Mulled wine

Crikey, I've just looked at the Jamie Oliver recipe. It nearly convinced me, but 200g sugar!?!?!?

Are they all (both) driving?or would the non driver have welcomed a 'real' mulled wine?.....

Yangste1007

Yes, Jamie Oliver recipe. Easy, can be mostly done in advance and delicious.

Oh yes - forgot those non-alcoholic ones. Also Elderberry - must be the darkest of the juices, and full of vitamin C! Yum.

For the adults a shot of a decent brandy or rum can also be added in my method as described above.

I live in a wine growing area and wine is cheap. German supermarkets do sell little bags, like teabags, of a spice mix which you just infuse in the warm wine.

My method, when I'm only making it for the two of us, is to cut up an orange, a lemon, or any other citrus fruit I have to hand, into fairly thin slices, add a stick of cinnamon and a couple of cloves, pour over about half a litre of good red wine and heat it up in the microwave, on a low wattage to give it time to develop the spicy taste and to prevent it boiling.

I then pour it into the glasses the Germans use for tea (double sided if possible, but mine aren't) and stir in a spoonful of honey.

The mulled wine you get at the Christmas markets (when there are any) is no longer as sweet as they used to make it. I can't comment on the ready made bottles as I don't buy them. Last year some new variations appeared - Hugo (with elderflower, I should think) and other types with a white wine base.

It's so easy to make yourself, I don't see the point of buying the made up stuff.

I buy mulled wine and some ginger wine. I put the mulled wine in a Pyrex jug for a few minutes in the microwave - you do not want it to boil. And then add it to each persons glass with a little tot of ginger wine in the glass first if the person wants it. Marvelous. Any mulled wine left over makes excellent liquid for a slow cooker meat dish i.e. pork shoulder steaks, packet of chopped mixed peppers and mulled wine. Serve with rice or baked potatoes.

Not a fan of mulled wine, but I do make several different flavoured gins for Christmas. I always make raspberry gin, and this year I have also made blackberry gin and seville orange gin! I start them off in October or November and then they are ready to filter, decant and put in pretty bottles for Christmas. Several of my friends bring their own pretty bottles and get flavoured gin for Christmas :-) I usually make sloe gin, but didn't this year. Other half had a serious stroke and can't be left alone, so mooching along country paths and through woodlands was off the menu this year.

Great recipe here:
www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/fruit-recipes/jamie-s-mulled-wine/

Filthy stuff!

Nansnet Your recipe is pretty much the same as mine, minus the star anise. I found it in my GM cookery book. Over the years I have 'improved' on it a little with a (generous) splash of brandy or rum. It smells wonderful, tastes delicious and packs a punch - perfick!

LauraNorder
You were just unlucky.I have bought Lidl mulled from across the 'water' and in the UK. It beats the more expensive ones.

I make my own that way I can leave out Cloves which taste of the dentist to me. My other tip would buy a fruity Red Wine not oaked .

My favourite is from Lidl but always add a tot or two of brandy before heating it up.This together with brandy butter melting over hot mince pies is what I call xmas

I've just remembered that I used to make my own Baileys!
It's amazing!

Mulled cider for choice for me but thanks for the mulled apple/fruit juice tip as I'm off alcohol at the mo.
I buy mulling syrup as it simplifies the whole process, is useful for spur of the moment warming drinks and can be used for wine, cider or fruit juice.

Aepgirl

Give me a G&T or Jack and Ginger any day, rather than mulled wine.

Have you tried the new flavoured Jack Daniels?
There's honey, cinnamon and apple.
I'm not that keen on the cinnamon one, like the honey one (which surprise me) and haven't tried the apple yet.

Anything with cloves reminds me of the dentist, so no thanks.

Yes, Jamie Oliver recipe. Easy, can be mostly done in advance and delicious.

A nice alternative for teetotallers and children is Finnish Hot Berry Juice, same brown sugar, types of spices, orange etc but use berry juice, cranberry, blackcurrent, blueberry etc. instead of wine. Delicious!

Give me a G&T or Jack and Ginger any day, rather than mulled wine.

I have made my own and bought the ready made too. Best one ever was from IKEA a few years ago £1 a bottle, worst was last years offering from Lidl which ended up in the garden fly catchers in July.

A friend made mulled wine, and gave me a small bottle.

I found it very rich and sweet, and drank it with lemonade to tone it down a little.

I make a type of German mulled wine called feuerzangenbowle which uses a special rack - like a miniature bath rack - to hold an old fashioned sugar cone over a bowl of spiced wine; the sugar is doused in high strength spirits (traditionally rum but I don't think it matters as long as it's strong enough) and then set alight to melt and drip into the bowl below. Delicious!!!

Each year our tiny village has a Duck Race, where we throw yellow plastic Ducks into the stream - with prizes for the winners.

This is followed by Mulled Wine.... 8 bottles every year.... I buy Co Op Mulled wine which is pretty good.... adding clementines and star anise...

But here's the tip... I warm it in a saucepan then decant it into my slow cooker ... from which I serve it with a soup ladle.

Works brilliantly every year. Apart from this year of course... when we can't do it.

Merry Christmas everyone !

I used to make gallons of the stuff for our community carol service and it's simple! Also used to do mulled apple juice too!
A bottle of cheap plonk is the best! Add brown sugar to taste, then sling in sliced orange, a cinnamon stick or two, a few star anise if you like it and any other spices you like then warm it through to blood heat and keep it at that temp if you can. Whatever you do, don't boil it or it not only gets rid of the alcohol, but will taste bitter.

Since going teetotal I make a jazzed up mulled cider. Kopparberg or Strongbow dark fruit AF cider one of those little mulled wine mix bags and one of the dried mix. All in the slow cooker. House smells gorgeous and even husband says it is very passable. Lovely with dark chocolate covered ginger Christmas cake/biscuits in all the shops now. Reminds me of my past Christmases in Bavaria!