Appleberry mulled wine

INGREDIENTS

• 2 x 75cl bottles red wine (such as Merlot; better quality wine makes all the difference)
• 1l good-quality cloudy apple juice
• 115g caster sugar
• 1 long cinnamon stick , snapped in half
• 2 star anise
• 3 tbsp orange Curaçao or Cointreau
• a handful or so (about 100g/4oz) frozen mulled fruit or fruits of the forest or Black Forest fruits
• 3 small red-skinned apples , sliced into rings