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 I was an exchange student to Germany in high school, and my host family loved sharing German culture and traditions with me. It was 1989 – what a year to be in Germany! The day the Berlin Wall opened, my host family and I piled into their van, driving through ice and snow to witness the historic moment. My host father packed a hammer and a chisel, so that we could do our part to help bring down the wall and get a little piece of history.
Driving back from Berlin, my host family told me about the Christmas markets held throughout Germany. The most famous is the Nuremburg Christkindlesmarkt dating back to the 16th-century. So, once again, we piled into their van and drove through ice and snow to experience the historic market. The entire old city was glowing with the warmth and lights of the market, and the aromas of roasting Bratwurst and steaming mulled wine, or Glühwein, filled the air.
As curious as I was about the taste of Glühwein, I also wondered about the name, literally “glow wine.” People told me that the “glow” came from the fires over which the vats of Glühwein were heated. Once I had my first taste, though, and felt the spicy warmth heat my mouth and stomach, bringing a flush to my cheeks, I understood. Glühwein’s name surely comes from the inner and outer glow it brings to its drinkers, especially on cold, dark winter nights!
Though I first tasted Glühwein nearly 20 years ago, it has become a holiday tradition. The warm spices, careful heating, and, of course, alcohol are keys to the “glow” of Glühwein. Mulled wine and other warm, spiced drinks with and without alcohol are popular worldwide, especially as the nights get longer and colder in winter. Sweden has Glögg, Mexico has Xocolatl and Champurrado, India has Masala Chai, and England has Wassail.
Virtually every hot winter drink I’ve heard of involves some combination of the following:
* spices: allspice, anise, cardamom, cinnamon, clove, ginger, mace, nutmeg
* tannins: red wine, chocolate, black tea, dark rum, coffee, brandy
* sweetness: vanilla, sugar, honey
* citrus flavors: lemon, orange
These drinks are complex but balanced – spices warm the body, tannins offer substance, sweetness soothes, and citrus brightens.
In the recipes here, ingredients are for inspiration, and measurements are not mandates. The point is best captured in Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management (1869): “In making preparations like [these], it is very difficult to give the exact proportions of ingredients like sugar and spice, as what quantity might suit one person would be to another quite distasteful.”
In short, there are only three real rules in making hot drinks:
* Don’t boil wine or liquor, lest you lose the “glow” by cooking off the alcohol.
* Use whole spices rather than ground for better flavor and to avoid grittiness.
* Be creative and daring – the holidays demand exuberant flourishes!
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