ok so I know I need cinnamon, oranges, nutmeg maybe but has anyone any idea on quantities

You want loads and loads and loads of wine

it's good with the addition of a glug of Amiretto liquer

Was there nothing in that book DelPet - found this one, it says simmer but saw another one which said you shouldn't boil it - can you simmer without boiling

Simmer the following ingredients for 20 min. It’s better if you steep in the refrigerator overnight, but if you prefer, strain & drink right away. Serve warm.

* 1 bottle of fruity red wine (Spanish wine is a good choice)
* 1 cup sugar
* 2 cinnamon sticks
* 3 whole cloves
* 1 tsp grated nutmeg
* 1/2 tsp toasted whole black peppercorns
* 1/2 tsp whole allspice
* 1/2 vanilla bean
* 1 star anise
* 1 sliced orange
* 1 sliced lemon
* 1 cup cognac or brandy

easier still you can buy a little spice bag from the supermarket which contains everything you need to just add to the wine

....but far better done from scratch.

no it int cos you can only taste the Ameretto

Marks and Sparks do a nice bottle?
Happy Xmas

We've been getting it at 2.99 a bottle from Waitrose. Can't get basic red wine for that, so it's not worth buying anything else.

moonbells

Chris I got an M & S bottle - not tried it yet. You need just sliced orange in it when you warm it up

It's easy to make Del but I used a decent claret for mine cos it said to only use red wine that you'd drink it you wasn't mulling it. We were selling it yer see so it had to be good. it was

cheap red wine,
a glug of honey (or sugar will do, )
a selection of spices, I tend to use the following, a little of each but I never have all of them so just whatever's in the cupboard
mace
nutmeg
some form of cinnamon (stick, bark or powder)
junnier berries
cloves (three or four)
an orange (halved, peel on) or orange juice.

or you can bung in some mixed spice

some brandy.


heat to a simmer, stirring til the honey or sugar is dissolved. put the brandy in then and put a lid on or you lose the alcohol.
leave some in the bottom of the pan to flavour the next lot, the flavours get progressively smoother that way.

remember that wine was mulled to make vinegary wine paletable, there are no hard and fast rules so keep tasting and adjusting. I like mine really sweet and thick so I simmer in the slowcooker for days on end.

T xxx

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMm I can smell it from here Tara.
Happy Xmas

and if all else fails ... have you tried winter Pimms ???

you can also mull cider and apple juice.

for mulled apple juice use the proper pressed stuff as a base (although you can add cheaper 'from concentrate' stuff to make it go further)
mull as for wine (but leave out the brandy if you want a kids/drivers version)

Mulling some wine as we speak

Got some people coming over for drinks and nibbles tomorrow - so thought I'd give it a go, gently simmering now, will leave steeping all day and overnight, then warm it up again tomorrow. Just made up the recipe as per Tara's instructions

Perhaps put in more brandy than absolutely necessary

For a change you could try a Wassail cup

6 pints brown ale
1lb soft brown sugar
1 large stick cinnamon
1tsp grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 lemons thinly sliced
1 bottle medium dry sherry


pour 2 pints ale into a large pan. Add the sugar and cinnamon stick, and simmer the mixture slowly over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add the spices and lemon slices, the sherry and remaining ale. Remove the lemon before serving.

It sounds a very unlikely mixture bu its fab. Always went down really well on a cold day on the archery field mid shoot. Mind you the shooting never seemed quite as accurate after the break

We usually use`Newcastle Brown and the cheapest sherry we could find.

Ooooh looks interesting

ooooh! pennyB

Are you an archer?
I use a six foot English longbow. I only pull about 35lb but I did once manage to split an opponent's arrow (sheer fluke of course)

gonna give that wassail cup a go too

Yeah - but don't do the bent stick bit - strictly a recurve archer. Used to go to Dunster 'til we moved up here, 'tis to far to go now tho . Love doing Clout and outdoor target , but hate indoors don't seem right somehow. Used to serve the Wassail cup at our Agincourt Shoot in October, shot at targets at 120yards for ladies and 140 yards for gents. Had prizes for non scoring hits too, so petticoats, legs, wrong target and golf balls all counted Prizes were bread, cheese, and garlic

Sir just made a vat of mulled wine with an idea we got in Germany: take a jar of morello cherries, strain the juice off and boil it to concentrated syrup. Put in mulled wine with lemon and orange zest.

yum!

moonbells

Did you make any in the end Lilo?

She's on a ferry, at the min, Icy.. it's windy..

Yup, she did!

Drank most of it too I think..

oh yes I forgot she was sailing today. Could be worswe though...she cold have gine Sunday when winds meant to be way up...

Are her and kiddies okay or she is holding sick bags

Dunno... crappy signal... normally when she's there there's no signal at all!!!