Wassail and Mulled Wine both show up the minute the weather turns, and fill the house with cinnamon and clove. They can even come out of the same tin of Mulling Spice. So what actually separates wassail from mulled wine?

Mostly what goes in the pot, and how you treat it once it's there.

The Short Answer

Mulled wine is red wine warmed with spices, citrus, and a little sweetener.

Wassail (said WAH-sul) has a looser definition. Traditionally it was warm ale, wine, or cider blended with spices and honey, and many modern American recipes build it on apple cider and other fruit juices. Its name comes from a toast traded in medieval England, waes hael, "be well."

No matter what, mulling spice is the whole-spice blend used to flavour either one.

Wassail vs. Mulled Wine at a Glance

How They Taste

When it comes to understanding the flavour of these beverages, you've got to start with the base (because it does most of the talking).

Mulled wine tastes like the wine you pour in, warmed through and layered with spice. Our Easy Mulled Wine calls for a bottle of Merlot or Zinfandel, half an orange sliced and half squeezed in, a tablespoon of honey, and an optional splash of brandy.

Wassail leads with apple. Cider brings its own sugar, so a cider-based pot usually lands sweeter and fruitier than mulled wine. Punch-style recipes push further by adding orange, cranberry, pineapple, and lemon juice. Ale-based wassail, like Alton Brown's recipe, uses ale malt and baked apples in the bowl.

The spice does the same job in both. In Mulling Spice, cinnamon and clove bring warmth, allspice adds earthy depth, and orange peel keeps things bright.

How They're Made

Mulled wine: low and quick

Pour a bottle of red into a pot over medium-low heat. Add the orange, honey, and 2 tablespoons of Mulling Spice, and warm it until it just starts to steam. Then turn it to low for about 10 minutes, taste, and adjust. In a slow cooker, give it 30 minutes to an hour on low.

Whatever you do, don't let it boil. Alcohol boils at about 173°F, well below water, so a hard boil drives it off!

Wassail: depends on the style

Wassail has no single method, so it helps to know which kind you're making.

• Alcohol-free cider punch. With no alcohol to protect, you have more room. Most of the recipes we found online bring its juices to a light boil, then simmer them for 10 to 15 minutes. You can also find the slow cooker option we linked above: 6 to 8 hours on low.
• Ale-based, old-style. This one takes more work. Alton Brown bakes apples with brown sugar at 350°F for about 45 minutes, then warms ale and Madeira with spices to at least 120°F without boiling. Beaten eggs, tempered with some of the hot ale, go in at the end.

If you spike a cider wassail with brandy or rum, treat it like mulled wine: steam, don't boil.

One Blend, Both Drinks

Our Mulling Spice is whole allspice, clove, cinnamon, orange peel, and star anise, and we did that on purpose. Whole spices matter here. They infuse slowly in hot liquid and strain out cleanly, while ground spices leave grit at the bottom of the mug.

Start with the ratio from our mulled wine recipe, 2 tablespoons per 750 ml bottle, and scale up for a bigger pot of cider, tasting as you go. A muslin bag or tea infuser makes it easy to pull the spices once the pot tastes right. 

Wassail or mulled wine, the best part is the same: a pot on low, a kitchen that smells like cinnamon and orange peel, and enough mugs to go around. 

Ladle one out for whoever walks in first, and get cozy!