The History of Mulling

It’s that time of year again, the dark nights are drawing in and we’re trying to figure out whether it’s financially viable to put the heating on yet! The shops are packed with treats and decorations and the retail workers have started playing Whamagedon and so, with the launch of our newest syrup, it seems almost rude not to dive into the history of mulling…

Let’s pretend we’re hosting an episode of horrible histories and put on our best narrator voice.

It all began with the ancient Greeks (probably) who were famous drinkers and not the kind to let wine go to waste.

If a batch of wine was particularly undrinkable, they would fill it with spices and warm it. Turning the unpalatable into phenomenal. The new concoction was named hippocras, supposedly after Hippocrates, the father of medicine.

 Next came the Romans who also tried their luck at spiced wine.

Almost certainly inspired by those who came before them, they would heat their excess wine with honey and throw in pepper, saffron, bay leaves and dates. Named Conditum Paradoxum, which roughly translates as spiced, the recipe still exists today.

The Middle Ages were go-time for mulling. The booze tasted so bad people would try anything to make it drinkable. So, if you can’t stomach the vino on offer bung in any herbs and spices lying around and you’ve got ye oldie mulled wine.

The change in flavour wasn’t the only positive, another bonus was the perceived health benefit of the spices, which were believed to ward off sickness. A win: win during the dark ages if you could get drunk and stay alive at the same time.

Rather unusually this Medieval recipe called for white wine, alongside the more typical cinnamon, ginger and cloves and the slightly less common mace, long pepper and galangal.

But mulled wine as we know it today, our favourite Christmas-y concoction heralds from Victorian England.

Written into history by Charles Dickens in “A Christmas Carol” sealing the deal for this heated tipple to become a winter staple.

It’s easy to see why the warming drink is so popular when the temperature drops. Aromatic spices, zesty citrus and sweet red wine blend beautifully and provide the perfect pick-me-up when it’s cold out.

We’ve made mulling super simple with our mulled syrup, simply pour a measure into your drinks and you’ve got the ideal flavour every time.

Mulled Wine

25ml Mulled Spice Syrup

150ml red wine.

Gently warm and pour into a wine glass. Garnish with a star anise.

Spiced Sloe Sour

20ml Mulled Spice Syrup

20ml lemon juice

20ml aqua faba

40ml sloe gin

Shake and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a sprinkle of allspice powder.