New Year's Glögg Recipe from Iceland's Blue Lagoon

The Retreat at Blue Lagoon Iceland is a luxury spa hotel that sits on a lagoon  that was once considered little more than waste water, albeit beautiful blue waters, a byproduct of the area's geothermal energy production. The blue lagoon that had formed in the lava field beside the Svartsengi Geothermal Resource Park was later named one of 25 wonders of the world by National Geographic.

Blue Lagoon Iceland was founded in 1992 to develop benefits of the geothermal saltwater and improve the sustainability of the energy production by repurposing waste. Since then it has expanded its interest from research and development (around the water enriched with a rejuvenating mix of silica, algae, and minerals) to a opening a luxury resort offering transformative spa experiences, and its own renowned line of skin care. In 2018, the company completed a expansion, opening the Retreat at Blue Lagoon Iceland. Included in a Time Magazine's list of the World's 100 Greatest Places, the complex features a 62-room luxury hotel, a subterranean spa, a mineral-rich lagoon, and two restaurants. 

Blue Lagoon Iceland also has a core value of "societal uplift" which the company defines as "a thriving citizenry, a healthy environment, and economic prosperity," and notes on its website that this uplift must  be a shared broadly if it is to be sustainable.

Blue Lagoon's glögg recipe:

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cup water

2 ¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon (or a cinnamon stick)

1 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon clove

1/8 cup Brennivín (a clear, unsweetened schnapps that's considered Iceland's signature spirit -- can be replace by vodka in this recipe)

1/8 cup dark rum

¼ cup Port wine

½ cup fresh orange juice (no pulp)

1 bottle red wine

Dried cranberries for garnish

Method:

Combine water, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, Brennivín, dark rum, Port, and fresh orange juice. Bring to a boil. Add sugar, 1/3 at a time. Mix well. Remove from heat

To serve, combine 1 1/3 cup of the syrup with one bottle of red wine. Heat thoroughly

Garnish with dried cranberries.