Mulled Wine and Memories: A Global Guide to Glögg, Vin Brûlé, Glühwein, and Vin Chaud
Mulled wine began as a European drink as much a part of Christmas as caroling itself, but depending on your family’s background, you may make it in a slightly different way from your neighbor. Here’s how the world warms its winter wine from Scandinavia to Italy, Germany, France, and the UK — and how to make your own at home.
In much of Northern Europe, glögg isn’t just a drink; it’s a seasonal mood, a way of gathering friends into the glow of the winter holidays. As Brönte Aurell, chef and co-founder of ScandiKitchen writes in The Scandinavian Year, glögg arrives as soon as the festive feelings start to stir.
Nordic glögg leans heavily on cardamom, ginger, bitter orange peel, cloves, and cinnamon, and is traditionally served with slivered almonds and raisins — sometimes soaked overnight in aquavit or brandy for what Aurell calls “that extra kick.”
Ingredients: 1 bottle inexpensive red wine, 2 cinnamon sticks, 1 thumb-sized piece dried ginger, 1 piece dried bitter orange peel (approx. 6 g), 8 whole green cardamom pods, 15–16 whole cloves, 80 g sugar
“In a saucepan, heat the wine, spices and sugar to maximum 80°C/176°F (any higher and the alcohol starts to evaporate). Turn off the heat and leave to infuse for at least 1 hour, ideally longer. Strain the glögg, pour back into the wine bottle and close. To serve, soak the raisins in brandy or aquavit, ideally overnight. Heat the glögg to hot (not boiling). Add a few teaspoons of the alcohol-soaked raisins to a cup along with some flaked/slivered almonds and top with the hot glögg.”
This is glögg in its purest form — generous, aromatic, deeply anchored in Scandinavian winter culture.
A Danish Note On Modern Gløgg (Danish Spelling)
The Danes have a slightly different twist. As Mads Oestergaard, PR & Press Manager for VisitDenmark, explains: “Gløgg is the ultimate Danish hygge drink: warm red wine infused with Christmas spices, raisins, and almonds. Most Danes add a little extra snap (quite literally) with a dash of schnapps or rum to keep the cold at bay.”
White gløgg — made with elderflower, white wine, and rum — is now also a winter trend.
Officially, it’s vino caldo (hot wine), but traditionally the Italians have used the French term vin brûlé, particularly in the regions bordering the Alps — Veneto, Trentino-Alto Adige, and Friuli — where the winter tradition is strongest.
In the Dolomites especially, mulled wine is made in the spirit of Austrian glühwein yet called by its French name, a hybrid born of centuries of shifting borders.
One of the most evocative versions comes from Cape of Senses on Lake Garda, where guests sip mulled wine with roasted chestnuts on an infinity pool terrace. Bar manager Michele Pedrett’s family recipe includes Valpolicella Classico, cinnamon, cloves, juniper berries, star anise, citrus peels, pear, apple, and late-season plum — northern Italy in a pot.
Italian mulled wine typically uses local red varieties with soft tannins and bright fruit: Valpolicella, Schiava from Alto Adige, Dolcetto from Piedmont.
Germans consume much of their version of mulled wine in Christmas markets where festive shoppers hover over steaming cups in bustling medieval squares. Traditional glühwein is often made with fruit-forward German reds like a dry Spätburgunder, which stand up well to warming and spice like cinnamon, cloves, star anise, and citrus. They also have a version that’s a little more dramatic: Feuerzangenbowle.
Feuerzangenbowle: Mulled Wine Set on Fire
This is one of Europe’s great seasonal spectacles. The drink features mulled wine topped with a sugarloaf soaked in strong rum. The sugarloaf is set aflame above the concoction, then it caramelizes into the wine.
A classic quote by German actor Heinz Rühmann:
In the French Alps, vin chaud is an après-ski tradition. This is the driest of all the European styles: less sugar, more citrus, and often a distinctive twist of star anise. Honey is sometimes used in place of sugar, giving a gentler sweetness and a subtle alpine floral note.
The base wine varies by region: Merlot in the Southwest, Syrah in Northern Rhône, Grenache in Southern Rhône. Whatever the base, the French version is elegant and bright, typically served with an orange slice and a cinnamon stick.
Nothing says mulled wine like British mulled wine. It conjures Victorian Christmas and warmth — citrus, clove, nutmeg, and nostalgia. There’s also a modern revival in at-home mulling kits, which makes it easier (and delightfully fragrant) to transform an everyday bottle. The aroma is one of the strongest appeals to homemade mulled wine: the Christmas season comes alive in your home.
Old Hamlet Mulling Spices offers Mulled Wine Spice Cubes in four muslin spice bundles. Old Hamlet is part of Steenbergs, a family-run business known for ethical, organic spice production.
No matter which tradition speaks to you, the rules for great mulled wine are surprisingly universal.
Dark fruit notes like plum, blueberry, and blackberry, low tannins, and unoaked versions work best as a complement to the rich spices of mulled wine. Needless to say, don’t break the bank, because the spices will override the wine’s character anyway.
1. Never boil. Alcohol evaporates at 173°F — keep mixtures below a simmer.
2. Use whole spices. Ground spices cloud and overpower.
3. Sweeten slowly. Add sugar or honey gradually.
4. Let it rest. Aromatics deepen with time — even 30 minutes makes a difference.
5. A splash of spirit matters. Brandy, aquavit, or rum (1-2 ounces per bottle of wine) adds depth and warmth to your mulled wine.
Whether you prefer your winter cup flaming and theatrical, cardamom-rich and Nordic, or citrus-bright and Alpine, the ritual is the same: breathing in Father Christmas and savoring the brief winter festive time that only comes once a year. All mulled wine versions are worth knowing—trying them out is a great way to get into the holiday spirit, wherever you are.