Easy Spiced Mulled Wine

Now the nights drop in temperature and when it’s dark so early, all I want to do is snuggle with a warm fluffy blanket and sip on something warm. My go-to is normally a glass of red wine – there’s something so nice about it! This Spiced Mulled Wine takes my regular glass of wine to the next level; it’s warm, spicy, and so easy to make!

I first tried spiced mulled wine when I went on a Christmas wonderland vacation with my family a few years ago. I was so lucky to join them on a trip around Germany and Austria where we visited Christmas markets and I tried gluhwein for the first time! It was so warm, spicy and was served straight from the stall into small styrofoam mugs that kept your hands warm! At the time we were living in the hot climates of Abu Dhabi so it surely was a shock to be in the cold and I most definitely needed my fair share of hot drinks to make it through!

How long do I simmer mulled wine

Spiced Mulled Wine is the perfect cozy night in a drink! It’s a really hands-off type – you add all of the ingredients into a pot to simmer for 15-minutes up to 3-hours. That’s it! The longer it simmers, the more concentrated the flavor will be and spicier it gets. For example, I simmered for ~2.5 hours which made it very spiced and reduced the mulled wine by about half. The thing to note is that how long you simmer means that it reduces the amount of spiced mulled wine that’s left. Because I simmered for longer, my mulled wine was reduced to about 6 cups, so enough for 2 ginormous glasses.

What does mulled wine taste like?

What I loved the most about this spiced mulled wine was that each sip was uniquely different. At first I could taste the star anise licorice flavor, which quickly transformed into a punch of cloves, and ended with a trickle of cinnamon and cabernet sauvignon. The next sip I had the notes of brandy which then moved into orange and cloves. The next sip completely different! I enjoy when my drinks and/or food has so many different notes that it becomes a flavor game of which flavor can you taste now!

Tips for making mulled wine

• ORANGE – Peel the orange first. Simmering the skins can make it bitter. You could always add dried orange instead.
• MULLING SPICES – This is an important ingredient for the mulled wine. If you can’t find mulling spices, you can always add more cinnamon sticks, cloves, and allspice. Adding dried ginger, peppercorns, and star anise will add extra unique flavors of spice.

INGREDIENTS for 2-4 Glasses of Spiced Mulled Wine

750 ML Bottle of Red Wine (I used a Cabernet Sauvignon)

½ Cup Brandy

¼ Cup Sugar

1 TBSP Mulling Spices (use code ELISECOOKS20 at Firepot Nomadic Teas for 20% off the Mulling Spices I used, until 12/14/20)

10 Cloves

1-2 Star Anise (if you’re not a fan of licorice or star anise, use 1 or none)

2 Cinnamon Sticks

1 Orange (peeled and halved)

Garnish

1 Orange (sliced)

Cinnamon Sticks

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Put all ingredients in a pot.
2. Low simmer the mixture for at least 15-minutes and up to 3 hours. (The longer you simmer, the more concentrated the mulled wine will become. And the spicier!)
3. Pour the spiced mulled wine into mugs (through a strainer) and decorate with orange slices and cinnamon sticks.
4. Cheers!

Want to change this easy spiced mulled wine up?

• Use cognac or triple sec instead of brandy.
• Swap for brown sugar.