Chilled Mulled Wine Cocktail

This post was made in partnership with Truvia®. Recipes and ideas are my own.

I’m hitting peak holiday tradition time right around now. The advent calendar has been going, there’s a tree and decorations and now due to small children’s insistence there’s a second small tree, I’ve sent out Christmas cards, and the majority of the presents have been bought (can you tell I’m a planner??). I’ve also checked off attending the annual Glögg party thrown by some close friends of ours. They’ve been throwing it for close to a decade now and we’ve been attending almost every year (minus a few bouts of the flu). But I’ve kept a secret… I’m not a big fan of hot wine punch.

After reading this my secret will be blown. But, since we’re all friends, I doubt they’ll care all that much. They know I really come for the Swedish meatballs. Are you sitting there reading this thinking to yourself “I like wine, I like spices, but I don’t necessarily want them piping hot…” Well, lucky for you great minds think alike and I’ve got a new twist for your holiday mulled wine traditions!

I’ve teamed up with Truvia® to offer a chilled spin on this traditional holiday drink. The secret to achieving a flavorful mulled wine cocktail is to concentrate the flavors that would ordinarily go into a mulled wine by making a syrup.

For the base I decided to use Truvia Cane Sugar Blend to first create a simple syrup and then add in the mulled wine spices and the wine itself. Truvia Cane Sugar Blend combines stevia sweetener and cane sugar with 75% fewer calories per serving than sugar. Does it make a simple syrup that works just like regular cane sugar? It sure does! Because it is sweeter than cane sugar you also don’t need to add as much into the syrup. After making a quick simple syrup, everything simmers together to make a reduction and extracts those great spices so they really stand out when mixed into a drink. Also, chilling liquids tends to tame the flavors a bit so you want the flavors to be on the bold side.

Since we’re making this into a cocktail I decided to pair this mulled wine syrup with bourbon for a wintery drink. Bourbon imparts some vanilla and buttery caramel flavors into the mix as well. Finally, a burst of citrus comes from freshly squeezed lemon juice and Cointreau. How to garnish is up to you. If you want it to be reminiscent of a Glögg, add in a cinnamon stick, orange slices and a star anise when you serve up the drink. You could also leave all of this out and you’d be fine. Personally I like the aroma that fresh spices add to the drink, but if you’re serving this up at a party you could also just throw in the orange slices. And speaking of parties! This syrup makes enough for plenty of drinks so you might want to consider this for a different take when you host your next holiday party.

One last note. I realize I might be edging out some of you that really enjoy a hot mulled wine. Clearly my friends do since they host this party every year. Here’s a quick tip so you can enjoy a glass of Glögg any time: you can make this drink hot too. Yes! You don’t have to wait for someone to throw a party and use up several bottles of wine and occupy your InstaPot for an entire day. Make the syrup, add the ingredients, and add in some hot water! You’ve got a hot mulled wine cocktail now!

Grab a bottle of wine and let’s make some cocktails!

Truvia Chilled Mulled Wine Cocktail (with Hot Version too!)

Mulled Wine Syrup (Yields 1-1/3 to 1-1/2 cups)
1 cup Truvia Cane Sugar Blend
1 cup water
1-1/2 cups red wine
2 cinnamon sticks
2 star anise pods
6 cloves
4 green cardamom pods, cracked
1 tsp black peppercorns, lightly crushed
4 orange slices, 1/4” thick

For the syrup:
Combine Truvia Cane Sugar Blend and water in a medium saucepan over medium- high heat. Whisk until fully dissolved. Add in red wine, cinnamon sticks, star anise pods, cloves, green cardamom pods, black peppercorns and orange slices. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 30-40 minutes or until mixture has reduced and thickened slightly. Remove from heat, strain out solids and discard them. Let syrup cool to room temperature and then transfer to an airtight container like a swing-top bottle or mason jar. Store refrigerated up to a month.

For the drink:
2 ounces of bourbon
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 ounce Cointreau
1 ounce mulled wine syrup

In a shaker 2/3 filled with ice, combine the bourbon, lemon juice, Cointreau and mulled wine syrup. Shake about 20 seconds to combine and strain over fresh ice into a double rocks glass. Garnish with orange slices, cinnamon stick and star anise.

Alternatively, you can make this a hot drink by including 2-3 ounces of hot water. Combine all ingredients for the cold cocktail in a heat proof mug and then add hot water. Stir gently to combine and serve.