There are countless variations for vin chaud recipes. The type of wine and spices differ depending on region, family and chef. Alsace is heavily influenced by the neighboring region of Germany, so its mulled wines tend to be similar to German glühweins which are heavily spiced and sweetened with cloves, star anise, cinnamon, oranges, honey and sometimes a shot of liqueur.
It’s hard to go wrong with homemade mulled wine, but being a lover of Alsatian wines and cuisine, I set out to find a truly unique recipe from someone who really knows Alsatian food and wine. Surprisingly, the best Alsatian cuisine I’ve ever eaten was actually not in Alsace, rather it was a place called Gentil, the only authentic, 100% home-style Alsatian restaurant in Tokyo, Japan. Gentil is owned by Hiroyuki Tomita, a former sommelier and Alsatian food expert, and I was lucky enough to have a long
conversation with him about Alsace and wine.
Tomita fell in love with Alsace while traveling around France when he was younger. There he spent time learning all about the wines, authentic flavors and traditional methods for Alsatian cooking, eventually opening his own cozy restaurant in the old neighborhood of Asakusabashi in Tokyo.
The food and drink at Gentil has such a reputation that Tomita has had customers coming all the way from Alsace itself just to have a meal. There was no doubt in my mind that he was going to have one amazing recipe for vin chaud, and oh indeed he did.
According to Tomita, vin chaud in Alsace is made with both white and red wine, but red is the most popular.
In his red vin chaud recipe, he uses Alsatian Pinot Noir. Why Pinot Noir, you might ask? Because Pinot Noir is the only red wine produced in Alsace and compared to the famous Pinot Noirs of Burgundy, Alsatian reds are less complex and tend to have a “rustic” quality.
They are light, fruity and low in tannins making them a good choice for mulled wine. For vin chaud, you’ll want to use a decent, nexpensive bottle - it would be a waste to use a pricey Pinot Noir as any of its subtle flavors will be overpowered by the spices and heating.
This vin chaud takes a somewhat different approach to flavoring the wine compared to other recipes. Instead of simmering the wine with the mulling spices, it is allowed to steep for three days along with the spices, pureed apple, honey, marmalade and France’s unique Picon Biére liqueur (a bittersweet liqueur flavored with orange and herbs).
The process of soaking lets the flavors slowly infuse into the wine making it less necessary to use heat to complete the job.
Heating can evaporate the alcohol (which you certainly don’t want) and bring out bitter and other unwanted flavors from the spices and wine. Try this recipe. You won’t regret it.
Recipe over page....