How to make traditional Swedish Glögg this Christmas

In Scandinavia, they really know how to handle the cold.

One sure-fire method to warm the cockles is a great warming fesitvely-spiced drink. We all know how restorative a good mulled wine is.

Now try glögg. This is mulled wine with a big beard and a jaunty Viking helmet on. The name itself sounds like you’re clearing your throat after the first sip: “Glööögg.” Very appropriate.

Why do we drink it at Christmas? Because if it’s dark 20 hours a day and your main mode of transport is a sleigh, you need something potent and hot to keep the frostbite at bay. Glögg comes with raisins and almonds floating in it, because who doesn’t love a snack with their drink? It’s hearty, strong, and warms your insides like a woollen jumper you can swallow.

How to make traditional Swedish Glögg 

Prep time: 1hr 45 mins               Serves: 12

Ingredients: 

5 bottles Port

1 bottle bourbon whiskey

1 bottle white rum

4 whole cloves

3 whole cardamom pods, cracked

1 cinnamon stick

1 strip of orange peel

1 pack dark raisins

1 pack blanched slivered almonds

¾ cup white sugar

1 8-inch square of cheesecloth

Method:

First, heat your Port in a large pot with a lid over medium heat until just below the simmering point then add the bourbon and rum. Top tip: save the empty bottles of Port and corks for storing leftover glögg. 

In the centre of the cheesecloth square, place the cinnamon stick, orange peel, cloves, and cardamom pods then gather edges of the cheesecloth and tie with kitchen twine to secure; set aside.

Right this is where things get exciting. When your boozy mixture is very hot but not boiling, light it with a long-handled match. Carefully. Make sure you’re wearing heatproof oven gloves, then pour the sugar into the flames. Carefully. Let the mixture burn for 1 minute before placing your lid on the pot to extinguish the flames. Turn off the heat and let mixture cool, covered, for about 10 minutes.

Add your cheesecloth spice bundle, as well as the raisins and almonds, to the mixture and let it cool to room temperature. Then strain the cooled glögg and reserve the raisins and almonds.

You want to serve this hot, so about five minutes before you want to do that, pour the glögg into a saucepan and warm over medium-low heat until hot but not simmering. Ladle into a small Swedish-style glögg mug if you’re super authentic, or just a festive mug otherwise, and garnish each serving the reserved raisins and almonds. 

If you’re saving any glögg in the reserved Port wine bottles, then keep upright in a cool dark place for up to a year. You can also keep the steeped raisins and almonds in a covered bowl or jar in a fridge for up to a year.

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