The holidays are upon us! You know what that means. Time for cocktails! As much as I love a good margarita in the summer, there is something to be said for holiday cocktails. They always have a little bit of spice and that cozy feeling. I decided to try to turn one of my summer favorites into a winter favorite by making a holiday sangria. You can definitely make a warm Spiced Wine, but I love the simplicity of dumping everything into a pitcher and getting to the drinking part, don’t you?
Oh, and if you’re traveling this year for Thanksgiving and going anywhere near snowed-in Michigan like me, bring enough ingredients to make a few pitchers. It sounds like we might be snowed in for a few days.
Holiday Sangria Recipe:
1 750 mL. bottle red wine
1 cup Cranberry juice
1/2 cup Apple liqueur
3 Cinnamon sticks + 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 Orange – sliced
2 Apples – cubed
1 cup fresh cranberries
I actually used a bottle of local West Virginia Wine from Lambert’s Vintage Wines. This particular bottle is called American Spice and it has all the flavors of the holidays (think cinnamon and nutmeg), so it was perfect for this holiday sangria recipe!
I also am sticking with the local theme and used this Apple Pie Moonshine from Forks of Cheat Distillery as my apple flavor in this sangria. Moonshine in sangria? When in Rome West Virginia.
Pour your wine, apple liqueur and cranberry juice in a pitcher. Add all your fixins and stir.
Let sit for at least an hour in the fridge and then serve with some ice and a few extra cranberries for pretties.
Cheers and happy Thanksgiving, y’all! I hope you are spending time with your families and eating until you need to put your sweatpants on!
