Heston Blumenthal's iced chocolate wine

This unusual sounding drink is based on a historical recipe for a restorative elixir from the eighteenth century. It may sound like a strange combination but it is completely delicious.

• serves

  6

• prep

  15 minutes

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 2 750 ml bottles Maury red wine
• 375 g skimmed milk
• 150 g milk chocolate (minimum 33% cocoa solids), chopped
• red wine vinegar

Cooling time 2 hours

Freezing time 3 hours

Instructions

Place the wine in a saucepan over medium-high heat, bring to a boil and using a blowtorch, lite up the surface of the wine in order to flame off the alcohol. Once the flame has died off, continue boiling until it has reduced by half.

In the meantime, place the milk in another saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat, allow to cool slightly and pour over the chopped chocolate, stirring until dissolved.

Once the wine has been reduced, allow to cool to room temperature; add the chocolate and milk mixture and allow to completely cool, should take a couple of hours.

Pass the chocolate wine through a fine sieve that has been lined with a double layer of muslin. Add a splash of red wine vinegar and place in a container in the freezer. This should take about 3 hours.

Using a fork, scrape the surface to form a slush. Serve in tall glasses.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.