How to Make the Perfect Mulled Wine

The smell of mulled wine is enough to get you in the mood around Christmas time, so when you have guests around, what better way to get everyone in the festive spirit that to serve a big jug of this seasonal favourite.

There are tonnes of recipes around for mulled wine, but we wanted to share with you what we think is probably one of the best, from no one other than the Queen of Cakes, Mary Berry herself (featured in her book – Mary Berry’s Absolute Christmas Favourites).

This is a really simple recipe with not very many ingredients and a simple method. It serves 12 people so you can alter this method to suit your requirements. 

Ingredients

• 1 large orange
• 3 lemons
• 12 cloves
• 2 satsumas/clementines
• 2 x 750ml bottles red wine of your choice
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 150g/5½oz caster sugar (optional)
• 1.2 litres/2 pints of cold water
• Brandy, to taste (optional)
  
  Method 

• Carefully peel the zest very thinly from the orange and lemons using a vegetable peeler. Squeeze out the juice and reserve.
• Stick the cloves into the satsumas.
• Pour the wine, 1.2 litres/2 pints of cold water, and the citrus peel and juices into a large, heavy-based saucepan. Add the clove-studded satsumas and cinnamon sticks. Bring the mixture just to the boil, then reduce the heat until the mixture is simmering, cover the pan with the lid, and continue to simmer for about 1 hour. Stir in the sugar gradually during cooking, until the mulled wine is sweetened to your liking (you may not need all of the sugar).
• Strain the mulled wine and serve hot in cups. 

Preparation Time: Less than 30 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes to 1 hour