How to Mull Wine + 3 Mulled Wine (and Cider) Recipes for Holiday Entertaining

Mulled wine is a seasonal staple but although it’s easy to make it’s also easy to spoil. Here are my top tips for how to mull wine plus recipes for mulled wine and mulled cider that your holiday guests will love:

Mulled Wine Basics

What type of wine?

You can mull white wine (though I’d rather mull cider – see below) but most people prefer a red. It needs to be inexpensive, obviously, but that doesn’t mean it should be undrinkable so don’t just chuck in the tail ends of bottles you may have hanging round the kitchen. And you don’t want a wine that’s too heavily oaked though that’s relatively unlikely if it’s cheap.

There’s a fair amount of inexpensive own-label Corbières I’ve noticed lately which would fit the bill perfectly or try a basic Portuguese red. Most recipes add water as well which brings down the cost and stops guests getting too plastered but adjust the amount to the strength of your wine.

What type of spices?

Whole spices work better than ground ones otherwise you can get an unpleasant powdery sensation as you drink. Cinnamon is probably the most popular spice but you could also use cloves, cardamom (lightly crush a few pods) ginger and nutmeg. Some recommend star anise but use sparingly if you don’t want your mulled wine to taste of aniseed.

You can also buy mulling spices wrapped in muslin (better than in teabags) though make sure they’re not from a dusty old packet. Look for a ‘use by’ date. A better option, if you’re short of time, is to buy a mulled wine cordial like Belvoir’s - also great for those who simply want a mulled drink without the alcohol.

Other additions to mulled wine

Sugar - Most recipes call for sugar but you might want to add a little less than they suggest if your wine is particularly soft and fruity or if you add port. White or demerara sugar is fine - soft brown sugar adds a slightly fudgier flavour which works well in the recipe below. Some people (including Delia) advocate honey but I tend to think it has too dominant a flavour.

Citrus - Orange is particularly good with mulled wine. It could be a whole orange studded with cloves, a strip of orange peel or a dash of an orange-flavoured liqueur such as Cointreau, Grand Marnier or Triple Sec. Not orange juice - or any other fruit juice - as you want your mulled wine to be clear, not cloudy. And without ‘bits’.

Extra booze - Personally I like a good slug of ruby port in my mulled wine - not the cheapest out there but a vintage character or ‘Special Reserve’ type or, if you have some, some Late Bottled Vintage. Brandy is also a common addition but if you add port you don’t need it. Ginger wine or a ginger liqueur may also add the kick you’re looking for; some sloe or damson gin an extra dash of plummy flavour but don’t make the mistake of adding too many different types of booze. More isn’t necessarily better ;-)

The art of mulling

This is the important bit. You need to infuse the wine long enough with the spices to take on their flavour but DON’T ON ANY ACCOUNT LET THE MIXTURE BOIL as you’ll be left with a bitter taste. Slow and low is the way to go. And it shouldn’t be served piping hot, just comfortably - and comfortingly - warm.

Some (including Jamie) recommend making a syrup first with the spices, sugar and wine but again there’s the risk that you’ll bring out the bitterness of a wine by boiling it. A better option is to make a spice infused sugar syrup as advocated by Susy Atkins in her excellent How to Make your own Drinks.

Cups or glasses?

Glasses are more traditional - and attractive - but unless you have a set with its own metal holders you’re probably better off with small coffee cups. A ladle with a spout is useful to dispense mulled wine at speed if that doesn’t sound too Pippa Middleton-ish or pour into a jug first before you top up the cups or glasses

Three Festive Mulled Wine Recipes

(and two bonus recipes for mulled cider and winter sangria!)

