The Abridged version:
- Zoe B. Soderstrom’s mulled wine recipe uses oranges and pomegranates readily available at Sacramento-area farmers markets.
- It also gets flavor from spices such as ginger, cardamom, star anise, cloves and cinnamon.
- While this wine takes an hour to prepare, it simmers on the stove for most of that time.
This is Cooking In Season, a biweekly series from local recipe developer Zoe B. Soderstrom using seasonal produce available at Sacramento-area farmers markets.
One of the things I look forward to this time of year is mulled wine — to drink and to smell, as its spiced aroma fills the air while it simmers on the stove.
A drink that dates back to ancient Rome and Greece, mulled wine is nearly synonymous with winter, appearing at holiday markets across Europe and signaling the start of the season. Most commonly, it’s prepared with a combination of warm spices — like cinnamon and cloves — citrus, sugar or honey and a splash of brandy.
I have found, though, that some versions lean a bit dry for my liking. While they’re fine for a sip or two, they’re not necessarily something I crave a full mug of before dinner. When I noticed a partially used bottle of pomegranate juice in my refrigerator, paired with an increase in oranges at the farmers markets (and in orange groves across the Central Valley), I was inspired to prepare a version that hit all the right notes.
The result? A slightly tart, full-bodied, juicy, warmly spiced drink worthy of a full mug.
POMEGRANATE MULLED WINE
Yield: 6 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
This mulled wine is juicier than most, thanks to the addition of seasonal fruits — pomegranate and orange — along with whole spices and orange liqueur. I recommend a sweeter, richer liqueur such as Grand Marnier, which balances the dry wine and tart pomegranate juice while adding subtle notes of vanilla.
The drink is easy to assemble, but be sure to let it simmer so the spices can fully shine. The recipe can be doubled (or tripled) for a crowd, and for easy cleanup, the whole spices can be placed in a spice bag and removed after cooking.
Ingredients
1 (750 mL) bottle dry red wine (such as Zinfandel or Cabernet Sauvignon)
¾ cup pomegranate juice
¼ cup orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier)
Juice of 1 navel or Valencia orange
⅓ cup brown sugar
⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
1-inch piece of ginger, peeled
3 cardamom pods
4 star anise pods
8 whole cloves
3 cinnamon sticks
1 orange, thinly sliced for garnish
Instructions
Step 1
In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the wine, pomegranate juice, orange liqueur, orange juice, brown sugar and salt. Whisk until the sugar has mostly dissolved — do not allow the mixture to boil. Reduce the heat to low and add the ginger, cardamom pods, star anise, whole cloves and cinnamon sticks. Simmer for 45 to 50 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Step 2
Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain the mixture into a large bowl, discarding the solids. Ladle the mulled wine into mugs and garnish with orange slices.
Zoe B. Soderstrom is the writer and recipe developer behind Cooking In Season, a biweekly column featuring recipes made from the Sacramento region’s seasonal produce. She runs the popular Substack page Restaurant Dropout and previously worked in Bay Area restaurants after graduating from culinary school.