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    Home » Recipes » Drinks

    Thanksgiving Sangria

    Published on: November 16, 2022 - Molly Thompson6 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    This delicious and easy Thanksgiving sangria is made with red wine, apple brandy, cinnamon sticks and fresh fruits. It will become your go to cocktail every year for thanksgiving dinner.

    a stemless wine glass with thanksgiving sangria and fresh fruit

    This is the perfect cocktail for chilly weekends and holiday festivities. Each glass is bursting with fall flavors like cranberry, citrus, apple, and cinnamon. We love to top ours with bubbly ginger beer and a garnish of star anise and cinnamon sticks. This is the perfect thanksgiving cocktail if you like red wine.

    Reasons to Love Thanksgiving Sangria

    • It looks so pretty and is the most festive for the holiday season. It's so pretty I almost (almost!) didn’t want to drink it. The dark reddish purple color is so appealing, especially when you rim the glass with cinnamon sugar and garnish it with a cinnamon stick. Bonus points for cutting your apple and pears into fall shapes, like these leaves!
    • Stir this Thanksgiving sangria recipe together in a few minutes.
    • Save yourself time on Thanksgiving day and make this recipe ahead of time so you have a glass to hand to guests when they walk in.
    • Easy to customize with whatever seasonal fruit you have on hand (see ingredient notes section below).

    Ingredient Notes

    Here are the simple ingredients to make Thanksgiving sangria. Jump down to the recipe card for exact measurements.

    a bottle of red wine, orange, apples, apple cider, cranberry juice and cinnamon sticks on a table
    • Red wine: traditional sangrias call for a Spanish red wine like a Tempranillo or Garnacho, however, we've tested this with other red wines, like a red blend or pinot noir and really loved it. Don't make a special trip for a special type of wine. All red wine will work, even sweet red wine. See FAQs below for a white wine option.
    • Mix of fruit: we used orange slices, apple slices and pear slices because the apples and pears were perfect for the fun shapes. A few other fruit options include pomegranate seeds, fresh cranberries, and blood oranges.
    • Apple cider: we love the cider in this for fall, but an apple juice would work too.
    • Cranberry juice: we recommend a 100% cranberry juice rather than a cranberry juice cocktail.
    • Brandy: apple brandy is great for fall sangria recipes, but triple sec, or another orange liqueur, is another great option.
    • Spices: cinnamon sticks and star anise.
    • Ginger beer or club soda for a little fizz.
    • Cinnamon and white sugar for rimming the glass.

    How to Make Thanksgiving Sangria

    Here are the simple steps to make Thanksgiving Sangria (with photos). Jump down to the recipe card for the full printable recipe.

    how to make Thanksgiving sangria
    1. Mix the wine: Pour the red wine, fruit juice, and brandy (or triple sec) into a large pitcher and stir quickly to combine.
    2. Slice the fruit: Cut fall shapes out of the apples and pears, if desired, then slices the oranges. Chill for 2 hours or up to 24 hours.
    3. Mix sangria: Add the cinnamon sticks, star anise, and sliced fruit to the sangria. Chill for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours.
    4. Cinnamon sugar rim: Mix granulated sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish. Run an orange wedge around the outside of a wine glass. Dip the wine glass in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
    5. Serve: Fill the wine glass with ice then pour in the sangria.
    6. Garnish: Top with ginger beer and garnish with the wine-soaked fruit and a cinnamon stick.

    Favorite Sangria Products

    • We love this large pitcher for all of our holiday drinks (apple cider sangria and winter sangria are amazing!). You could also use a punch bowl.
    • A stemless wine glass is perfect for coating in cinnamon sugar. These red wine glasses are so pretty (the ones we used in these pictures).
    • Cocktail spoon stirring everything together.
    • Mini fall cookie cutters to cut the fruit to make it even more festive.
    Thanksgiving sangria in a pitcher with fresh fruit

    Recipe Variations

    Make it sweeter: simmer ¼ cup of water and ¼ cup of granulated sugar in a small saucepan to create a simple syrup and mix it in with the sangria.

    White sangria: Swap the red wine for a crisp white wine like pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc.

    More fruit: pomegranate seeds, fresh cranberries, or blood oranges.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What do you drink on sangria?

    The best cocktails for Thanksgiving are ones that appeal to everyone and are easy to make for a crowd. This tasty beverage checks the boxes, but we've also got a list of the best Thanksgiving drinks.

