This sweet and tangy Simple Christmas Sangria is the perfect cocktail to bring to a holiday party; your friends will surely be impressed!
Thanksgiving at my house has always been a big celebration. My mom, an excellent chef, works her hiney off in the kitchen for about three days straight, preparing an epic feast for the family. My relatives from Miami come into town, always bearing gifts of pastelitos (guava pastries), Cuban bread, papaya, and mango. We blare Christmas music, drink plenty of booze, and stuff our faces until we’re ready for bed.
This night has always been the catalyst to the Christmas season. The balsam candles are whipped out from last year’s Bath and Body Works sale. Christmas music graces each of our Pandora or Spotify accounts. The lights are placed on the front yard shrubbery. We say ‘yes’ to a Christmas tree, take it home, let it sit for a day and then decorate. The most wonderful time of the year. Not to mention, my birthday is in mid-December. Double whammy!
The night after Thanksgiving, we had a family dinner at my sister’s house. Not wanting to show up empty-handed, I crafted this sangria to match our holiday vibe. Not to mention, our cousin was in town from Spain, and I wanted to get her opinion on my sangria. Spoiler alert: she loved it!
The mixture of cranberries and apples brings a marriage of sweet and tangy that will make your taste buds smile. The addition of cran-apple juice amplifies this combination, forming a well-rounded flavor profile when mixed with the crisp Pinot Grigio.
[Tweet “The perfect cocktail for your next Christmas party”]
- 2 green apples (I used granny smith), chopped
- 1 red apple (I used honeycrisp), chopped
- 2 cups fresh cranberries
- 1 cup cran-apple juice
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 cup club soda
- Large bottle of pinot grigio
- Fresh sage for garnish
- Combine apples, cranberries and sugar in a large pitcher. You may add in sage or save for garnish.
- Pour wine, juice and club soda over fruit and sugar. Use a long spoon to combine well. Make sure sugar dissolves.
- Let sit in a refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving.
- Enjoy garnished with fresh sage in each glass.
[Tweet “This Christmas sangria is super simple!”]
Join the conversation:
What is your go-to holiday cocktail?
What is Thanksgiving like in your house?
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I LOVE this. My mom makes an alcoholic drink every Christmas for our family dinner and I think I might just have to convince her to make this one :).
Oh how fun! Please do I hope she would approve!! 😀
This might be the prettiest sangria I’ve ever seen. When in doubt, bring alcohol to holiday parties 😉 … but really. Pinning!
Right!? So easy haha I feel like I’m cheating!
For our pollyanna party every year, my mom makes a huge batch of sangria and your bet that it’s gone halfway through the party! I guess you can say that my family really likes sangria, and alcohol lol. My family would totes appreciate this sangria recipes, especially since its so darn easy! I have never made sangria before but i think i would be able to make this delicious fool-proof version
I love it because it just sits in the fridge until party time, soaking up all of the flavors from the fruits. Ill be honest with you, I had to google with Pollyanna was LOL
I love the combination of sweet and sour and even better, this recipe is gorgeous. Perfect for the holidays!
Thanks so much, Lauren!!
Girl. Giiirl. This looks absolutely fantastic. I love sangria, especially with white wine. Your thanksgiving sounds so lovely! I can only imagine the epicness of your feast.
I know I think I like it with white wine better than red! Oh so epic girlfrannn
Thanksgiving was so nice this year! It wasn’t a huge group; there wasn’t too much food; and there was lots of great conversation, which was my favorite part…My favorite holiday cocktail is WINE…HAHA!
I love a great conversation with a small group!! Sounds perfect.
I’m obviously a fan! I love the addition of cranberries!
I smell a cocktail party…. ;D
I wish I could drink this…right.now.
HAHA sending some your way!!
My husband and I LOVE sangria! This festive concoction looks amazing too!
Thanks so much Natalie!! <3
the holidays at your house sound lovely! This sangria is almost too pretty to drink. ALMOST.
Wish we could have a giant BGB holiday party!! A potluck… omg that would be EPIC haha
As this has fruit it in, it would therefore be fine for breakfast as well, right ;D?
Yeah it’s like basically a fruit salad so..healthy #eatclean
This looks absolutely beautiful! What a delicious holiday treat!
Thank you so much Rachel you’re so sweet!
YUMMY! This looks so festive and fun! Love all the bright colors!
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much, Cailee!! What’s your favorite cocktail?! I’m a sucker for fruity drinks.
I saw this on your facebook page the other day and have been waiting for you to post where it was from, didn’t know it was yours. So excited to try it!
Haha that’s funny! I hope you enjoy!!
Uhmmmm can you say gorgeous?? These pictures are stunning, Christina! My love affair with sangria began with a dinner at Carraba’s with my boyfriend and his mom….and the rest is history. To say the least, I’ve been scouring the Internet ever since to find yummy sangria recipes. YAS
Oh the pictures are gorgeous. Will have to try the addition of sage with sangria, sounds wonderful!
Definitely making this for my upcoming holiday party! Looks amaze xx
This looks so good, Christina! Last year at the beach, my friends and I made Sangria with La Croix every single night and it was SO good! No hangovers either! I’ve never had sage in a sangria I bet it amazing!
I LOVE sangria. Yes, it’s typical white girl, but I swear this stuff is so good! I think it makes it more appealing when there’s fresh fruit involved in an alcoholic drink.
Give me a pitcher.. I mean glass.. of this 😉
Well anytime you add a good honeycrisp 😉 This looks so pretty!
This looks absolutely delicious and I’m bookmarking this for Christmas Eve!!
Love this sangria! It’s beautiful and delicious! I included it in my most recent post https://talesfromwalnutstreet.wordpress.com/2016/12/08/keeping-it-simple-for-the-holidays/. I hope you don’t mind! Thanks so much for the inspiration! Happy Holidays!
Made this for thanksgiving, it was absolutely awesome us ladies gobbled this right up!!! We soaked the fruit overnite in crown apple…and dumped it the next morning…..it was marvelous?
You say large bottle of Pinot Grigio. 750 or magnum?
This is so pretty! Does the apple come through much or just for garnish?
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?