Cranberry Mulled Wine
Looking for a fun and festive cocktail to serve this holiday season? This cranberry mulled wine recipe is here for you, friends! ♡ It’s made with all of the usual suspects — a bottle of red (or white) wine, a splash of brandy (optional, but highly recommended), citrus slices, plus a few simple warming spices. But for this cranberry version, I’ve also added in a cup of cranberry juice and a knob of fresh ginger, whose flavors pair beautifully with the mulling spices.
The main ingredient here is a good-quality pure cranberry juice, which is significantly more tart than some the usual cranberry juice cocktail. That said, though, any type of cranberry juice will work — I would just recommend adding less sweetener if you are not using pure cranberry juice. And instead of sweetening my mulled wine with my usual brown sugar or maple syrup, I have been using molasses as a sweetener, which is downright delicious. (Although as always, please feel free to use any kind of sweetener that you prefer.) Finally, I’ve been adding fresh cranberries and rosemary as a festive extra garnish this year, which are cute as well as delicious. And well —could this mulled wine be any more festive?! Let’s make some! Serve warm, topped with your favorite garnishes.
Ingredients:
- 1 (750 ml) bottle of dry red wine
- 1 cup cranberry juice
- 1/3 cup brandy (optional)
- 1 orange, sliced into rounds
- 8 whole cloves
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 2 star anise
- 2-inch knob of fresh ginger, halved lengthwise
- 2 to 6 tablespoons sweetener (maple syrup, sugar, or honey), to taste
- optional garnishes: orange slices, fresh cranberries, cinnamon sticks, fresh rosemary