The Ultimate Mulled Cider
December 17, 2019
I'd love to say I have a fool-proof recipe but usually, I just make it up as I go, being aware of what flavours work together. Having said that there are a few things you can always find in my mulled cider, and one of them is Earl Grey tea. I particularly love using either Lipton Russian Earl Grey and Prince Vladimir by Kusmi Tea, I just feel like the lavender in the Lipton Earl Grey is a wonderful add-on without taking over the whole thing, while with Prince Vladimir the bergamot, lemon, grapefruit, vanilla, and spices combination works amazingly with the fruitiness of the cider.
Along with tea, I use either clementine or orange juice and their peel, echoing the bergamot in the Earl Grey tea. As for the warmth that comes from a combo of spices that could almost be a sort of very simple chai, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, nutmeg and even vanilla if I have any lying around. Basically, I use whatever is available in my pantry, combining all that with muscovado sugar, which really brings a deeper and richer flavour to the table.
Here's how I like to prepare my classic warm cider:
- In a large saucepan over a medium heat add a few tablespoons of sugar, I usually start with two and add a bit more towards the end if I feel it needs it. Peel a few sections of clementine peel and squeeze in the juice of one or two clementines.
- Add a few cloves, being careful not to overpower the whole mixture, a cinnamon stick, around a teaspoon and a half of ground nutmeg and, if you're using vanilla, halve it lengthwise and add to the pan. At this point add just enough warm Earl Grey tea to cover the sugar and spices mixture.
- This is the point where you take the whole warm cider business to a new level, let the mixture simmer until the sugar is completely dissolved into the tea, and then bring to the boil, keeping it on a rolling boil for about 5 minutes or until it's thickened. By doing this you've created an amazing flavour base, infusing the sugar and spices with the wonderful and subtle taste of the tea.
- When the mixture resembles a syrup turn the heat down to low, and add your favourite spices, in my case I had star anise and a few broken cardamom pods. Add your choice of cider, halve a few clementines and decorate them with a few cloves, just to add a new layer of amazingness, adding it all to the cider. Gently heat the tasty cider, gently being the key-word here so you won't cook off the alcohol, and after 5 minutes it should be warm and delicious.
And there you go, simply ladle the warm cider into heatproof glasses and let the warmness flow through you.
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