Orange and cardamom mulled wine

Traditional carol singers’ fare and the nicest of Christmas treats, mulled wine is surprisingly easy to make from scratch. Try and use whole spices so far as possible so you don’t get a slightly grainy texture to the punch 

Makes 14-16 cups or glasses

2 x 75cl bottles of full bodied red wine
510ml (18 fl oz) water
1 unwaxed orange studded with cloves + a few orange slices for serving
thinly pared rind from half a lemon
2 cinnamon sticks
6 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
A little freshly grated nutmeg
95g (3 1/2 oz) soft brown sugar
100ml (3 1/2 fl oz) orange flavoured liqueur such as Cointreau or Grand Marnier

Place the wine and water in a large saucepan. Add the orange, lemon rind, spices and sugar and heat gently until almost boiling. Turn down to the lowest possible heat (the surface should barely tremble) and simmer for half an hour to allow the spices to infuse thoroughly. Add the orange liqueur or brandy then reheat gently. Strain into a large, warmed bowl and float a few thin slices of orange on top. Ladle into small cups or glasses. Serve with mince pies.

Cheat’s mulled wine

Purists will disapprove of using mulled wine sachets but you can find quite classy ones in good delis. And, if you’re pushed, it does save time.

Serves 6-8

1 75cl bottle of full bodied red wine (a cheap Spanish red would be ideal)
150 ml Vintage Character, Special Reserve or other inexpensive ruby port
150 ml water
4-5 tbsp granulated or caster sugar, preferably unrefined
1-2 mulled wine sachets
1 orange

Pour the red wine, port and water into a saucepan. Add 4 tbsp of the sugar and 1 sachet of the mulled spice. Pare 3 thin strips of orange rind off the orange with a vegetable peeler or a sharp knife and add to the saucepan. Heat very slowly until the sugar has dissolved, check for sweetness adding more sugar or another sachet of mulled wine spices if you think it needs it. Turn up the heat until the wine is almost at boiling point but DON’T LET IT BOIL or you’ll spoil the flavour. Turn the heat off, cover the pan and leave for 30 minutes for the flavours to infuse.

Mulled cider with sweet roasted apples

Even though I love mulled wine I’m not sure I don’t love this even better. Use a good quality dry cider not a modern ‘white’ cider or draught cider which can be too strong.

Makes 12-14 servings

1 litre premium English cider
250ml Somerset cider brandy or calvados
1.5 litres cloudy English apple juice
A thinly pared strip of lemon rind
2 sticks of cinnamon
8 cloves

For the roasted apples
10-12 small Cox’s apples
About 75g light muscovado sugar
100ml premium English cider

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/Gas 5. Wash and core the apples and score them around the middle. Put them in a baking dish and stuff the centre of each with the sugar. (It’s easiest to do this with the handle of a spoon or fork). Splash over the cider and roast in the oven until soft and beginning to split (45-50 minutes).

Meanwhile put the cider, cider brandy or calvados, and apple juice in a large pan, together with the lemon zest, cinnamon and cloves. Heat through gently then leave over a very low heat without allowing the mixture to boil. When the apples are ready, tip them and their juices into the mulled cider. Taste, adding a little extra sugar if you think it needs it. Serve straight from the pan into heat resistant glasses or cups or transfer to a warmed bowl.

Bonus recipe: Winter Sangria

A refreshingly cool alternative to mulled wine. You’ll need to adjust how much cordial and mulled wine you use depending on how fruity your wine already is.

Makes 10 glasses

1 bottle inexpensive, full bodied red wine 
Juice of 2 mandarin oranges (about 5-6 tbsp) 
4-6 tbsp spiced berry cordial
4-6 tbsp Grand Marnier or other orange-flavoured liqueur
4 whole mandarin oranges, thinly sliced
1 unwaxed lemon, thinly sliced
3 dark red plums, stoned and sliced (optional)
1 fresh pomegranate
400-500ml chilled cranberry and pomegranate juice

Pour the wine and the mandarin orange juice into a large bowl. Add 4 tbsp each of the spiced berry cordial and Grand Marnier and taste, adding extra cordial or liqueur if you think it needs it. Add 3 of the sliced mandarin oranges, the sliced lemon and plums, if using, stir and refrigerate for several hours. When you’re ready to serve, halve the pomegranate and scoop out the seeds, carefully retaining the juice and discarding any pith. Pour the juice and half the seeds into the sangria along with the cranberry and pomegranate juice, stir and taste again adding more juice or Grand Marnier if needed. Top with the remaining mandarin slices and seeds and serve.

