Classic Honey Mulled Wine

Holiday Traditions

Classic honey mulled wine is one of my favourite things to make on Christmas Eve. After everything is wrapped and ready, I love to sit by the tree with, a cup of this honey mulled wine and put on my favourite Christmas movies.🎄

But this isn’t just a Holiday drink. It’s also perfect on cold snowy days when you need some warming from the inside out!

Wildflower Honey in Classic Mulled Honey Wine

Bees collect nectar from various wildflowers to make Wildflower honey, which has a unique flavor profile. This versatile ingredient is ideal for various recipes, including the classic honey mulled wine. When used in mulled wine, it adds a delicate sweetness that perfectly balances the spices and other ingredients.

History of Mulled Wine

Mulled wine is very popular and traditional in the United Kingdom at Christmas, and less commonly throughout winter. Mulled cider (and sometimes mulled ale,[7] traditional yet no longer common) is also served, with a mulled apple juice as a non-alcoholic alternative.[8]

In traditional culture

The cover of Mrs. Beeton’s book
Over the years the recipe for mulled wine has evolved with the tastes and fashions of the time. One Victorian example of this is smoking bishop, mentioned by Charles Dickens but no longer drunk or known in modern culture. A more traditional recipe can be found in Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management at paragraph 1961 on page 929 to 930 of the revised edition dated 1869:[9]

TO MULL WINE.
INGREDIENTS.- To every pint of wine allow 1 large cupful of water, sugar, and spice to taste.

Mode.-In making preparations like the above, it is very difficult to give the exact proportions of ingredients like sugar and spice, as what quantity might suit one person would be to another quite distasteful. Boil the spice in the water until the flavour is extracted, then add the wine and sugar, and bring the whole to the boiling point, then serve with strips of crisp dry toast, or with biscuits. The spices usually used for mulled wine are cloves, grated nutmeg, and cinnamon or mace. Any kind of wine may be mulled, but port and claret are those usually selected for the purpose, and the latter requires a very large proportion of sugar. The vessel that the wine is boiled in must be delicately cleaned and should be kept exclusively for the purpose. Small tin warmers may be purchased for a trifle, which is more suitable than saucepans, as, if the latter are not scrupulously clean; they spoil the wine, by imparting to it a very disagreeable flavour. These warmers should be used for no other purpose.

In contemporary culture

A British pub selling mulled wine and spiced (mulled) cider in December
In contemporary British culture, there is no specific recipe for mulled wine and the spices involved in its recipe. It is commonly a combination of orange, lemon, cinnamon, nutmeg, fennel seed (or star anise), cloves, cardamom, and ginger.[10] The spices may be combined and boiled in a sugar syrup before red wine is added, heated, and served. Variations include adding brandy or ginger wine. A tea bag of spices can be added to the wine, which is heated along with slices of orange as a convenient alternative to a full recipe. Mulled wine is often served in small (200 ml) porcelain or glass mugs, sometimes with an orange slice garnish studded with cloves.

Mulled wine and ales infused with mulling spices are available in the UK in the winter months. Wassail punch is a warm mulled beer or cider drunk in winter in Victorian times.[11]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulled_wine

NEW: Holiday Traditions Honey Mulled Wine Kit! Available in two sizes these make wonderful host/hostess gifts, are perfect for office Kris Kringle, and make great stocking stuffers for the foodie on your list. or start your own family tradition! Just add a bottle of red wine and an orange.

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Classic Honey Mulled Wine

A fun and festive holiday tradition to share with your friends and family. Also, a wonderful way to warm up over the cold winter months.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Cool Down 5 minutes mins

Course Drinks

Cuisine European

Servings 6 people

Equipment

• Cups & Saucers
• 1 Medium Saucepan

Ingredients

  

• 1 750 ml Bottle of Red Wine Merlot, Malbec, or Cabernet Sauvignon
• 2 Medium oranges
• 6 Whole Cloves
• 3 Star Anise
• 3 Cinnamon Sticks, plus more for garnish
• 1/4 cup Honey
• 1/2 cup Brandy optional
• Optional garnishes: Fresh whole cranberries (about ¼ cup), cinnamon sticks, or additional orange rounds (cut in half if needed, so they can fit in the cups).

Instructions

 

• Slice one orange into rounds and slice the other in half. Place the rounds into the medium saucepan. Squeeze the juice from the remaining oranges into the saucepan.
• Next, over medium heat, combine the full bottle of wine with your measured spices, and brandy in the medium saucepan with the orange juice. Bring the mixture to a simmer (do not let it boil, once you start to see the little bubbles rise to the surface, lower the temperature), add the honey and continue simmering gently over the lowest heat setting for 10 – 15 minutes (depending on taste preference).
• Serve once it has reached your desired taste, in cups with saucers, and garnish with your chosen mixture of cranberries, cinnamon sticks, and/or orange rounds.

Notes

A note to avoid bitterness: it is really important not to boil or overheat the mixture, as it not only reduces the alcohol content but will lead to scalded wine and a very bitter and unpleasant-tasting drink. Low & slow is the name of the game to get this festival drink made right.

Slow cooker: I love to make this using the stove-top method but if you are swamped preparing for company to arrive, you can use the slow cooker method, just add all of the ingredients into your slow cooker and set the temperature to the lowest setting, and leave going for approximately 30 minutes or when steam starts to appear on the lid. If your slow cooker doesn’t have a timer built in, make sure to set a timer on your phone, as you really do not want to scald the wine!

Keyword holiday traditions, honey mulled wine, mulled wine