Mulled Wine

Enjoyed during the Christmas season, mulled wine is served warm, making any holiday gathering more festive. With just six ingredients, this mulled wine recipe is incredibly easy to make at home.

Ingredients

Red wine 1(750 ml) bottle
Brandy 1/4 cup brandy
Sugar 3 tbsp
Cinnamon sticks 2 each
Cloves 4 each
Star anise 2
Cardamom pods 3 each
Orange 1 large whole orange
Orange 1 sliced into rounds

Directions

Step 1

With a fine grater, zest, and then juice the whole orange.

Step 2

To bruise the cardamom pods, press firmly with the flat side of a knife.

Step 3

Add red wine, brandy, zest, juice, orange slices, cloves, cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, and sugar to a large pot. Stir briefly to combine. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves, 1 to 2 minutes.

Step 4

Reduce heat to low; simmer until all flavours have melded, about 30 minutes. Avoid letting it bubble — you don’t want to boil off the alcohol.

Step 5

Pour through a fine-mesh sieve to remove and discard the orange slices, cloves, cinnamon sticks, and star anise.

Step 6

Serve warm in heatproof mugs, topped with your favourite garnishes.

Tips

During the simmering process, mulled wine loses a bit of alcohol, so we prefer red wines with some natural alcohol content, such as fruity and full-bodied wines. Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah are a few wine varietals that we think make the best mulled wine.