Gluehwein

[Drew]

Hi, jmbaus, and welcome. Nice to see someone elso on this board so close to home.
I've had Gluehwein several times, as an after snow drink, and it is nice this time of year with family and as an open house drink. I found this recipe on the internet and of interest is the last statement which says to make Christkindlesmarkt-Gluehwein use blueberry wine. I would not use a fine wine but rather a good cheap to moderate priced, no more than $10, bottle of Spanish Rioja or Portugese Dao red, $6-7, or one of the resonably priced Australian reds from Rosemount (shiraz-grenache, shiraz-cab blends, $6 for each and readily available.

Title: GLUEHWEIN
Categories: Beverages, German, Alcohol
Yield: 4 servings

60 g Sugar
1/2 Cinnamon stick
4 Cloves
Peel of 1/2 lemon
1/8 l Water
1 l Red wine
Juice of 1/2 - 1 lemon

Put cinnamon, cloves and lemon peel in a paper tea filter; tie it shut with
a piece of white yarn. Together with the water and the sugar, bring it to a
boil in a pot, let sit for 20 minutes. Take out the tea filter, add the red
wine and heat. The art is to heat the wine up as close to its boiling
temperature without ever getting it to boil (the most important thing about
making gluehwein is that the wine must NEVER boil). Finally, add lemon
juice to taste.

Possible variations: ~ leave away the lemon juice or use orange juice
instead ~ leave away the lemon peel ~ instead of boiling the tea filter,
put it directly into the wine, heat,
and let soak for 30 - 45 minutes (you don't need the water this way); if
you chop up the ingredients before putting them in the filter, you get a
more intensive flavor ~ add a few drops of vanilla ~ add a little
cardamom and/or ginger ~ vary the quantities of cinnamon, cloves and sugar
~ to get the possibly most famous type of gluehwein, the Nuernberger
Christkindlesmarkt-Gluehwein, use blueberry wine instead of red wine


Drew