Calories in Mulled Wine: What You're Really Drinking

The short answer: a 175ml glass of shop-bought mulled wine contains between 126 and 187 calories, and between 18 and 30 grams of sugar. The sugar is the surprising part. One large glass of the sweetest brands we tested carries close to an adult's entire recommended daily allowance of free sugars.

We had nine widely available mulled wines tested. The results are below, along with why the figures are so high, and how to make a version at home that tastes better and costs you far less sugar.

Mulled wine: tested figures

All nine were bought from UK retailers and tested for alcohol, calories and sugar. Figures are per 100ml, with a typical 175ml glass shown alongside.

The NHS recommends adults have no more than 30g of free sugars a day, roughly seven teaspoons. A single large glass of the Harvey Nichols mulled wine accounts for essentially all of it.

The gap between the highest and lowest is worth noting too. Belgars carries 10.5g of sugar per 100ml against Harvey Nichols at 17g, which is a 62% difference for what is nominally the same drink.

Why mulled wine is so high in sugar

Because it is sweetened wine, and often sweetened heavily.

A dry red wine contains around 0.6g of sugar per 100ml. Every one of the mulled wines tested contains between seventeen and twenty-eight times that. The additional sugar is added during production, along with the spices and usually a fruit concentrate.

There is a commercial logic to it. Mulled wine is served warm, and warmth flattens the perception of sweetness while making tannin and acidity more prominent. Producers add sugar to compensate. They also tend to start with an inexpensive base wine, and sugar covers a multitude of shortcomings.

Which is why shop-bought mulled wine so often tastes syrupy rather than spiced. The dominant flavour is sugar, not cinnamon.

Calories: where they come from

Two sources. Alcohol carries around 7 calories per gram and sugar around 4.

Take the Sainsbury's example at 11% ABV and 14.5g of sugar per 100ml. The alcohol accounts for roughly 61 calories per 100ml and the sugar for about 58. So in mulled wine, unusually, sugar contributes almost half the calorie count. In a dry wine it contributes almost none.

This explains why the ABV and the calorie figure do not track neatly in the table. Belgars and Tesco are both 8%, but Belgars comes in 13 calories lower per 100ml because it carries less sugar.

Make it yourself and control the sugar

Homemade mulled wine takes fifteen minutes, tastes considerably better, and puts you in charge of how much sugar goes in. Start with a dry red containing no residual sugar and you begin at zero rather than at fourteen grams per 100ml.

Lower sugar mulled wine

You need: one bottle of dry red wine, one orange sliced into rounds, two cinnamon sticks, four cloves, two star anise, one bay leaf, and sweetener to taste if you want it.

Method: put everything except the sweetener into a pan. Warm gently over a low heat for twenty minutes. Do not let it boil, or you will drive off the alcohol and dull the spices. Taste, and only then add sweetener if you feel it needs it. Most people find they need far less than they expected, because the orange and spices carry most of the flavour.

Serve in heatproof glasses with a slice of orange and a cinnamon stick.

Two things make the difference. Warming rather than boiling keeps the wine intact, and adding sweetener at the end rather than the start means you add what is genuinely needed instead of what a recipe assumed.

Which wine to use

A dry red with reasonable body and moderate tannin. Grenache, Shiraz, Merlot and southern French or Spanish blends all work well. Avoid anything heavily oaked, which turns bitter when warmed, and anything with residual sugar, which defeats the purpose.

Our reds are fermented fully dry and contain 0g of sugar per serving, so they start at zero:

• El Ninot de Paper Grenache Shiraz, 76 kcal, 0g sugar, 11% ABV. Spanish, soft and fruit-led, ideal for mulling
• TRACES Merlot, 0g sugar, 11% ABV. Smooth and rounded
• Red wine cases, better value at 6 and 12 if you are mulling for a crowd

One bottle makes roughly four to six servings depending on glass size, so a case covers most of a Christmas.

Frequently asked questions

How many calories are in a glass of mulled wine?

A 175ml glass of shop-bought mulled wine contains between 126 and 187 calories, based on the nine brands tested. Homemade with a dry red and minimal added sugar comes in nearer 130.

How much sugar is in mulled wine?

Between 10.5g and 17g per 100ml in the brands tested, which is 18g to 30g in a large glass. A dry red wine contains around 0.6g per 100ml by comparison.

Is mulled wine worse than normal wine?

In sugar terms, considerably. In calorie terms, less so, because mulled wine is often lower in alcohol at 8 to 11% and alcohol is the larger contributor in ordinary wine. Our comparison of wine against beer calories covers how the two sources interact.

Can you make mulled wine without sugar?

Yes. Start with a dry red containing no residual sugar, and let the orange and spices carry the flavour. Many people find they do not miss it once the wine underneath is decent.

Which shop-bought mulled wine has the least sugar?

Of those tested, Belgars at 10.5g per 100ml, followed by Tesco at 12.6g. Harvey Nichols was highest at 17g.

Does boiling mulled wine remove the alcohol?

Some of it, yes, which is why gentle warming is better. Boiling also dulls the spices and coarsens the wine. Keep it below a simmer.

The short version

Shop-bought mulled wine carries between 18 and 30 grams of sugar in a large glass, most of it added rather than from the grapes. Making it yourself from a dry red takes fifteen minutes, tastes better, and puts the sweetness under your control rather than the producer's.

Shop dry red wines with 0g sugar

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