Mulled wine is a traditional Christmas drink. You can’t imagine a roaring fire without a hot mug of mulled wine and the herbs and spices filling the air. It’s an all-round favourite and there are many different recipes, we think we may have just found the best!

Top tips for perfect mulled wine every time

Making good mulled wine is pretty easy, all you need is a little patience: make sure you have the right mix of fruits, spices and herbs and then allow the flavours to blend slowly over a low heat. Heat is essential for combining the flavours, but avoid boiling or cooking the wine for longer than 25 minutes. A higher heat and longer cooking time will take out more of the alcohol and taint the flavour, so keep the mixture at simmering point.

Pour the wine through a sieve to remove the spices and fruit and then decant into mugs or special mulled wine glasses.

Popular mulled wine recipes

In Jamie Oliver’s recipe from his book ‘Jamie Cooks Christmas’, he suggests an Italian red such as Chianti, and adds 100 grams of caster sugar per bottle. He concentrates the flavour with clementines, lime and lemon, then adds a unique blend of nutmeg, vanilla pod, star anise, a cinnamon stick, whole cloves and bay leaves for a rich, spicy mulled wine that will work perfectly with your Christmas meal.

And of course, traditionalist Delia Smith has a delicious mulled wine recipe. She advises a full-bodied red wine such as Bulgarian Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as fresh root ginger and fruit liqueur for extra zing. If you run out of wine, she recommends simply adding more water and fruit to your recipe, which you can keep in the pan and reheat when necessary.