This Fall Sangria with apple cider, bourbon, pinot grigio, and seasonal fruits is a gorgeous autumn drink idea! We love serving this easy apple cider sangria at Thanksgiving or any fall gathering.
If you love sangria, you’ve also got to try our White Wine Sangria (it’s our go-to for spring and summer) and this festive Holiday Sangria.
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Easy Fall Sangria Recipe
Before I tried sangria, I thought I didn’t like wine. In fact, I thought the only alcoholic beverage I liked was the fruitiest of fruity cocktails. Then along came this fall sangria with its boozy cinnamon apples and warm bite of bourbon, and lo and behold, I was smitten.
This Autumn Sangria is packed with the season’s best fruits–a colorful mix of apples, pears, and plums–in a blend of pinot grigio, apple cider, and bourbon. It’s fruity and refreshing, but still cozy enough for a chilly fall day.
This is my preferred drink for football Saturdays. Y’all can keep your beer. I’ll take a big ol’ glass of fall sangria with a side of bacon wrapped smokies, please and thank you.
I first made this drink almost seven years ago for a girl’s night. It was a raving success, and since then it’s become my standard punch recipe for tailgating, bridal showers, Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, PTA meetings. Basically, if it’s Autumn and people are getting together, I’m making fall sangria.
Every time I make this, I spot guests trying to inconspicuously fish out fruit from the pitcher with a wooden spoon. This, to me, is the sign of success–people willing to sacrifice their dignity and manners for a few hunks of boozy apple cider soaked fruit.
Fall Sangria is super easy to make and adapt to your tastes, but I do have some tips for making it the very best! I hope you love it as much as we do!
Courtney
Key Ingredients
- Autumn fruits– We use a blend of apples, pears, and plums for this recipe, but you can feel free to use your favorite combination or swap in things like cranberries or orange slices.
- Cinnamon sticks– Placing whole cinnamon sticks in the pitcher infuses the drink with a little bit of warm spice.
- White wine– Use a high quality (this doesn’t have to equal expensive) dry or semi-dry white wine. We prefer Riesling or Pinot Grigio.
- Apple cider– You can use any grocery store cider, but the best stuff is usually found at your local orchard or farmer’s market.
- Bourbon– Adding a little bourbon gives this sangria a richness that we really love! You can omit this is if you prefer.
- Maple syrup– You don’t have to add extra sweetness, but I like a little bit of maple syrup. Honey is a great substitution.
- Club soda- This is optional, but if you like a bubbly sangria, you’ll want to top your glasses off with some club soda.
How to Make Apple Sangria
Step 1: Start with the fruits. Fill a large pitcher with your choice of fresh apples and other fall fruits. Toss in a few cinnamon sticks.
Step 2: Add liquids. Add pinot grigio, apple cider, and bourbon.
Step 3: Taste and adjust sweetness. Stir everything up then taste. Add maple syrup to your liking.
Step 4: Refrigerate. Pop the pitcher in the fridge and chill at least two hours or overnight. Top with club soda before serving, if desired.
Recipe Tips for the Best Autumn Sangria
- Choose fresh, in season produce that’s not too ripe.The fruit will soften considerably in the cider sangria, so you want it to be fairly firm to begin with.
- Choose a variety of fruits for lots of flavor and color! I love using a few different kinds of apples, pears, and plums. Sweet tart and firm apples like Cosmic Crisp, Pink Lady, and Honeycrisp are best.
- Pick a wine that tastes good by itself, but don’t spend the big bucks. Sangria isn’t the place to break out your most expensive, complex wine, but you do want the wine to be drinkable. I love Chateau St. Michelle’s Riesling, and it costs $10-12.
- Try making a red fall sangria. Swap the white wine for a fruity red like Pinot Noir to make a red sangria.
- Substitute the bourbon for brandy or rum if you prefer.
- Make it bubbly (or not). You can use club soda or ginger ale to make your fall sangria sparkling. Keep in mind that ginger ale will also add sweetness, so you might want to reduce the maple syrup.
- Refrigerate at least two hours. Chilling the sangria gives it time for the flavors to meld and the fruits to soften. Fall sangria is great chilled overnight, but should be served within 24 hours.
- Add the bubbles last. You’ll want to add the club soda right before serving to keep the carbonation. You can either top off individual glasses with soda or stir it into the whole pitcher.
FAQs
Absolutely! You can easily scale this recipe up if you’re having a large group. Adjust the servings in the recipe card below to get the measurements you’ll need.
Yes! If you or your guests prefer red wine, swap in a Pinot Grigio. You might also want to swap the bourbon for brandy.
I haven’t tried this myself, but one of our commenters offered this advice: “Y’all, this is such a perfect drink and it’s a smash hit! I never make less than a double recipe now because I know how fast it goes. Also made an NA version with sparkling juice and a bit of vanilla extract. You could also spring for zero-proof versions of the wine and bourbon, but the subs I used worked out!”
Want More Fall Drink Ideas?
These Caramel Apple Cider Floats are so easy to make and the perfect bridge between summer and fall.
If you enjoyed this recipe, you’ll also love our Apple Cider Cocktail–it’s like the flannel shirt of cocktails. Or, try these Apple Cider Margaritas!
Need something to warm you up in the morning? Try these Cinnamon Lattes, Honey Lattes, or a batch of this Chai Tea Concentrate.
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Fall Sangria
Ingredients
- 4 cinnamon sticks
- 2 apples (chopped)
- 2 pears (chopped)
- 2 plums (chopped)
- 1 750 ml bottle dry or semi-dry white wine (such as Pinot Grigio or Riesling)
- 3 cups apple cider
- 1/2 cup bourbon
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (optional)
- 1 cup club soda (optional, see notes)
Instructions
- Place the cinnamon sticks and chopped fruits in the bottom of a large pitcher. Pour in the wine, apple cider, and bourbon. Give everything a really good stir. Taste. If desired, add 1/4 cup maple syrup.
- Refrigerate the sangria for at least 2 hours or overnight. Add the club soda and give it a good stir right before serving.
Notes
- Sangria is best served within 24 hours.
- Feel free to substitute your favorite fruits in this sangria recipe. Oranges and cranberries also work well here.
- Swap the maple syrup for honey, if desired.
- Ginger ale can be substituted for club soda if preferred, but you might want to lower the amount of maple syrup used. You can also leave the bubbles out completely.
- Feel free to double or triple the recipe to feed a crowd. This stuff can disappear fast! You can use the slider adjustment at the top of the recipe card to adjust the measurements based on the number of servings you need.
Nutrition
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