Glühwein

Glühwein, the essence of the German Christmas market, welcomes and warms visitors to every market. In Frankfurt we found the first glühwein stall about two steps from the underground station. Think Oktoberfest with hot, spiced wine and you get an idea of the rowdy nature of the Frankfurt stalls. Each town serves the standard red glühwein, but often many other variations. In Frankfurt we enjoyed the apfelwein (a hot, hard apple cider), in Nuremberg the blueberry glühwein made us ohh and ahh, and in Rothenburg we tasted the local Franconian white glühwein. They also served a honey glühwein that I really hope to find again. Alcohol-free "kinderpunsch" (hot apple cider and sometimes a hot grape juice) and hot chocolate round out the offerings. Surprisingly no coffee! I also sampled glüBier that I hope never to run into again. You pay a small deposit (1-3 Euros) for the cute mugs and return them if you want your money back. Otherwise you can keep the mug. We scout the mugs of each market — a treasure hunt. It's not difficult to find the glühwein stalls — follow your nose and look for the crowd. I will soon have enough mugs to host a glühwein stall of my own. You are all invited!