Glögi

Ingredients

Base

• 1 litreblackcurrant juice, or 750 ml red wine
• 100 gsugar, to taste

Spices

• 1cinnamon stick
• 10cardamom pods, crushed
• 8cloves
• 1star anise
• 1 piecedried bitter orange peel
• 1 slicefresh ginger

In the glass

• 100 graisins
• 100 gblanched slivered almonds
• vodka or rum, optional

To serve

• joulutorttu
• piparkakut

Directions

1. Choose the base. Finnish glögi is most often made with blackcurrant juice and served without alcohol, which is what sets it apart from the Swedish and Danish versions built on wine.
2. Crush the cardamom pods to open them and crack the cinnamon stick.
3. Crush the cardamom rather than dropping the pods in whole. Cardamom carries this drink far more than cinnamon does, and closed pods give up almost nothing.
4. Warm the juice or wine with all the spices and the sugar over a low heat.
5. Hold it just below a simmer for 20 to 30 minutes so that the spices infuse, without ever letting it boil.
6. Boiling turns the spices bitter and, in a wine version, drives off the alcohol you meant to keep.
7. Taste and adjust the sugar, remembering that the raisins waiting in the glass will add sweetness of their own.
8. Strain out the spices, or leave them in if you are serving from a pot at the table.
9. Put a spoonful of raisins and slivered almonds into the bottom of each glass or mug.
10. The raisins and almonds go in the glass, not the pot. They are eaten at the end with a spoon, and glögi is served with a small spoon for exactly that reason.
11. Pour the hot glögi over them and serve.
12. Set a bottle of vodka or rum alongside so anyone who wants it can add a measure to their own glass, which is how it is usually handled.
13. It is poured at Finnish Christmas markets from late November, with joulutorttu star pastries and gingerbread on the same tray.

Technique

• Because the default is alcohol-free, children drink it too, and it turns up at workplaces, schools and church halls through December.
• Glögi concentrate is sold in every Finnish supermarket and diluted with water or wine, which is what most people actually do.
• The spice mix is close to gingerbread spice, which is why the piparkakut pairing works so well.

Substitutions

• Red wine in place of the juice for the alcoholic version.
• Apple juice with a squeeze of lemon if blackcurrant is unavailable.

Variations

• Gløgg, the Danish version, built on wine and spirit.
• Swedish glögg, usually sweeter and stronger.
• A white glögi made with apple and pear juice.

History

Poured at Finnish Christmas markets from late November, commonly made alcohol-free with blackcurrant juice.

Frequently asked questions

What is Glögi?

Glögi is a cocktail from Finland: hot spiced wine or blackcurrant drink with raisins and almonds. Poured at Finnish Christmas markets from late November, commonly made alcohol-free with blackcurrant juice.

How long does Glögi take to make?

Glögi takes 10 min of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Glögi?

Yes, within limits. Red wine in place of the juice for the alcoholic version. Apple juice with a squeeze of lemon if blackcurrant is unavailable.

What is the most important thing to get right in Glögi?

Crush the cardamom rather than dropping the pods in whole. Cardamom carries this drink far more than cinnamon does, and closed pods give up almost nothing.