Winter months often mean having a hard time getting and staying warm if you’re in the colder climates. You can snuggle up under covers to increase body temperature, but you can also warm up from the inside out. Mulled wine, a great winter warmer, is something you may want to prepare when entertaining your adult friends.

People have enjoyed mulled wine for hundreds, possibly even thousands, of years. Previously called Hippocras, from the Greek physician Hippocrates, mulled wines were considered to be healthier to drink than water and may have helped keep people healthier during the colder months. Nearly everywhere you travel around the world, you may be able to find some type of mulled wine to enjoy.

Mulled wine has been spiced with a variety of spices and then heated. You can also mull other beverages such as cider and mead. Many recipes include honey, cinnamon, and cardamom, but you may find other ingredients as well. In fact, depending upon where you live, some recipes may be more common than others.

Does your family have a German background? You may want to try Glühwein which is red wine, cinnamon sticks, vanilla, cloves, citrus, and sugar. Those with Scandinavian backgrounds will add raisins and almonds to their version. Romanian families enjoy vin fiert, or boiled wine, which is made with red or white wine and peppercorns.

Mulled Wine recipe #1

1 bottle red wine
2 ounces brown sugar
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cinnamon stick (or 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon)
1 bay leaf
Half an orange

Place a medium-sized pot on the stove, pour the wine into it, and follow that by the juice of half of an orange. Cut up the orange peel and the rest of the ingredients. Allow the wine to become warm or hot, depending on your own preference, but do not allow it to boil. Stir occasionally while heating. You can leave the larger pieces in the mulled wine or drain them out. This makes about six servings.

Mulled Wine recipe #2 (from Colonial America)

1 gallon wine
3 ounces cinnamon
2 ounces ginger, sliced
1/4 ounce cloves
1 ounce mace
20 peppercorns
1 ounce nutmeg
3 pounds sugar
2 quarts cream

Add all of the ingredients into a large stock pot. Stir the ingredients and slowly heat it up; don’t allow the liquid to boil. Serve this warm or allow it to sit for a few days and offer it as a cool drink.

For a non-alcoholic version, begin with grape or pear juice. Add any or all of the following: orange juice, sugar, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom. You can also use lemons to replace the oranges and brown sugar rather than white table sugar.

There are many ways you can make mulled wine, and by spending some time on the internet you may be able to find other recipes you’d prefer. This is a great winter drink for warming you up from the inside out. Why not try one of these mulled wine recipes today?