* If you want to make this for larger numbers and can’t fit it in the fridge leave the base, covered, in a cold place like the garage then add the chilled juice from the fridge

See also:

The Best Wines to Pair With Your Christmas Dinner

8 Great Drinks to Match with Mince Pies

Photo © Anikonaann at fotolia.com

The best wines (and other drinks) to pair with a cheeseboard

Advertising feature: What wine would you pair with a cheeseboard? Red, I’m guessing, or maybe a port? But stop for a minute and think because it’s not just one cheese we’re talking about but three or four at least, which may range from a delicate goats cheese to a pokey blue.

So, assuming you’re not going to pour a different drink with each cheese, what do you do, especially If you’re a cheeselover? While bland supermarket cheeses cause few problems for wine (apart from being a bit boring), flavoursome farmhouse cheesescan strip the flavour out of them. But there are ways round it . . .

I’ve been helping Pipers Farm match drinks to their cheese boxes and have been drawing on the natural wines and ciders they stock, many of them from fellow West Country producers. Their cheeses also come from some of the UK’s best artisan cheesemakers upholding Pipers' mission to produce wholesome natural food that has been grown with respect for nature

So where should you kick off?

Red wines that go well with cheese

Let’s start with red wine as it’s the drink most people instinctively turn to with cheese. I look for ones that are soft, ripe and mellow, without powerful angular tannins that will clash with stronger cheeses. Rioja is a reliable go-to as are younger Spanish reds such as the Gran Cerdo I’ve picked to go with the Pipers Farm Big Cheeseboard Box which includes one of my FAVOURITE cheeses Baron Bigod or the attractive, easygoing French malbec I’ve chosen with the Cheese Feast Box which includes another of my great favourites, Tunworth. What I wouldn’t go for are fragile older wines that you’ve been hanging onto for a while. The French tend to think that you should serve your best red wine with the cheese but unless it’s a bottle you’ve already opened I tend to disagree. (Serve it with meat or game or, if you’re a vegetarian, a mushroom or pulse-based dish.)

But why not white wine?

Why indeed! Think of the fruit flavours you find in white wine especially orchard fruits like applea and pears. Do they go with cheese? Of course they do so why on earth shouldn’t you drink white wine with your cheeseboard? There’s one combination - goats cheese and sauvignon blanc - that works especially well but honestly white wine can work with cheddar too (try it with chardonnay) as well as other hard British territorial cheeses such as Caerphilly, Cheshire and Single and Double Gloucester. Or even with soft cheeses like Bix and St Jude (I’ve suggested the Bergecrac Blanc, a deliciously soft, appley blend of sauvignon and semillon with the Cheese Box for Two which should make you white wine lovers happy.

And let’s hear it for cider!

As anyone who’s ordered a ploughman’s will know beer is great with cheese but cider is arguably even better. Same logic as white wine above - we’re obviously talking apples again - but those of you who don’t regard it as a serious drink should think again.

There’s a brilliant new generation of artisanal British ciders that deserve a place on your dinner table not least cos they’re handsomely packaged in full-sized bottles. They’re also better than wine at taking any accompanying chutneys and pickles in their stride - and lower in alcohol too. Try the Wilding Ditcheat Hill cider and Pilton In Touch keeved cider I’ve recommended with the Cheese Feast and Big Cheeseboard boxes and see if you’re not converted!

Are there alternatives to port with cheese?

Most of us love a glass of port with our Stilton at Christmas but if you’re not a fan is there an alternative? You’d probably expect me to say yes and I won’t disappoint you! We’re talking apples (again. I know but we really underrate them) but this time in sweet drinks. Ice ciders and apple-based liqueurs work really well with stronger washed-rind cheeses and blues in a similar way to port. Try the Somerset Cider Brandy Co’s Kingston Black which I’ve recommended as a late night treat with the Cheese Box for two. I reckon it tastes like a liquid tarte tatin. Who could resist that?

This is an advertising feature in collaboration with Pipers Farm. If you’d like to order any of the cheese boxes, drinks or other products from their website they’ve offered a £10 discount on any order that is placed by November 14th 2021 if you use the code FIONA at the checkout. UK-based orders and over 18s only I’m afraid.

