German Mulled Wine: A Delicious Gluhwein Recipe - Vega Recepten (2024)

Okay, we don’t really like winter that much, just give us the warmer summer months! But what we do like about this time of year: winter recipes!

For example pumpkin soup, apple beignets, and of course German mulled wine! Which is called gluhwein in Germany. You make us super happy with a cup of gluhwein. And also great, it will definitely warm you up.

Making German mulled wine is not difficult at all. Of course, you can go to the (German) Christmas markets and have a nice cup of gluhwein there. But making your own mulled wine at home (perfect for 2020) is also delicious.

The entire house immediately smells wonderful. And this German Christmas wine is perfect to enjoy in front of the fireplace (or in our case: for the heating and a Netflix fireplace). You make everyone happy with this gluhwein recipe!

Do you want to make non-alcoholic mulled wine? No problem! Read on, and we will explain to you how to make gluhwein non-alcoholic.

Enjoy this traditional gluhwein recipe.

What is Mulled Wine?

Mulled wine is a spiced hot beverage made with red wine and spices. The drink was created by the Romans. They would warm up wine to heat up their bodies against the cold. These days it’s a traditional drink that most people drink in December, around Christmas.

German gluhwein is a different variation of the spiced wine. The difference is the spices used in the drink. In mulled wine people often also add spices such as nutmeg, peppercorns and cardamom. And dried fruit such as raisins! So the mulled wine spices are just a bit different.

If you visit Europe and go to a Christmas market, you will definitely find shops selling glühwein.

Mulled Wine Ingredients

What do you need for this glühwein recipe? 1 liter/34 oz of red wine, 1 orange, half a lemon, 1 cinnamon stick and 4 cloves. Optionally, you can add 1-3 tablespoons of sugar or honey to the German mulled wine to sweeten it. And 2 star anise, for extra flavor! Just what you like yourself.

What’s the best wine for mulled wine? We use a mild, smooth red wine when we make our own German mulled wine. You can also choose a red wine with a more pronounced flavor, as the ingredients quickly overpower the taste.

So you can easily use a cheaper red we for this gluhwein recipe. Better save that special expensive red wine for another occasion. You can also replace red with white wine. Or add red port! Great for a variation.

Do you want to make non-alcoholic mulled wine? Then read the next paragraph!

Mulled Wine Non-Alcoholic

Make gluhwein alcohol-free by replacing the red wine with berry juice! Perfect if you’re underage, if you still have to drive, or if you just don’t drink alcohol. You can, of course, also use an alcohol-free wine.

Just like mulled wine with red wine, you can flavor non-alcoholic mulled wine with spices.

Gluhwein Spices

This gluhwein recipe is based on traditional German mulled wine. But you can of course vary with your favorite spices. Be careful not to use too much of one spice, because they very much determine the taste of the glühwein. Especially cloves!

With lemon, orange, and possibly a sweet addition of sugar or honey, it is easy to adjust the recipe to your own taste. The more lemon, the sourer. The more orange, the sweeter.

How To Make Gluhwein

Within half an hour you have made a delicious pan of German mulled wine! But how to make mulled wine? As we said, making mulled wine is very easy. Because red wine only needs to be heated with different herbs, lemon, and orange.

First, clean the orange and lemon. Then cut them into slices or wedges. Afterward, the orange, lemon, spices, sugar, and wine can be put in a saucepan and heated over low heat.

Important: do not let the mulled wine boil, because the alcohol will evaporate. And that is not entirely the intention when you make this gluhwein recipe with red wine.

Let the mulled wine warm-up for at least 20 minutes. The longer you cook the mulled wine, the richer the flavor.

Spoon the hot spiced wine into glasses with a soup spoon, and serve with an orange slice if desired. Or curl the zest of the orange to make it chic. Cheers!

Tip: You can also use mulled wine to make poached pears!

Storing German Gluhwein

Do you want to enjoy the German mulled wine a little longer and store the drink? First remove the loose ingredients (orange, spices, lemon) from the mulled wine and then pour it back into an empty bottle. Then put the bottle in the fridge and you can enjoy it for a few more days.

Do you want to reheat the mulled wine? Put it in a pan and put on low heat. Within a few minutes you can enjoy a nice warm glass of this delicious spiced again.

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