Red wine hot chocolate: The drink Santa (and all the rest of us) need right now.

Santa has a long night of delivering gifts ahead of him, and while he appreciates the effort you and your children put into those cookies, a helpful elf has reported that he might also like a warm drink -- with a little extra something something in it. So we're here to help with a recipe for Red Wine Hot Chocolate, which as it turns out, is insanely delicious. And if Santa doesn't come to your house, it turns out that adult humans of all kinds enjoy red wine hot chocolate. So make some stat to warm your holiday weary bones.

Related: 5 easy cookie recipes for Santa. Or you. Or anyone on the nice list.

  Before we get to the video and recipe, let's talk about the wine. You want a red wine that's rich, fruity, and bold -- something that generally goes well with chocolate. I like using a Merlot or Shiraz. From there, the rest is simple. We provide a specific recipe below as a guide, but you really can wing this one. In fact, we recommend that you do. Add more chocolate if you like your hot chocolate super thick and rich, or less chocolate if you want this to be more wine forward.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gXJMe_OJHA&t=7s Basically, watch for the how-to and a few tips, especially if you're making this for a holiday crowd, and taste as you go.  

Red Wine Hot Chocolate

Makes about 4 cups 5 cups milk of choice (or 3 cups milk and 2 cups heavy cream; see video for explanation) 1/2 cup chopped sweetened dark chocolate or dark chocolate chips 3/4 cups red wine (see note above) 1. Add milk to a sauce pan set over medium heat and warm through. 2. Add chocolate and whisk until it melts, being sure never to bring the milk to a boil. If you have to, reduce the heat to medium low. 3. Once the chocolate has melted completely, add the wine and heat through. Again: You don't want to bring this to a boil or all of the alcohol will cook off. You just want to heat the whole mixture through and serve!