wine warmed with orange, cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, vanilla and cognac. Spiced, sweet and deeply warming, with a bright citrus note from the orange running through it. The smell alone is reason enough to make it!

Prep5

Cook20

Total25

Servings

DifficultyEasy

Ingredients

750 ml red wine a decent Côtes du Rhône works
2 orange 1 sliced, 1 juiced
100 gr caster sugar adjust to taste
2 cinnamon sticks
4 cloves
2 star anise
3 cardamom pods
1 vanilla pod
50 ml cognac or brandy, for extra warmth

Equipment

Instructions

Prep your spices

Lightly crush the cardamom pods with the flat of a knife. Split the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape out the seeds (both pod and seeds go in). Slice one orange into rounds.

Combine everything

Pour the wine into a large saucepan. Add the sugar, orange slices, orange juice and all the spices. Stir well to dissolve the sugar.

Heat gently, don't boil

Put the pan over a low heat and warm through for 15–20 minutes. You want it steaming and fragrant, but if it boils you'll cook off the alcohol and end up with expensive fruit juice. Keep it just below simmering point.

Taste and adjust

After 15 minutes, taste. Too sweet? A squeeze more orange juice. Not sweet enough? A bit more sugar. Want it stronger? Splash in the cognac now.

Strain and serve

Strain out the spices and orange through a fine sieve. Ladle into heatproof glasses or mugs while hot. Add an orange slice or cinnamon stick to each glass if you're feeling decorative.

Notes

For the wine, don't use anything expensive, but don't use paint stripper either. A basic French red, Côtes du Rhône, Merlot or even Beaujolais, works perfectly. The spices do the heavy lifting.
French mulled wine is less sweet than German glühwein. Start with 100g and adjust, some like it barely sweetened, others want it properly syrupy.
Cinnamon, cloves and orange are non-negotiable. Everything else is fair game, some recipes add fresh ginger, nutmeg or a bay leaf. Experiment.
For an alcohol-free version, use red grape juice instead of wine and add a little lemon juice for acidity. Works surprisingly well for kids or if you're driving.
You can make this a few hours ahead and reheat gently before serving. It tastes better once the spices have had time to infuse.

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