3 Ways to Mull Your Mead

There are different ways to do it, but we’re going to start with how to mull your mead using three different approaches. Mulled mead is one of the tastiest drinks of the autumn and winter seasons, and your AleHorn or tankard is the perfect device for holding it. Consider this: you’ve come home from a long day at work, and we’ve trucked hard through the snow or the icy autumn winds. Whether you just walked from your car to your front door, or you really did have to walk three miles through the snow (uphill, both ways), mulled mead will warm those bones just right.

We’ve selected our tried-and-true favorites and deposited them here for you, so they’ll be ready by the time the icy north winds blow. And for those of you in tropical places, don’t worry. You can enjoy mulled mead even when the temperature only gets down to 70 degrees. It’s that versatile.

Traditional Mulled Mead

The traditional mulling spices for mead are as follows:
2 cinnamon sticks
5 whole allspice
5 black peppercorns
5 cardamom seeds
7 whole cloves
3 one-inch piece of fresh ginger or 3 teaspoons
1 orange slice
1 bottle of mead
A shot of Amaretto (for each glass of mead)

I recently found out that you could straight up buy a bottle of mulling spices at your local grocery store! Did you know? But if you want to DIY it, assemble the above. You can find some of those harder-to-find spices either at your local brewing supply store or in the Ethnic food aisle of your favorite grocery store.

While you’re at your local brewing supply store, pick up some cheesecloth or muslin too. You can make a little pouch out of those for the spices. If those aren’t available though, just toss ’em in and strain them out. I’ve done both in times of need and it’s worked just fine.

Empty your bottle of mead into a saucepan, add in the orange slice and the spice bag (or spices), and bring it to a boil. Once it’s nice and rolling, drop it down to a mere simmer for about thirty minutes. You don’t want to overcook it and knock all the alcohol out of your drinky, but you do want to give those delectable spices time to steep.

Once it’s done, fill your sturdy AleHorn or tankard and add a shot of Amaretto. Or a little bit more, if need be. Mm, those spices though!

Mead Toddy

My family swears by hot toddies for any passing ailment, and they’ve kept me alive so far. This one is my favorite. Here’s what you’ll need:

1 bottle of mead
1 bottle of the Irish whiskey of your choosing
lemon juice or a lemon slice
some extra honey
1 teaspoon of powdered cinnamon
1 teaspoon of powdered cloves
1 teaspoon of powdered nutmeg

Combine mead and spices. Bring the mixture to a steady boil, then drop it down to a simmer for about ten minutes. Once it’s nice and hot, take out a teacup and add a shot of whiskey, a squirt of that lemon juice, and a tablespoon (or two, if you’re a baby like me) of honey. Fill the rest of the cup with that spicy, spicy mead and call me in the morning.

Slow-cooker Lingonberry Mulled Mead

I wanted to make glogg once, one of the many traditional delicious drinks of Norse canon. And once I finally got my hands on some lingonberries (from IKEA!) I realized that the possibilities were endless and also that I should immediately put them in mead.

It looks like IKEA is currently selling lingonberry syrup, so that will make your journey a little bit easier. If you just have fresh lingonberries, you can always boil them down with some sugar and make a syrup. Or heck, just add them to the slow-cooker. You can also use lingonberry jam.

Here’s the rest of your ingredients:

1 bottle of mead
2 cups of apple juice
1/2 cup of lingonberry syrup (or jam)
1/2 an orange, sliced
2 cinnamon sticks
1/4 teaspoon of powdered or fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon of powdered cloves
1 sprig of fresh juniper

Again, you can use that cheesecloth or muslin if you are using unpowdered spices, or just strain it when you pour it. Combine all ingredients into your slow-cooker and cook on low for at least an hour before serving.

Featured image is Sam’s mulled cranberry mead.