A vegetarian harvest supper

Before we finally plunge into winter here's a late autumn supper menu from my book Food, Wine and Friends that combines the best of autumn’s produce with a couple of convenience products.

Ready rolled pastry has made it wonderfully easy to knock up a quick, impressive tart while a simple dessert of grilled fruit dresses up a bought carton of ice cream. The soup can even be made ahead and frozen if you like.

Menu:
Pumpkin soup with honey and sage
Heirloom Tomato and Mozzarella Tart, warm new potatoes, Garden salad
Grilled figs with cinnamon and sweet oloroso sherry ice cream and brandy snaps

Pumpkin soup with honey and sage
This is based on a delicious soup I had at a restaurant called Tom’s Kitchen, run by top London chef Tom Aikens. His version, I discovered, contained chicken stock. Mine is vegetarian but you could of course base it on chicken stock too.

Serves 4-6

75g unsalted butter
1 small to medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed
1 kg pumpkin or butternut squash, de-seeded, peeled and cut into cubes
2 heaped tbsp clear honey
3 sprigs of sage
750ml vegetable stock made with an organic vegetable stock cube or 1 level tbsp vegetable bouillon powder
75ml double cream
Lemon juice, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Gently melt the butter in a large lidded saucepan or casserole. Add the onion and carrot, stir, cover and cook over a low heat for about 4-5 minutes. Add the cubed pumpkin or squash, honey and sage, stir, replace the lid and continue to cook very gently for about 10 minutes. Pour in the stock, bring to the boil and cook for about 10 minutes until the vegetables are soft.

Turn off the heat and allow the soup to cool slightly then remove the sage and sieve the soup, retaining the liquid. Put half the cooked vegetables into a blender or food processor with just enough of the reserved cooking liquid to blend into a smooth purée.

Transfer to a clean pan and repeat with the remaining vegetables, adding the puree to the first batch. Whizz the remaining liquid in the blender or food processor to pick up the last bits of puree and add that too. Bring the soup slowly to the boil then stir in the cream without boiling further.

Season to taste with lemon juice (about 1 tbsp), salt (about a teaspoon) and black pepper. Serve with an extra swirl of cream or scatter some crisp-fried sage leaves on top and serve with crusty wholewheat or multi-grain bread.

Heirloom tomato and mozzarella tart
There are so many beautifully coloured tomato and pepper varieties now it’s easy to make a really spectacular looking tart

Serves 4-6

375g ready rolled puff pastry
1 large or two smaller red peppers (about 225-250g in total)
1 large or two smaller yellow peppers (about 225-250g in total)
3 tbsp olive oil
2 whole cloves of garlic, flattened
4 heaped tbsp red pesto, fresh or from a jar
150g buffalo mozzarella, drained and finely sliced
125g red cherry tomatoes, de-stalked and halved
125g yellow cherry tomatoes, de-stalked and halved
1/2 tsp dried oregano or marjoram
1 medium egg, lightly beaten
A little freshly grated parmesan
A few basil leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. Take the pastry out of the fridge at least 20 minutes before you need to unroll it.

Quarter the peppers, remove the pith and seeds and cut each quarter into half lengthways. Put them in a roasting tin with the garlic cloves, pour over 2 tbsp olive oil, mix together well and roast for about 20-25 minutes until the edges of the peppers are beginning to blacken. Remove and cool for 10 minutes.

Unroll the pastry and lay on a lightly greased rectangular baking tray. With a sharp knife score a line round the pastry about 1 1/4 cm from the edge. Spread the pesto evenly inside the rectangle you’ve marked. Lay the pepper strips across the base of the tart, alternating red and yellow sections. Tear the mozzarella slices roughly and distribute over the peppers. Grind over some black pepper. Arrange the halved tomatoes over the peppers, red on yellow and yellow on red. Rub the oregano or marjoram over the tart, season with a little salt and a little more pepper and trickle over the remaining oil.

