Ah…Christmas festivities. They never get old. With every street corner now showing off a few Christmas lights and Christmas trees now sprouting in every Christmas-loving, Christmas-celebrating homes, it might as well be here. This also means that despite the rather mild cold front experienced in the Philippines during the holidays, Christmas will always be a good excuse to indulge in piping hot dishes and beverages. Last year, we did not share our mulled wine recipe but this year is different because we finally found the time to mix up a few things and try it out, etc. etc.

Basi Maria Mulled Wine

There is nothing like mulled wine. This spiced beverage is not only comforting, it also gives off this Christmas smell that we feel you’d love.

You will need the following

• 2 oranges
• 1 lemon
• 1 lime
• caster sugar (100 g is suggested, add as needed)
• Nutmeg
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 bay leaves (ground)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 bottles of Basi Maria
• 2 star anise

Instructions

1. Peel oranges, lemon, and lime.
2. Add the sugar in a saucepan. Use medium heat.
3. Add some of the peel. It would be nice if you grate them first but that is not necessary. You can just cut them up in small pieces.x
4. Add orange juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla.
5. Add 1 bottle of Basi Maria to cover the sugar.
6. Wait for the sweet stuff to be dissolved.
7. Bring to a boil until you get a thick syrup. This will help you incorporate all the flavours into the mix and prevent you from burning your mulled wine.
8. Once you have your syrup, add star anise and another bottle of Basi Maria.
9. The fire must not be too hot while you are incorporating your second bottle of Basi Maria.
10. Serve hot.