Seat of Our Pants

One of the many things I miss about Sweden during Christmas (family, food, friends come to mind) is the Glögg – Sweden’s famous mulled wine. Normally, there is a wide array of options available at the liquor store. However, most of the spices that go into Glögg grow here, so I set out to make the perfect Glögg. I think I got pretty close. Here’s how to make it.

You need:

A bottle of red wine.

Some Brandy.

A cup of Apple Juice

Some Orange peel

5-8 whole cloves

5-8 whole green cardamom pods

a good chunk of whole cinnamon

a half-inch piece of fresh ginger

Sugar

Raisins (optional)

Almonds (optional)

Bruise the cloves, cinnamon, ginger and cloves using a mortar and pestle. Don’t powder it, just rough them up so that they’ll release their flavors easier.

Pour the apple juice in a thick-bottomed saucepan and add the orange peel, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom pods. Bring to boil and lower heat. Let it simmer for a few minutes – you want the flavors of the spices to come out but not to make the juice bitter. Add sugar to taste: anything from a couple of tablespoons to half a cup. I like mine pretty dry, but some people prefer their Glögg sweet enough that it burns going down the throat.

You should now have hot, fragrant, sweet, mulled apple juice in front of you. It’s time to add the wine.

I use Merlot, but basically anything on the colored side of Rose will do. A cheap Merlot or Syrah is ideal – lots of flavors at a low price.

Pour in half the bottle and heat it until wisps of smoke begin to form above the surface. The smoke is the alcohol steaming off. You want it a smidgeon hotter than that but not much. Add a bit of brandy: it both compensates for the loss of alcohol and adds a nice flavor. I guess Cognac would work too but price wise that’s a bit of an overkill. If you can’t find either, Rum or even Vodka will do the trick. Whiskey absolutely won’t cut it. Some people use this crucial time to get fancy and set the concoction on fire. We don’t do that because it’s dangerous for your eyebrows and because it burns alcohol. It doesn’t much to the flavor anyway.

It’s time to take the Glögg off the stove and pour it through a strainer. Serve it in mugs or ceramic cups. I like to let a few raisins swim around in my Glögg, and some people add almonds.

If you’ve done it right, what you have in your hands now is a steaming mug of fragrant, beautiful Glögg that will make your heart warm and the hair on your toes curly. Enjoy!

(oh if you’re wondering why this is the Almost Perfect Glögg and not the Perfect one, it’s because I can’t find port here. Add a healthy dash of aged port and you’ll have the Perfect Glögg).

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