Turn the oven heat up to 220°C/425°F/Gas 7. Brush the edges of the tart with the beaten egg and bake for 12 minutes or until the edge of the tart is well puffed up and beginning to brown. Turn the heat back down again to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 and cook for another 12-15 minutes until the tops of the tomatoes are well browned. Coarsely grate or shave a little parmesan over the tart then leave to cool for 5 minutes. Tear the basil leaves roughly and scatter them over the tart. Serve warm.

Steamed potatoes with butter, parsley and chives
Freshly dug potatoes have a wonderful, earthy, nutty taste that’s best shown off by steaming

1 kg of new or waxy salad potatoes such as Charlotte
40g warm melted butter
2 heaped tbsp freshly chopped parsley
2 tbsp finely chopped chives

Scrub the potatoes, leaving the skins on and cut into small even-sized pieces. Steam until tender (about 7-8 minutes). Put the potatoes in a serving dish, pour over the butter, sprinkle with the chopped herbs, season lightly with seasalt and freshly ground black pepper and toss together. Serve warm.

Garden salad
One of the nicest things to have with meal based on seasonal produce is a large, freshly picked salad of dark leafy greens, either from the garden or from the farmer’s market

2 tbsp seasoned rice vinegar
4 tbsp organic sunflower oil
200g mixed dark leafy greens such as rocket, spinach and watercress and even a few fresh basil leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A pinch of sugar (optional)

Whisk together the rice vinegar and sunflower oil in a large salad bowl, adding extra salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar to taste if needed. Tip the greens in the salad dressing just before serving and toss together.

Grilled figs with cinnamon and sweet oloroso sherry
An easy way to glam up a ready-bought carton of toffee or caramel ice cream

serves 6

6 ripe fresh figs
2 tbsp unrefined light brown soft sugar
1 tsp cinnamon.
15g butter
6 tbsp sweet oloroso sherry

Caramel, toffee or vanilla icecream to serve

Wash the figs carefully and pat dry. Halve and lay them cut side up in a buttered ovenproof dish. Mix the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the figs. Put a knob of butter on top of each half fig and spoon over the sherry.

Place the dish on the lowest grill level and grill until the butter and sugar have melted and the figs are beginning to caramelise (about 5/6 minutes). Serve with caramel, toffee or vanilla ice cream, spooning over the warm sherry-flavoured syrup

Brandysnaps
One of those clever recipes which look incredibly difficult but which are in fact quite easy to make

2 tbsp golden syrup
75g unrefined light brown soft sugar
50g butter
50g plain flour
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp allspice

Preheat the oven to 160°C/Gas 3/325°F
You will need 2 large baking sheets lined with non-stick baking parchment

Measure out the golden syrup into a saucepan. (You’ll find this easier to do if you dip the spoon into a jug of boiling water and shake off the excess before you put it in the tin). Add the sugar and butter and heat very gently until just melted then take the pan off the heat. Don’t allow it to boil. Sift the flour with the ginger and allspice and mix thoroughly with the sugar, syrup and butter mixture.

Put four teaspoons of the mixture on the first baking sheet, allowing plenty of room for them to spread. Place in the oven and cook for 8-10 minutes or until the biscuits are a rich brown. Five minutes later repeat with the second baking tray*.

When you remove the first batch of biscuits leave them to cool for about a minute then ease them off the paper with a palatte knife. If you want them the traditional curled up brandy snap shape roll them straightaway round the handle of an oiled wooden spoon then place on a baking tray to cool.

Otherwise just leave them flat. Keep baking the mixture in batches of four until it is all used up. The biscuits will keep for 2-3 days in an airtight tin.

* the point about baking brandysnaps in batches is that it gives you time to roll them up while they’re still warm otherwise they’ll break rather than bend.

What to drink
Wine will of course go perfectly well with this menu (a Chardonnay, I suggest with the soup, a soft fruity red like Merlot with the tarts) but maybe I can make a case for artisanal cider which is undergoing something of a renaissance at the moment or perry, which is cider made with pears. I’d pick a medium-dry rather than a very dry one which should take you right through the first two courses. The dessert already includes alcohol in the form of a sweet oloroso sherry but you could serve a small glass with it too if you like.

Picture of pumpkin soup (not the above recipe) ©RitaE at Pixabay