Wednesday, January 07, 2009

.winter sangria.


I'm just joshing you, and so is any other liar trying to pawn off their uppity 'new' festive drink. This here is mulled wine, a traditional Bevvy that has pushed to the wayside by snooty beverages like the prosh eggnog, the bratty pomegranate-crantini or the snobby, albeit delicious, buttered rum. I suppose in many ways mulled wine is like sangria: theres the fruit, a shot or two of liqueur and depending on how you make your sangria, a little bit of sugar. However, mulled wine isn't winter sangria. Mulled wine has its own thing going, namely a medley of fragrant spices, that make it a distinct and tasty beverage in its own right and should never have to stoop to a name change just to get noticed.

Mulled wine was thought up by poor folk who had to drink crappy swill at the best of times, and even crappier swill at the worst of times. In the winter, these poor folks would jazz up their brew with herbs and spices and warm it all up to keep the chill off their TB afflicted bones. Nowadays, its another fabulous way to get tipsy during the holiday season and remain classy while doing so. Enjoy!

Mulled Wine
Yield 6-8 servings
Time about 20 minutes
Tools
  • large non-reactive pot
  • strainer
  • stainless steel or glass ladle
Ingredients
  • 1 bottle of red wine (I used 1.5 litres)
  • 1 lemon, sliced
  • 1 orange, sliced
  • 2-4 cinnamon sticks
  • 4-6 whole cloves
  • ½-1 t ground nutmeg
  • 1-2 oz brandy
  • ½ brown sugar (You can use white, but...ew....)
  • 1-3 c water
Directions Heat the wine over medium-low heat. When it's warm to the touch, add the fruit, spices, and brandy. When hot, taste and optional sugar or water.

Ladle into hearty mugs (straining the spices off) and serve warm, garnished with a fresh cinnamon stick, orange or lemon wedge.

Notes This is a very flexible recipe; change the ingredients to suit your own tastes.

Use reasonably priced dry red wine, such as burgundy, merlot, or cabernet sauvignon.

Never let the mulled wine boil! You'll boil off the alcohol and that just won't do!

This recipe was swiped and adapted from: http://www.theveggietable.com/recipes/mulledwine.html