Where to drink mulled wine in Melbourne this winter

Intimate CBD cocktail haunt Bar Clara has brought back its famous mulled wine this winter: a comforting concoction of red wine, spiced syrup, cacao nibs, cherries, winter spices and fresh orange to garnish. At $16 a glass, it's the only thing you need on a cold, wet day after work. 

If the perpetual line snaking out from its entrance is anything to go by, Section 8 is one CBD haunt that never gets old. It's also a reliable spot to grab a mulled wine with friends in the cooler months. Next time you find yourself hankering for a proper German Glühwein, rug up in your warmest jacket and head to Tattersalls Lane to enjoy this lively open-air bar's refined mix of vino, triple sec, star anise, brandy, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves. 

For Melbourne's bookish types, there are few better places for showing off one's literary prowess while downing a glass of wine and a baguette than at State Library hotspot Mr Tulk. Or there weren't, but then the Wheeler Centre flung open the doors to a new café/bar yesterday; so now it's on for young and old. Slip in for a cup of the Moat's steamy, spiced mulled wine this winter, only $10 during happy hour, from 4pm until 6pm, Tuesday to Saturday.

Collingwood-based bottleshop, wine bar and haven for all things wine, Glou Melbourne is dishing out mulled wine this winter and if it's anything like last year's, it'll be made from a biodynamic drop that makes it all the more smashable. Grab a cup at Glou, a bottle to take away or you can bring a reusable cup for a warming winter stroll through Edi Gardens. What a cute date night idea!

Take a stroll over the Evan Walker pedestrian footbridge that runs from Flinders Street Station to Southbank and you’ll notice something happening underfoot. No, it’s not the tourist boats zooming down the Yarra River. It’s Ponyfish Island, a riverside bar that’s latched underneath the busy thoroughfare. If you think it looks chilly by the water, though, think again: just in time for winter, the bar is once more slinging their OG mulled wine, plus a fabulously popular 'choose your own hot toddy' special. Customise your hot toddy with your choice of spirit (bourbon, spiced rum, apple rum, fireball of vodka) and sweetener (honey, cinnamon syrup, spiced apple), and then add on a cinnamon sugar rim if you like! Ponyfish is open from 11am daily and walk-ins are welcome, so you can get your warm liquor fix all day (and all week) long.

At Mjolner, a Norse mythology-themed bar under Hardware Lane, you'll be able to warm up aching knuckles like the Vikings with a punchy mulled wine. Mjolner's is made with cognac, port, juniper, wood and cranberries, blazed and served hot with a house spice teabag. 

Mark your calendars and grab your warmest winter woolies, Melburnians: the Queen Vic Market's beloved Winter Night Market is back. From June 5 to August 28, you can spend cosy Wednesday evenings enjoying live entertainment, huddling around open fires and feasting on goodies from a selection of global street food stalls, carts, trucks and festival bars. This year, more than 35 traders will light up the open-air market sheds across a bumper 13-week season, and when you get thirsty, there'll be rivers of warm butter beer, ginger beer, and – you guessed it – mouthwatering mulled wine.  

But soft, what light from yonder basement breaks? Describing itself as little sister to longstanding Punch Lane next door, Juliet’s industrial chic space is striking. Climb down the staircase from the street to find mid-century style chairs, dark and solid, giving warmth to the concrete and black steel infrastructure. There’s a big fireplace in the corner and one whole wall panelled in beautiful wood grain. It's the perfect, cosy atmosphere to sip on one of Juliet's lovely $14 tumblers of mulled vino. Yum.

When you enter P.J. O'Brien's, you'll find the walls splashed with Irish paraphernalia and suspended TV screens playing the rugby. It's a vibrant space often filled with live music and hawking traditional Irish grub and, of course, beloved Irish beverages like Guinness and single-malt whiskies. And in winter, they whisk out the warmers like mulled wine, hot toddy, Irish coffee, and Jameson and orange hot chocolate. We can't think of a cosier place in Southbank for a drink on a bitter chilly night.

Grazeland is Melbourne’s ultimate foodie playground, a permanent food vendor park located in Spotswood with views of the Yarra River and CBD skyline. It spans over 10,000 square metres and hosts more than 50 food purveyors peddling both sweet and savoury delights from across the globe, drinks bars, and two stages for live entertainment. From award-winning Italian wood-fired pizza and German hotdogs to Caribbean jerk chicken, Sri Lankan street food and freshly made Chinese dumplings, adventurous palates will be rewarded with the Grazeland’s vast and extensive offering. Best of all? In the wintry season, mulled wine is available across all of Grazeland's bars.

Watch the rowboats glide past with some hand-held climate control. Classically spiced and heated to perfection, you won’t need gloves once you’ve got yourself Riverland's mulled wine. Bonus points, this bar also cranks the heat up in wintertime with boozy hot milo and boozy brandy-spiked Biscoff to round out your drinks order. Yep, we could definitely sit here all night long.

This blink-and-you'll miss it bar is tucked down a laneway off of Little Collins Street, and while it may be tiny, it boasts a full roster of cocktails, wines and tinnies for you to try. The bar is fitted into a converted caravan, and the seating area is astroturfed and filled with plants, greenery and wooden tables that make you feel like you're at a cosy picnic. A mug of the bar's tasty mulled wine will only set you back a tenner during happy hour – otherwise, it's an easy $14.

Good, honest food. Sometimes, it’s the only thing you crave. Like the type of meal your grandmother prepared for you when you were a child. Or freshly rolled pierogi. This heartful restaurant in Brunswick East is heaving with good house party vibes, thanks to rivers of vodka, proper authentic Polish food and yes – magically good cups of mulled wine. 

This restaurant and bar on the Yarra River does sliders, arancini, oysters, steaks and snacks until late – perfect for pre- and post-theatre dining or a date night after work. Until the end of July, you can also whet your whistle with a range of comforting winter warmers, including the bar's beautifully spiced mulled wine recipe and whisky-licious hot toddy cocktails served with lemon.  

Neighbourhing Elsternwick train station, the Goat house restaurant is a friendly suburban locale with heated outdoor seating, a bar and a crowd-pleasing menu of brunch and pub-style dishes available all day long. Not only does this spot do a pretty great coffee around these parts, but you can also step in for a mulled wine by the cosy wood fireplace. 

An award-winning bar and café in South Wharf, The Boatbuilders Yard captures the charm of Melbourne's Maritime precinct with a modern fitout housed inside an original historic shed. Its mulled wine is your classic, run-of-the-mill hot stuff that's perfectly spiced and is best enjoyed by the venue's fireplace.