A popular Christmas tipple worldwide – just the scent of it brewing is enough to stir Christmas cheer. It’s a taste of history too; in England, a recipe can be found in the famous 1869 book  entitled Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management. It’s wonderfully warming, easy to make at home, and can be adapted to suit those preferring alcohol or virgin drinks.

Here’s one of my favourite recipes for the drink:

Ingredients:

1 bottle of red wine (the better the wine, the better the taste – I like to use a Burgundy or a claret)

300ml water

25ml port

125g sugar

2 cinnamon sticks, cut in half

Zest of 2 lemons

1 orange, sliced

1 lemon, sliced

1 tbsp grated nutmeg

4 cloves

1. Add the water to a large saucepan, and stir in the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.

2. Bring to the boil.

3. Remove from the heat, add the lemon zest and slices and the orange slices and leave to infuse for 20 minutes.

4. Add the wine and port and heat gently (do not bring to a boil).

5. Strain into a jug and pour into individual glasses. Garnish with lemon and orange slices.

Serve with a hot mince pie, a slice of stollen or gingerbread. For a tangier taste, substitute the port for 150ml of orange liqueur like Cointreau. For a non-alcoholic version, try cranberry juice in place of the alcohol, sweetened with four tablespoons of honey and a teaspoon of vanilla extract.

And if you have mulled wine left over, why not modify this Delia Smith recipe to make it into a deliciously tangy sorbet?