This best mulled wine recipe is the perfect winter cocktail. It's full of flavor from the red wine, whole spices, and fresh orange and apple slices. Since it's served warm, it's the best way to warm up on a cold winter day!

Mulled Wine with Apple Cider
Adding different juices to mulled wine can bring such a variety of flavors. Apple cider or apple juice is one of my favorite juices to add because it's a classic fall and winter beverage! The sweetness from the apple and warmth from the cinnamon make mulled wine even more delicious. I also love adding sliced apple to enhance the apple flavor. If apple isn't your thing, you can also use fresh orange juice!
Best Wine for Mulled Wine
I would recommend a cabernet sauvignon, merlot, or pinot noir. Since this recipe adds apple juice (and honey if you choose), a drier wine would balance out the sweetness. You can use a sweeter red if you'd like, just keep in the mind the end product may be pretty sweet!
While on the topic of best wine for mulled wine, I want to add that you don't have to spend a ton of money on an expensive wine for this recipe. Since there are so many flavors added and inexpensive wines tend to be fruitier, you don't need to use an expensive wine here!
Ingredient Highlights - Best Mulled Wine Recipe
- Red wine - like I said above, a cabernet sauvignon, merlot, or pinot noir would work great in this recipe. You can use an inexpensive wine as well! Red wine actually contains antioxidants, particularly resveratrol, which is found in the skin of grapes. However, you would need to consume quite a bit of wine to really see any health benefit from this antioxidant, at which point you would see more negative effects!
- Apple cider or 100% apple juice - this brings sweetness and some of those "holiday feelings" to the mulled wine. Whenever buying juice, opt for 100% fruit juice (check the ingredients label)! This will cut back on added sugar content. Orange juice would also work great! Both apple and orange juices contain a good amount of vitamin C.
- Whole spices - these are one of the stars of the recipe, in my opinion. Mulled wine is known for being served warm and full of warm spices. I use whole cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and star anise to give this mulled wine the classic spiced flavor.
- Sweetener - this is totally optional but if you prefer sweeter beverages, you can add some honey or maple syrup!
- Fresh fruit - another classic mulled wine ingredient is sliced fruit. Sliced oranges and apples give this mulled wine extra flavor (and nutrients!). The fruit is cooked in the wine so flavors and nutrients like vitamin C transfer into the wine.
- Liquor - this is another optional ingredient for a mulled wine recipe. If you want your mulled wine extra boozy, you can add your favorite liquor!
Recipe FAQ
A cabernet sauvignon, merlot, or pinot noir work best for mulled wine. A drier, less expensive wine is perfect! You can also use white wine but red is more traditional.
Yes. You want to be careful not to boil the wine as this will result in a bitter flavor!
Absolutely! You can either reheat it over low heat on the stove or warm it in the microwave. You just want to be careful to not let it boil!
Other Recipes You May Like
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- Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte
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- Refreshing Pineapple Paloma
- Spicy Margarita Recipe
Rate & Review
If you made the best mulled wine recipe, please rate and review it below! I would love to hear your feedback. Also snap a photo and tag me on insta @theperfectpearr so I can see your creation!
PrintBest Mulled Wine Recipe
This best mulled wine recipe is the perfect winter cocktail. It's full of flavor from the red wine, whole spices, and fresh orange and apple slices. Since it's served warm, it's the best way to warm up on a cold winter day!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 5 cups 1x
- Category: Drinks, Festive
- Method: Stove
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 bottle (750mL) red wine (Merlot, Zinfandel, Cabernet, or Pinot Noir)
- 1 cup (256g) 100% apple juice
- 1 medium orange (173g), sliced or quartered (save a slice or two for garnish!)
- 1 honey crisp apple (136g), sliced or quartered
- 4 whole cloves
- 2 cinnamon sticks, plus more for garnish
- 1 star anise, plus more for garnish
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ cup (81g) honey or maple syrup, optional
Instructions
On the stove:
- Combine all ingredients in a medium pot and stir.
- Cook over medium heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Serve warm and garnish with a cinnamon stick, star anise, and/or fruit slice.
In the crockpot:
- Combine all ingredients in crockpot and stir.
- Cook on low for 30-50 minutes.
- Serve warm and garnish with a cinnamon stick, star anise, and/or fruit slice.
Notes
- This mulled wine is best served warm.
- You can store it in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Let it cool completely before refrigerating.
- Reheat the wine on the stove over low heat or in the microwave in 30 second intervals!
- You can use any juice you'd like in lieu of apple.
- You can also use other fruits like fresh cranberries, pomegranate seeds, or berries!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 166
- Sugar: 12
- Sodium: 8
- Fat: 0
- Saturated Fat: 0
- Unsaturated Fat: 0
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 17
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 1
- Cholesterol: 0
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