Glögi
Glögi, also called Glühwein or mulled wine, is a spiced, usually alcoholic drink, served warm. The original form of Glögi, a spiced liquor, was used to revive messengers and postmen who travelled on horseback or skis in cold weather in Scandinavia.
The production of glögi begins by boiling water and adding spices to it. After a few minutes of simmering, the mixture is sieved and blackcurrant juice, wine or clear spirits are added. The most common spices in Finnish glögi are cloves, cinnamon and ginger. Other common spices are orange peel and cardamom. The same spices are often used in glögi as in ginger snaps. Glögi may also contain raisins or almonds.[1]
In shops ready-made glögi is usually based on grape juice, sometimes also blackcurrant juice, mixed fruit juice, apple juice or wine. There are also stronger, rum-based types of glögi. Ready-made glögi from shops is warmed up before use, but if it is wine-based or high in alcohol content, it should not be heated to boiling point. It is common to add whole almonds or raisins to glögi while it is being warmed up or just before drinking.
In Finland a number of different types of glögi are produced. Among them are alcohol free, mild and strong variants. Non-alcoholic glögi was originally just a children's drink, but nowadays it is commonly enjoyed among adults. Strong glögi can have a 22% alcohol content.
Since the early 19th century glögi has been a men's winter drink, mixed and warmed up with juice, sirup and liquor. Spices were then added and it was drunk outside in connection to Shrove Tuesday. Glögi came to Finland from Sweden. At the end of the 19th century, glögi mixed with wine was drunk, but due to prohibition, consumption of glögi almost stopped completely. In the 1920s Jalostaja tried to introduce a ready-made glögi to the market, but the product was not successful. When prohibition was lifted in the 1930s glögi was advertised in Fenno-Swedish magazines, and in the 1950s and 60s, the drinking of glögi was mainly a Fenno-Swedish tradition. At the end of the 1960s and beginning of the 70s glögi recipes began to also appear in Finnish language magazines, after which glögi became a Christmas tradition in the whole of Finland.[2]
The Finnish word glögi comes from the Swedish word glögg, which in turn comes from the words glödgat vin or hot wine.