Grzaniec Galicyjski (Polish Hot Mulled Wine) Recipe

By
Barbara Rolek
Barbara Rolek
Barbara Rolek is a former chef who became a cooking school instructor and award-winning food writer.
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Updated on 05/24/22
Polish hot mulled wine recipe

The Spruce Eats / Zorica Lakonic

Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 20 mins
Total: 25 mins
Servings: 4 to 5 servings

Mulled wine is a winter holiday favorite beverage, and one that can be found in many different countries, especially in Europe. It's an aromatic blend of red wine, sugar, and mulling spices such as cinnamon and cloves.

This recipe for Polish hot mulled wine is known as grzaniec galicyjski (grrzzah-NYETS gah-leet-see-I-skee). Grzane is the word for "mulled" and galicyjski means "Galician." The wino (wine) is implied. It's similar to German gluhwein, French vin chaud, and Swedish glogg, whereas Serbs say kuvano vino, Croatians refer to it as kuhano vino, Bulgarians call it greyano vino, and Romanians call it vin fiert. It's tempting to buy pre-made mulled wine, but those can often be overly sweet.

This mulled wine is especially popular served outdoors at Christkindlmarkets or Christmas markets and after partaking in sledding, skating, or other outdoor winter activities. It's best served in a mug, as opposed to a wine glass.

Ingredients

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for hot mulled wine

    The Spruce Eats / Zorica Lakonic

  2. In a large saucepan, combine the red wine, sugar, cloves, cinnamon stick, and bay leaf.

    Red wine with cinnamon, bay leaf, and sugar

    The Spruce Eats / Zorica Lakonic 

  3. Heat to dissolve the sugar. Bring just to the boil and immediately remove from the heat.

    Sugar stirred into mulled wine

    The Spruce Eats / Zorica Lakonic

  4. Strain and pour into hot mugs.

    Mulled wine strained of its solids

    The Spruce Eats / Zorica Lakonic

  5. Serve and enjoy!

    Hot mulled wine in glasses

    The Spruce Eats / Zorica Lakonic

What Is the Best Red Wine For Mulled Wine?

You can use any kind of wine you like for mulled wine, really, but the dry and full-bodied reds are best suited for the task, such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah. However, if you like red wines that are sweet and would like a sweet mulled wine, feel free to choose one that's on the sweet side.

How to Store Mulled Wine

  • You can keep mulled wine in the refrigerator 3 to 4 days after you make it. Just cool it to room temperature and transfer it to an airtight container.
  • When it's time to serve the wine again, transfer to a saucepan and reheat over medium-low heat. It will still be good, but the flavors may not be as vibrant. The same procedure would be followed if you wanted to make the wine ahead of time and then reheat it.
  • You can also freeze leftover grzaniec if you like, but alcohol doesn't freeze completely solid. The frozen mulled wine will, however, make for a tasty wine slushy.

Variations

You can add ingredients such as a dash of nutmeg, star anise, whole allspice, some peels of fresh ginger, or even a slice or two of orange if you like.

This Polish mulled wine can be made in a slow cooker on low for about an hour on the low setting.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
244 Calories
0g Fat
27g Carbs
0g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4 to 5
Amount per serving
Calories 244
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 14mg 1%
Total Carbohydrate 27g 10%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Total Sugars 21g
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 31mg 2%
Iron 1mg 6%
Potassium 262mg 6%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)