Wassail Gift Set

Wassail Gift Set

Two wassail spice blends for making hot mulled cider, ale, mead, or wine, packaged together in one gift set.

The Wassail Gift Set includes our Cider Spices and Wine Spices, each blended with warming whole spices and accompanied by three reusable-style muslin spice bags for simmering. Each 3 oz kit prepares up to 3 gallons, for a total of 6 gallons of wassail.

Rooted in the English custom of wassailing, these mulling spices bring cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, orange peel, allspice, and cloves to cider and wine. Serve warm from the pot or prepare ahead and chill.

History:

The word wassail comes from the Middle English wæs hæl, meaning roughly “be in good health.” Over time, the word came to refer both to the greeting and to the spiced drink shared during wassailing.

English wassail recipes varied by place and period. Wine, ale, mead, and later cider could be warmed with sugar and spices such as cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. In England’s cider-producing regions, wassailing also became associated with visiting orchards during winter, singing or making noise around the trees in hopes of encouraging a plentiful apple harvest in the coming year.

The tradition produced its own songs and verses, including appeals to the old apple tree for “hats full, caps full” and abundant bushels of fruit.

“Old Apple tree, old apple tree, we’ve come to wassail thee, To bear and to bow apples enow, Hats full, caps full, three bushel bags full, Barn floors full and a little heap under the stairs.”

What’s Included:

Cider Spices Wassail Kit
Old English-style mulling spices with muslin spice bags

• Size: 3 oz | Brews up to 3 gallons

• Contents: 3 muslin spice bags with drawstrings

• Ingredients: Cinnamon sticks, cut ginger, ground nutmeg

• Shelf Life: 3 Years

• To Prepare 1 Gallon: Fill one muslin bag with ⅓ cup of Cider Wassail Spices. Add to a pot with 1 gallon of fresh apple cider, ale, or mead and ½ cup sugar. Simmer over low heat for 1–2 hours. Remove the spice bag and serve warm or chilled.

Wine Spices Wassail Kit
Old English-style mulling spices with muslin spice bags

• Size: 3 oz | Brews up to 3 gallons

• Contents: 3 muslin spice bags with drawstrings

• Ingredients: Orange Peel, Ginger, Cinnamon, Allspice, Cloves

• Shelf Life: 3 years

• To Prepare 1 Gallon: Fill one muslin bag with ⅓ cup of Wine Wassail Spices. Add to a pot with 1 gallon of red wine or port and ½ cup sugar. Simmer over low heat for 1–2 hours. Remove the spice bag and serve warm or chilled.

Hand blended and packaged by Oliver Pluff & Co. in Charleston, South Carolina.