    What kind of wine is best for sangria?

    A Spanish wine, like Tempranillo or Garnacha, are most popular for red wine sangria and crisp white wine, like Pinot Grigio, is great for white wine sangria. Although, I've made sangria with all types of wine and I wouldn't say any of them are bad!

    Should sangria be made the night before?

    The longer the fruit sits in the sangria, the longer the fruit juices will seep into the drink, and vice versa. Sangria should be chilled for at least 2 hours, but no more than 24 hours. This makes it great for making it overnight!

    a glass of thanksgiving sangria in a wine glass with cinnamon sugar rim

    If you make this recipe, I’d love for you to give it a star rating ★ below. You can also tag me on Instagram so I can see it!

    More Thanksgiving Drinks

    • 20+ Best Thanksgiving Drinks (Cocktails)
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    • Spiced Winter Sangria
    • Cranberry Moscow Mule
    a glass of thanksgiving sangria with apples and a cinnamon stick

    Thanksgiving Sangria

    This delicious and easy Thanksgiving sangria is made with red wine, apple brandy, cinnamon sticks and fresh fruits. It will become your go to cocktail every year for thanksgiving dinner.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Cocktail
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Chill Time: 2 hours
    Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
    Servings: 6 servings
    Calories: 217kcal
    Author: Molly Thompson
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Ingredients

    • 5 cinnamon sticks
    • 3 honeycrisp apples sliced or cut into fall shapes
    • 2 oranges sliced
    • 2 cups pears sliced or cut into fall shapes
    • 1 750mL red wine
    • 1 cup apple cider
    • 1 cup 100% cranberry juice
    • ½ cup apple bourbon or orange liqueur
    • Ginger beer or soda water, for topping
    • Cinnamon sugar rim: ¼ cup sugar and 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

    Recommended Equipment

    • Pitcher
    • Wine glasses
    • Fall cookie cutters optional

    Instructions

    • Pour the red wine, fruit juice, and brandy (or triple sec) into a large pitcher and stir quickly to combine.
    • Cut fall shapes out of the apples and pears, if desired, then slices the oranges. Add the sliced fruit, cinnamon sticks, and star anise to the sangria. Chill for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.
    • When you're ready to serve, make the cinnamon sugar rim. Mix granulated sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish. Run an orange wedge around the outside of a wine glass. Dip the wine glass in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
    • Fill the wine glass with ice then pour in the sangria. Top with ginger beer and garnish with wine-soaked fruit and a cinnamon stick.

    Notes

    Make-ahead: mix the wine, fruit juices, and brandy together up to 3 days in advance. Add the fruit and spices 2-24 hours before serving.
    Red wine: any red wine you have on hand will work. Classic red wine for sangria is a Tempranillo or Garnacha. We used a red blend and it worked well.
    White wine: this recipe works with a crisp white wine, like Pinot Grigio. You can swap the cranberry juice for a lighter-colored juice, like pear, if you want a light-colored sangria.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1serving | Calories: 217kcal | Carbohydrates: 21.2g | Protein: 0.6g | Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 12.1mg | Fiber: 1.4g | Sugar: 16.1g | Vitamin A: 4.7IU | Vitamin C: 22mg
    Did you make this recipe?Mention @What_MollyMade or tag #whatmollymade!

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    Reader Interactions

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Dani says

      December 23, 2016 at 2:30 am

      Can I use apple juice instead of apple cider?

      Reply
      • Molly Leonard says

        December 23, 2016 at 2:42 am

        Hi Dani! Absolutely, apple juice will work perfect as well. Thanks!

        ❤️Molly

        Reply
        • Dani says

          December 23, 2016 at 3:30 am

          Thanks so much! I'm excited to try this!

          Reply
    2. kim says

      December 23, 2016 at 4:42 am

      did you use lemon or lime juice? the ingredients same lemon- the directions say lime.

      Reply
      • Molly Leonard says

        December 23, 2016 at 3:51 pm

        Hi Kim! Sorry about that, typo!. I used lemon juice here, but lime juice actually works well too. I've tried both ways:) So either one you have on hand is great.

        Reply
    3. Who Invented Nicotine Salts says

      January 07, 2021 at 6:07 am

      How Many Times Can I Refill My Lost Vape Orion Dna Pods?

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