It’s that time of year again for alcoholic holiday cheer! Seasonal drinks don’t seem to get the same love as seasonal food does around the holidays, unless maybe you’re at your annual Christmas party. Then again, perhaps that’s just with my family. Either way, it’s why I’m trying to build up a nice little repertoire. Last year I wrote about Glühwein, which is quite popular in Germany and certainly not unheard of in North America. This year I thought I’d bring you something a little more obscure known as Glühmost.
Truth be told, I hadn’t heard of it myself until this year when an American friend of mine asked if we could make it while she was there in Germany with us for our wedding. September wasn’t the right time of year for it so we ended up drinking Hugos instead. Actually, there just wasn’t much time for anything other than wedding plans and sightseeing anyway but it made me curious to find out more about Glühmost.
This drink is traditionally made with German hard apple cider or Apfelwein. Though Apfelwein translates to “apple wine” it’s not a wine in the technical sense since it has a lower alcohol content – around 6%. In some parts of Southern Germany and Austria, Apfelwein is referred to as Apfelmost. So you can likely tell from the name that Glühmost is more well known in Southern Germany and Austria, especially in the winter months or at some Christmas markets as an alternative to the ubiquitous Glühwein. It’s also known as being a soul-warming old remedy to help kick an oncoming cold, kind of like the hot toddy. It works best right if you drink it right before going to bed.
The one thing to note is that Apfelwein is pretty dry and tart and not sweet like most North American hard ciders you find at the local grocery stores. Therefore, either go for a nice dry or bittersweet hard cider for this drink or if you have a hard cider your already love, just use less honey as it probably won’t need much sweetening to balance the flavours.
Making this is going to make your house smell sooooooo good.
German Mulled Hard Cider
(Glühmost)
Ingredients:
- 4 cups (or two 16oz cans) of Dry Hard Cider
- 4 Lemon Slices
- 2 Cinnamon Stick
- 4 Whole Cloves
- 2 Star Anise
- One piece of Ginger
- Honey to taste (I use about 1/3 cup)
- 1/3 cup of Orange Juice (optional)
The reason that the orange juice is optional is that I made it both ways and just couldn’t decide which one I liked better. The orange juice sweetens up the Glühmost a little more in a different way from just honey. Plus, it adds a nice little shot of vitamin C (calcium and vitamin D, too, if that’s the kind you buy).
Simply place all the ingredients (except orange juice if you’re using it) into medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer on medium low heat. If you’re a star anise lover like I am, you can break it up to extract more of the flavour.
Let the cider steep for 20 minutes.
Don’t let it boil as we don’t want to cook off all the alcohol. If you’re adding the orange juice, pour it in at the end, stir gently and give it a minute or two to warm up.
Pour the Glühmost through a fine mesh sieve to remove the spices bits and the lemon slices. Serve with an extra lemon slice and a cinnamon stick or star anise as garnish.
That’s all there is to it. Enjoy!
Simmer up a pot of this Glühmost on a cold winter evening or for your next holiday party.
As always,
und Alles Liebe,
Diony
German Mulled Hard Cider (Glühmost)
Ingredients
- 4 cups or two 16oz cans of Dry Hard Cider
- 4 Lemon Slices
- 2 Cinnamon Stick
- 4 Whole Cloves
- 2 Star Anise
- One piece of Ginger
- Honey to taste
- 1/3 cup of Orange Juice optional
Instructions
-
Place all the ingredients (except orange juice if you're using it) into medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer on medium low heat. Let the cider steep for 20 minutes. Do not boil!
-
If you're adding the orange juice, pour it in at the end, stir gently and give it a minute or two to warm up.
-
Pour the Glühmost through a fine mesh sieve to remove the spices bits and the lemon slices. Serve with an extra lemon slice and a cinnamon stick or star anise as garnish.
Recipe Notes
You can break up the star anise into smaller pieces to extract more flavour.
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