Traditional Glögg Recipe

By Steve Kilcullen Jump to Recipe

A spiced and strong Scandinavian favorite, Glögg is the perfect drink on a cold, Christmas Eve.

If my parents hadn’t started the popular tradition of celebrating my birthday every year, I would never know when I was born. You see, when that happened I was just a little baby, so I have no memory of the event. The same with the first few years of my life, in general. Apparently I lived quite a European adventure, and slept through most of it. There’s pictures to prove it, but like I mentioned earlier, my rewind button doesn’t go back that far.

Whenever I’m home for the holidays, I like to raid the old liquor cabinet… which never had much in it, because my parents aren’t drinkers. My mother will enjoy a tipple or two from time to time, but my dad never touches the stuff. Despite that, they amassed quite the glassware collection from our travels across Europe, especially where we lived in Germany. Shot glasses, beer steins, champagne goblets and all manner of coupes that are ornate enough for royalty to raise an impressed eyebrow. Having been present when all these items were acquired, but not remembering any of it -despite growing up around them- feels like an odd sort of time travel.

There’s set of glasses and a big bowl on display in the family schrank, which is a colossal German wardrobe that has carried just about everything we’ve collected over the years. I used to think the bowl and matching glass mugs was for punch, but according to my folks it was made for serving Glögg, a mulled Scandinavian wine drink that’s served hot. My mom loved it when she first had it all those years ago, and my parents purchased the bowl set with the intention of making the traditional Christmas libation every year. Which hasn’t happened.

But this year, that will change, as tonight’s recipe is the spiced and warm Glögg, and when I’m back home for the season, that bowl and those mugs are getting a workout.

What Is The Best Wine To Use In The Traditional Glögg Recipe?

A red wine is used for the alcoholic base of this comforting Christmastime beverage. Since there’s a lot of flavor swirling around in this recipe, we’ll want to go with a dry and subtly sweet wine, like a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or a Malbec. Another option is to use a ruby port, which will give your Glögg some intense and robust berry and cherry flavors.

What Glassware And Garnish Are Used?

There are plenty of handcrafted and authentic Glögg bowl sets available for purchase online, that also include a handful of mugs too. You don’t need to have that however to make, serve and enjoy this recipe. A standard and heat-resistant punch bowl along with hot beverage mugs or glasses will do nicely. Garnish each serving with raisins, almonds, orange slices and a cinnamon stick. Then pour a splash of either vodka, bourbon or amaretto on top.

What Is The Best Spirit To Garnish Your Glögg With?

While our instructions mention a few you can use, an amaretto like Disaronno seems to be one of the more popular options. You can also use a blend of spirits if you like. Other choices you can go with include rum, brandy and aquavit.

Other Seasonal Drinks Worth Trying

Every time one holiday or celebration comes to an end, another is right around the corner. And since everybody always seems to flock to your home whenever it’s party time, you might want to keep some crowd-pleasing potions on hand to whip up at a moment’s notice. Here are a few to keep in your bag of tricks.

Christmas Punch – Celebrate the festive wintery season with this warming and potent Punch.

Halloween Punch – Make your next costume party an extra spooky affair with this ghoulish, delicious elixir.

Bomb Pop Shot – Your summertime BBQ will reach the next level when a tray of these shooters come out.

Jingle Juice Holiday Punch – Here’s another robust and rich libation you can ladle out to your guests.