There's a long tradition of fortifying wine with honey and aromatic spices, especially in winter months. And while most modern recipes for mulled wine call for sugar, you make this mulled wine with honey instead. Honey gives the wine a lovely, mild sweetness with floral undertones than complement the flavor of sweet spices like star anise, cardamom, and cinnamon.
Jump to Recipe | What is it? | Herbs and Spices | Tips
What is Mulled Wine?
Mulled wine is wine that has been fortified with spices, herbs, fruit and fruit juices, hard alcohol and sweeteners or any combination of those ingredients. You simmer it long enough to allow the spices to infuse the wine with their aroma and flavor before you ladle it into mugs and serve it hot - about the temperature of tea or coffee.
It's an intensely warming drink, and so is often a welcome addition to the table during the winter holidays. As there's so many variations of mulled wine, you'll find it by other names such as gluhwein, glogg, vin chaud, izvar, forralt, or even Christmas wine since it's often served around Christmas.
How do you make mulled wine with honey?
To make mulled wine, you warm wine with spices and other ingredients like hard alcohol. Start by stirring wine, brandy, and honey together and then toss in spices, allowing them to warm over low, slow heat.
Unlike Cranberry Cider, in which you bring the cranberry juice and cider to a simmer and then turn the heat down, you'll need to warm the wine and honey together over low heat. That way you'll avoid burning off the alcohol at high temperatures.
Herbs and Spices
Carminative herbs, those that help support digestion, are used in making mulled wine. They have bright, warming flavors that complement the robust flavor of wine well. You'll also find them in other winter drinks like traditional wassail or cranberry cider.
- Cardamom is a green pod related to ginger, and its ginger-like flavor works well brings a bright, warming quality to the wine.
- Black Pepper is traditionally used to support digestion.
- Cloves have a sweet richness, and you'll often find them used in holiday baked goods.
- Nutmeg has a sweet-spicy aroma.
- Cinnamon is traditionally used to support both digestion and blood sugar management.
- Anise tastes like licorice, and it soothes indigestion - a big help for heavy winter meals.
- Fennel tastes similar to anise, only softer and sweeter. It soothes indigestion, bloating and gassiness.
- Bay gives an herbal quality to the mulled wine, and it also pairs well with honey and black pepper.
Mountain Rose Herbs is a fantastic resource for purchasing herbs and spices in bulk. Plus, they're organically grown or ethically wildcrafted, too.
Tips for Making Mulled Wine
Making mulled wine is straightforward and easy. If you can warm up a pot of tea, you can make mulled wine. But, to make really great mulled wine, you'll need to pay attention to a few tips. Like how to choose your wine, which spices to use and how to manage your temperature effectively.
- Choose good-quality wine. While it's tempting to grab a cheap bottle (you'll be adding stuff to it anyway!), stick with a good-quality wine. Your mulled wine can only be as good as what goes into it, after all. Check out the options here.
- Medium- to full-bodied reds work best. And wines with notes of dark fruit and berries work exceptionally well. Zinfandel is a great option.
- Keep your temperature low. If you let your wine steam or come to a boil, you'll burn off the alcohol.
- Use less honey than you would sugar. Honey is slightly sweeter than honey, so use less than you might otherwise use.
- Strain your spices. You can tuck your spices into a muslin bag, or through a fine-mesh strainer before serving.
- Adjust your recipe! Mulled wine is flexible and easy to make. Swap brandy for amaretto or bourbon. Swirl in some fresh ginger. While some recipes require precision, this recipe benefits from your creativity and intuition.
Mulled Wine with Honey
Ingredients
- 8 cardamom pods
- 8 black peppercorns
- 6 whole cloves
- 1 small nutmeg pod
- 2 ceylon cinnamon sticks
- 1 teaspoon anise seeds
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 bottle red wine
- 6 cups soft apple cider
- 1 cup brandy
- 1 cup honey
- 2 oranges
Instructions
- Cut a square of cheesecloth about 12 inches square. Arrange the spices in the center of the square, and tie it into a bundle with 100% cotton cooking twine. Place it in a nonreactive stockpot. Pour the wine, cider, and brandy into the pot, and stir in the honey or sugar. Slice one orange in rounds, and drop it into the pot.
- Warm over low heat at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to come together, taking care not to allow the wine to boil lest you cook out the alcohol. Slice the remaining orange into thing wedges. Ladle the mulled wine into mugs, slip a slice of orange into the mug, and serve warm.
Claire says
Heat the honey?! In my limited ayurvedic knowledge, I thought honey was never supposed to be heated as it causes the production of "ama" in the body (that leads to disease). What are your thoughts?
Jenny says
Hi Claire, There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that heating honey - especially in another liquid - leads to "disease."
Megan says
Sounds delicious!
Any idea how long this could keep for if i put it in tje fridge after making it?
Thanks
Jenny says
A week or two.
Jayda Abell says
This sounds amazing! I can’t wait to make it for our holiday get together. Could this be made in the slow cooker?
Jenny says
It sure can! I often do.
Hope F. says
I am making this tonight and your Buch De Noel! So excited 🙂 Thank you.
Tess says
I was wondering if this could be prepared in a crockpot. Has any one tried?
Charry says
Please share what brand of Apple cider you purchase for this recipe. Thanks!
Jenny says
Oh I don't think brand matters significantly for sweet cider. Use what's available locally to you.
cindi says
Sounds delicious! I might give this a go in the slowcooker. I'm guessing it may take a few hours for the spices to infuse vice the hour on the stovetop...any thoughts?
Kim says
How could you adjust this recipe to be non-alcoholic?
Jenny says
Alcohol is central to the recipe, so I wouldn't recommend making adjustments. You could look for a mulled apple juice, though.
Adrienne says
This recipe looks lovely - bay leaves are mentioned but not listed with the ingredients. How many would you suggest?
I would like to make a batch soon !
Skye says
Drinking it now and this is amaaaaaaaazing! I put half a cup of honey instead of the full cup, and I'm finding that level of sweetness is better for me (I'm not a huge sweet tooth) - it's still quite sweet!
Thanks, Jenny!
Skye says
I am just about to make this for tonight! Looks so delicious, Jenny. Thank you for another lovely recipe! : )
Kate says
Thanks so much for this! I was looking for a mulled wine recipe for the holidays. Love how simple the recipe is...but those flavors look like they're complex 🙂
Diane says
Why does one need sweet apple cider when the recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar as well? This recipe sounds so good, but I worry about how sweet it might be.
Thanks,
Diane
Jenny says
Well ... mulled wine is supposed to be sweet. If it concerns you, an easy solution would be to add sweetener to taste.
Amanda says
How many bay leaves? I do not see them listed in the ingredients.
Jenny says
2! I'll have to fix that.