The history of Swedish GLOGG

Swedish glögg is a traditional hot spiced mulled wine that evolved from ancient medicinal European drinks into a beloved winter holiday staple.

Origins and Ancient Roots

· Ancient Rome: The core concept began with ancient Roman soldiers heating and spicing wine for warmth and health as they traveled across Europe.

· Medieval Medicine: By the Middle Ages, spiced and heated wines infused with herbs were consumed across Europe as medicine to balance bodily fluids.

· Royal Favor: Swedish King Gustav Vasa (1496–1560) was the first famous person to proclaim Glogg his favorite drink and enjoyed his own personalized blend of Rhine wine, honey, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, and ginger. He inspired his son Erik to become a lover of Glogg so much that for his coronation in 1561 Erik ordered 201 “kanor” or 130 gallons of Glogg for the event.

Evolution of the Name

· Glödgat Vin: The modern word glögg stems from the Old Swedish verb glödga, meaning "to glow" or "to heat".

· First Print Reference: In 1609, the beverage was officially recorded in print as glödgat vin (heated wine), which was eventually shortened to glögg by the 19th century.

· Improving Poor Taste: Early iterations in the 17th century used heavy spices to mask the rough taste of poor-quality or aging wine available at the time.

Rise of the Christmas Tradition

· 19th Century: Glögg transitioned from an elite or medicinal status into a popular social beverage deeply tied to the museum of spirits winter and Christmas traditions during the Swedish Romantic era(1809 and 1830.}

· Commercial Blends: Wine merchants began selling specialized ready-made bottled blends adorned with festive tomte (gnome/santa) holiday labels.

· Serving Customs: Since the 20th century, traditional serving methods include dropping whole almonds and raisins into the glass, accompanied by gingerbread biscuits (pepparkakor) and saffron buns.

There are many ways to regard Glögg in a traditional manner. As has been said, every family does it a little different from how Glögg is made to how it’s served or combined. Better put, there are as many ways to make and serve glogg as there are grandmothers in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Estonia. Here’s a few facts with geographic perspective.

*Swedes from the Islands of the Baltic and Stockholm heat the Glögg and add even more spices, typically will use white rum as the spirit.

*Further inland Swedes will use only red wine, and the further north “old red wine”…the older the better. You must float raisins, almonds, lingonberries, cinnamon sticks, and other hard spices when served.

*If you go further west, such as Norway, or have split relatives, The word glögg stems from the Swedish "glödgat vin", mulled wine, from the 1600s. Hanna Winsnes, born in Drammen in 1789, wrote Norway's first published cookbook, "Skrub", in 1845. It has a glögg recipe, to be served warm. Aquavit or caraway liquor as a final ingredient is a must, and often served over lumps of sugar.

*Glögg came to Finland via Sweden. . Finns call it glögi where you are compelled to add cardamom in quantity, black currants, and Finnish blueberries. Finns are evenly divided on traditional red wine and vodka. During Finland's Prohibition (1919-1932) glögg drinking vanished almost completely. When the prohibition was done away with, glögg was advertised in magazines directed to the Swedish-speaking part of the Finnish population. Hence, in the 1950s-1960s, drinking glögg was enjoyed almost exclusively among that part of the swedish-finish population. A decade later, recipes for glögg started appearing in Finnish magazines as well, and since then, most of Finland has incorporated glögg in its Christmas celebration

*Further south, The Danish word gløgg is imported from the Swedish glögg. Early on it was called glødet vin which evolved into the word glødg, and is used today. Danes often serve it with aebleskiver (a Danish apple delicacy, served with sugar and jam).Danes will start with white wine for serving and the making, and they start around October with their fall drinking habits. They switch to red wine later in the year. Estonians also call it glögi , but tend to use more spices like cardamom, cloves, and anise. Citrus is also more emphasized. Really sweet red wine is a must.

*In Iceland it’s called Jólaglögg. Leaner on the spices, often just cardamom, clove and cinnamon, any red wine, and often a peat whiskey. Vodka is used if necessary.

*And last but not least, from our Swedish friends in Jamestown NY; suggest to make it anyway you want, but you must dilute it with EverClear (EC). They really believe that EC adds the gunpowder to Glogg that you will never forget. Feel free to look up EverClear and you will see what I mean.

Information was from:

· Finger lakesd Harvest site

· Sjoeblom Winery site

· Wikipedia Glogg Search

contributed by Kevin Soles

The Erie Playhouse is offering Come From Away during September.   It is a remarkable portrayal of the kindness of strangers.  During 9/11 many flights were rerouted to Greenland.  One small town had an interesting encounter with many people who made the emergency landing.