This Mulled Wine Recipe Brings the Holiday Market Magic Right to Your Door

If apocalyptic snow cut you off from civilization, what would be in your survival kit? Bottled water? Trail mix? Flashlights?

Okay, that may keep you, well, alive. But you won’t be in an especially good mood. And when the rescue team comes to dig you out of your snow cave, wouldn’t you like to have a warm, spicy, boozy beverage to offer them? If so, it’s time to get out the holiday spices and cheap red wine to brew up a batch of mulled wine.

Mulling wine is a set-it-and-forget-it enterprise that rewards you all day long. It’s cheap, easy, and forgiving. And after mulling (and sipping) a good gallon of wine while developing this recipe, I have some tips to get the most out of your brew.

The Best Wine for Mulling

It’s best not to overthink this. Your mulling wine should be red. It should be fruity. And it should be cheap. Jug and boxed wines, provided they weren’t made in a prison toilet, can be mulled into greatness. On the other hand, pricey (which in this context means more than $15) wines will lose all their nuance during mulling, no matter how lovely their notes of oak or blackbird song. Overly oak-flavored or tannic wines will make your brew unpleasantly bitter.

By the time the wine has been simmered, spiced, sweetened, and spiked, any affordable fruity red will taste great.

Mulling Spices

There are plenty of pre-blended mulling spices out there, and some of the are good, but it’s not only just as easy to whip up your own from an assortment of fresh spices, it’s also the guaranteed way to great (and personalized!) results.

My mulling mix, which is citrus- and anise-forward with rich, light spices, uses a cinnamon stick, allspice berries (or cloves), coriander seeds, cardamom pods, a star anise petal, and a couple blades of mace, though mace is admittedly hard to come by some a light grating of fresh nutmeg is another good option in its place.

I take the time to lightly toast my spices first, which deepens and develops their flavors. Then I get my wine simmering in a saucepan along with the spices and an orange’s worth of juice (plus the hulls of the orange itself for the flavor of the orange rind’s natural aromatic oils). You can either hold it at a bare simmer on the stovetop or transfer it to a slow-cooker for a fully hands-off mulling process.

When making your mulling mix, keep in mind that allspice and/or cloves provide the basic “mulled” flavor we’re used to. Cinnamon adds warmth and dimension, as does the spice chameleon coriander. Small amounts of fragrant spices like cardamom, anise, and mace will make your mix memorable. Feel free, though, to adapt the spice blend to your own tastes and spice cabinet, replacing mace with nutmeg, adding a coin of fresh or candied ginger, adding cloves, and more.

Don’t be afraid to add dried fruit as well: apricots, prunes, raisins, and cherries are especially welcome at the bottom of the mug; larger dried fruits should be diced before adding to the mug.

Other Additions

To get the most from your mulled wine, you’ll probably want some additional sugar, citrus, and alcohol. Steeping will bring out the tannic, sour flavors in any wine, so you’ll need some sweetness to round it out and make it drinkable. About 1/4 cup per bottle will cover you, though feel free to sweeten to taste. Vanilla sugar and brown sugar get the job done, but maple syrup adds powerful dimension to your brew. When I start steeping, I also squeeze an orange into the pot, then add the spent orange hull for the complex flavors in the peel.

I also like to add some extra alcohol in the form of brandy or another spirit to the wine shortly before serving, which will hit your nose before other aromas and lend the drink some wonderful complexity. Brandy of most any sort will do you here; plum or apricot brandy are really nice. One tablespoon per bottle is all you need, though you can of course add more for a harder drink.

December 2011

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