Drink, Eat & Be Merry: Mulled Wine
Serves 10 | Simmer 60 mins
While some people use inexpensive wine to make this delicious drink that warms you from head toe, Radio Boka, a Spanish Tempranillo, makes a mean cup of mulled wine. Another option is Lindeman’s Bin 45 Cabernet Sauvignon. Both wines are priced under $12 a bottle, with Radio Boka offering a box of wine for under $40. A few items to remember when making it: do not let the wine boil, do not use a lid on the pot, and the longer you let it mull, the better it tastes. Typically, we let it mull for an hour or two.
Ingredients
3 oranges (washed)
1 lemon (washed)
1 cup sugar
10 whole cloves
10 cinnamon sticks
3 star anise
1 tsp rounded nutmeg or use 1 whole nutmeg sliced
1 vanilla pod
2 bottles of red wine
Instructions
- Squeeze juice from oranges and lemons and add to saucepan.
- Over low heat, combine sugar with juice in the pan.
- Cut up lemon and orange peels and add to pan.
- Add cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon sticks, stars of anise.
- Slice vanilla pod lengthways, scrape out vanilla and add to pan. Add vanilla bean.
- Simmer mixture for five minutes or so.
- Add one cup of red wine, mix well with sugar, juice, and spices and simmer for eight minutes, be sure not to boil, as you will boil the alcohol off.
- Add the remainder of the wine.
- Simmer for as long as you like—at least 30 mins.
- If you like, you can strain the mulled wine with a strainer or cheesecloth.
- Serve in heatproof glasses.
Notes
Make sure you hit the stores early last year it was difficult to find star anise and cinnamon sticks!
Find it online: https://www.cmfmag.ca/mulled-wine/