Ingredients
The wine
- 1.5 litresred wine
- a soft fruity one
- 5 tablespoonshoney
- or 130 g sugar
Spices
- 3cinnamon sticks
- 12whole cloves
- 4star anise
- 1 teaspoonwhole allspice berries
- 1vanilla pod, split
- 3cm fresh ginger, sliced
Fruit
- 2oranges, sliced
- 1lemon, sliced
- 1apple, sliced
- 100 graisins, optional
Sometimes added
- a shot of vodka or spirit
- 200 mlapple juice
Directions
- Keep it at a bare steam instead. Use a soft and fruity red wine. It should not be heavily tannic. Put the whole spices in a dry pan. Warm them over a medium low heat. Give them about two full minutes.
- Shake the pan as they warm through. They should smell noticeably stronger. Wash the oranges and lemon very thoroughly. Waxed fruit should be scrubbed well.
- Slice them all into thin rounds. Keep the peel on, since it carries the oil. Slice the apple up thinly as well. Pour about a third of the wine into a pot. Add the toasted spices and the ginger. Add the split vanilla pod to it. Add the sliced fruit and the raisins. Warm it gently over a low heat.
- Let it simmer very gently for ten minutes. The cold wine brings the temperature down. Warm the whole pot through gently. Bring it to a bare steam only. Never let it bubble at all here.
- Hold it there for fifteen minutes. Judging the temperature takes attention. Steam should rise from the surface. No bubbles should break it at all. Turn the heat right down if it starts to bubble. Adding the honey is done off the heat. Take the pot right off the heat. Stir the honey in until it dissolves.
- Taste it and adjust the sweetness. Add more honey if it seems sharp. Squeeze in more lemon if it is flat. Add it off the heat at the very end. Leaving them in keeps infusing it. Pour it into thick mugs or heatproof glasses. Add a fresh orange slice to each one.
- Add a cinnamon stick if you like. It is drunk standing in the cold. Warm alcohol is absorbed faster than cold. Never drive after drinking it.
Technique
- Galicyjski means Galician but refers to the historical Austro-Hungarian province covering southern Poland and western Ukraine, with Krakow and Lviv as its main cities; it has nothing to do with Spanish Galicia, and the two are often confused.
- Vanilla is characteristic of the Polish version and gives a rounder softer flavour than the Hungarian, Russian or Bulgarian mulled wines.
- The wine should never boil, since alcohol evaporates well below the boiling point of water and boiling concentrates the tannins harshly.
Substitutions
- Sugar stands in for honey, though the sweetness is flatter.
- Any soft fruity red wine works, and there is no point using a fine one.
Variations
- A bottled ready-to-warm version is widely sold in Poland.
- Grzane piwo, warmed spiced beer, is drunk in the same taverns.
- Glintvein, forralt bor and greyano vino are the same idea elsewhere.
History
A Kraków and Galician winter drink poured at Christmas markets and in Zakopane’s wooden taverns.
Frequently asked questions
What is Grzaniec galicyjski?
Grzaniec galicyjski is a cocktail from Poland: mulled wine with honey, cloves and cinnamon, drunk in mountain inns. A Kraków and Galician winter drink poured at Christmas markets and in Zakopane’s wooden taverns.
How long does Grzaniec galicyjski take to make?
Grzaniec galicyjski takes 10 minutes of preparation and 25 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Grzaniec galicyjski?
Yes, within limits. Sugar stands in for honey, though the sweetness is flatter. Any soft fruity red wine works, and there is no point using a fine one.
What is the most important thing to get right in Grzaniec galicyjski?
Keep it at a bare steam instead. Use a soft and fruity red wine. It should not be heavily tannic. Put the whole spices in a dry pan. Warm them over a medium low heat. Give them about two full minutes.
