With Glühwein into Christmas

 If you have ever visited a German Christmas Market you have probably had a taste of Glühwein. It is called that because it is glowing hot when you drink it and it continues to glow once you have swallowed it. So what exactly is it?

If you want to make it at home you start with a bottle of red wine. Don't take your most expensive bottle. Take a cheap one.

You gonna heat it up on the range. And you want to add a few ingredients like cinnamon, clove powder (or whole cloves) a few almonds and raisins.  And most wines need a good portion of sugar as well. Don't roil-boil this concoction - just heat it cautiously. You might also want a kettle of hot water to thin this out. Some people like it really strong, others prefer it a bit weaker. All I can promise you is that it will warm you up if you are feeling the cold of a winter evening creeping into your bones. And that is precisely the reason why Germans like it so much when hanging out on a rather cold winter afternoon/evening in the Christmas Market. It is readily available at many of the festively illuminated Christmas booths. 

I know that some towns with a heavy German population in North America are having Christmas Markets. Whether they are allowed to serve the original Glühwein containing alcohol, is up to city or state ordinances. But you can make it from fruit juices like blackberry, cherry or black currant as well.

Bea and I had a good one today. And now we call it a day. Good Night.