Mulled Cider with Mulling Spices

Usually consisting of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, and even bits of dried fruit, mulling spices first saw its use in the 2nd century, when the Romans began spicing and heating their wine as they travelled across the European continent.

With rising popularity in the Middle Ages, mulled beverages were a must-have in every household during the harsh winters, helping people to warm themselves. A type of Mulled Cider called “wassail” became especially well known in Germany and England during this period. Over the years, mulling spices have made their way into a variety of other warm beverages and began to be associated with autumn and winter. Recently, mulling spices are more commonly used in festive winter beverages like mulled wine, cider and tea.

Mulling spices are designed to add a warm, rich, sweet and aromatic flavour to whichever beverages they are added to. Typically, the preparation of a mulled beverage involves adding the mulling spices to the beverage as it is being heated. Intended to bestow good fortune upon the following year’s apple harvest, a drinking ritual called “wassailing” became common during the winter months, in Medieval Germany. During the wassailing ritual, practitioners drank from a bowl of wassail-Mulled Cider, which contained cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and sugar. The tradition made its way into England, and became extremely popular during the Christmas holiday season.

Mulling spices are historically celebrated across the holiday season, dating back to the Medieval wassailing tradition in England. In the early 1800s in the English countryside, it became common for young women to travel from door to door during the Christmas season, singing and offering a bowl of wassail to their neighbours and friends. This tradition eventually came to be known as carolling.

The traditional recipe for the preparation of Mulled Cider is to heat apple cider with a combination of spices and brown sugar. The spices are strained away once the cider is fully heated, leaving only the infused warm beverage. Garnished with slices of apple or orange and whole cinnamon sticks, it is a textbook example of a ‘fall in a cup’ treat. It can also be enjoyed with a splash of rum, brandy or bourbon, all of which are great options with fruity undertones, for an adult version of the drink.