With public taste shifting, retailers are hoping an unfamiliar form of the festive favourite will be this year’s big hit

This wasn’t the white Christmas most people were dreaming of. Mulled wine recipes tend to have a twist here and there – some people swear by cinnamon sticks, others argue vociferously that it needs orange peel. But, until now, most would agree that the wine in question is red.

Not this year, though. Thanks in part to our changing taste in wine, but also to the influence of German Christmas markets that have sprung up in dozens of UK towns and cities in recent years, retailers are hoping that white mulled wine will be this year’s big hit.