Hippocras — mulled spiced Rhine wine
Rhine wine gently heated with honey, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and a hint of pepper, then strained through a cloth. A golden, fragrant, and comforting drink, served in pewter goblets.
Rhine wine gently heated with honey, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and a hint of pepper, then strained through a cloth. A golden, fragrant, and comforting drink, served in pewter goblets.
Winter in Nuremberg bites the fingers, and an engraver needs steady hands. In the evening, we put the Rhine wine on the fire — without boiling it, never — with honey, cinnamon, and ginger, then pass it through a cloth until it is clear as amber. We drink it warm among friends, and the conversation flows on art and the world. There, friend, is the brew that warms the body and loosens the tongue.
- •Rhine wine — a good pitcher (base)
- •Honey — to taste (sweetness)
- •Cinnamon stick — one (spice)
- •Ginger — a piece (signature spice)
- •Cloves — a few (spice)
- •Peppercorns — a pinch (heat)
Hippocras — mulled spiced Rhine wine
Rhine wine gently heated with honey, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and a hint of pepper, then strained through a cloth. A golden, fragrant, and comforting drink, served in pewter goblets.
Why this dish? The anchor indicates that Dürer drank Rhenish wine at his table. Warmed and spiced with the very spices that made Nuremberg's fortune, the wine became hippocras — a drink for entertaining and comfort on Franconian winter evenings.
Winter in Nuremberg bites the fingers, and an engraver needs steady hands. In the evening, we put the Rhine wine on the fire — without boiling it, never — with honey, cinnamon, and ginger, then pass it through a cloth until it is clear as amber. We drink it warm among friends, and the conversation flows on art and the world. There, friend, is the brew that warms the body and loosens the tongue.
Ingredients (period version)
- Rhine wine — a good pitcher (base)
- Honey — to taste (sweetness)
- Cinnamon stick — one (spice)
- Ginger — a piece (signature spice)
- Cloves — a few (spice)
- Peppercorns — a pinch (heat)
Ingredients
- Dry white or red wine (e.g., German Riesling or Pinot Noir) — 750 ml (base)
- Honey — 3 tablespoons (sweetness)
- Cinnamon stick — 1 (spice)
- Fresh ginger — 3 slices (signature spice)
- Cloves — 4 (spice)
- Black peppercorns — 4 (heat)
- Orange zest — 1 strip (optional) (flavor)
Method
- Pour the wine into a saucepan, add honey and all spices.
- Heat gently without ever boiling (the alcohol would evaporate and the taste would spoil), for 15–20 minutes.
- Let steep off the heat for another 10 minutes to allow the spices to fully infuse.
- Strain through a fine cloth or a sieve lined with cheesecloth, until clear.
- Serve very warm in goblets, in winter, among guests.
How it was made : Hippocras (spiced wine filtered, often through a 'Hippocrates sleeve' — hence its name) is attested throughout medieval and Renaissance Europe. It was both a prestige drink (spices were expensive) and a presumed digestive remedy. Rhine wine, renowned, was the natural base in Franconia.
The contemporary twist : Serve in sugar- and cinnamon-rimmed glasses, with a stick of candied ginger as a stirrer — an 'artist's mulled wine' for Nuremberg Christmas markets.
Albrecht Dürer · Charactorium
