Professorns Glogg

Professorns Glogg: A Swedish Holiday Tradition

Professorns glogg is the scholarly, heavyweight champion of Swedish mulled wines. Where a quick weekday glogg gets mulled for an hour, this version is left to steep overnight with two kinds of wine, vermouth, and a small forest of warming spices. The result is deeply aromatic and noticeably boozy, exactly the kind of drink you ladle out of a copper pot while snow piles up against the window.

The 12-hour cold steep is the whole game. Cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon sticks, orange peel, and plump raisins slowly release their oils into the wine, a process that heat alone can’t match. Boiling afterward just wakes everything up for serving.

The aquavit goes in at the end so its caraway snap survives. Traditional Swedish service calls for a tiny spoon in every mug to scoop up the booze-plumped raisins and blanched almonds at the bottom. That’s the best part.

Chef Tips

• Do not boil the glogg longer than 30 seconds once it hits a full boil; extended boiling burns off the alcohol and the spice oils turn bitter.
• Use blanched almonds rather than raw; the skins can cloud the drink and taste tannic after soaking.
• Pair with pepparkakor cookies or buttery saffron buns for a proper Swedish julbord spread.

Variations

• For a lighter version, skip the aquavit and reduce the sugar by half.
• Swap muscatel for port or madeira for a richer, fortified-wine backbone.
• Add a few slices of fresh ginger along with the spices for extra heat.