Fall White Wine Sangria

We’re deep into the Fall now, but let’s be real it’s still so hot out! All I want to do is make warm soups and sip on hot drinks but it’s still in the 80’s! I’m trying my best to incorporate fall flavors into everything I do and for me, this Fall White Wine Sangria was a good one! Crisp white wine mixed with gin and fruits and a secret ingredient, can you guess it?!

I’ve always been a fan of sangria, but when I get them from restaurants they’re always way too sweet and usually watered down. I made sure that you won’t get that with this sangria by adding gin! It’s the perfect sip for those warmer nights, or for a low-key and lazy evening with family or friends where you’d prefer to pre-make a batch of drinks for easy pouring.

I started making this sangria by squeezing lemons. If you’re not a fan of tartness, I’d reduce the lemons in half! However, I used a secret ingredient to even out the acidity and also add a bit of Fall flavor – HONEY! You could easily swap in regular sugar, or even add an orange juice to add some sweetness, but I definitely found that without a sweetener of some kind it tasted a bit more like a tart cocktail. (No problem with that at ALL, I love a sour drink! However, I do feel like sangria has more of a tendency to lean sweet!)

The best part about sangria is that it’s such a flexible drink and great for entertaining! It’s so easy to make ahead of time. Every year for Thanksgiving, my family tries a new sangria – we usually do a few bottles of red wine and brandy or cognac with fall fruits and cranberries. The thing is, you can do white wine or prosecco or even rosé! The classic ingredients for a sangria are as follows, so mix it up as you’d like:

• Wine (red, white or rosé—red wine is classic)

• Fruit

• Sweetener (optional)

• Liqueur or liquor (brandy, cognac, vodka, tequila, gin)

INGREDIENTS for Fall White Wine Sangria

750 ML Chardonnay

1 Cup Gin 

1 Orange (sliced)

2 Pears (sliced)

2 Apples (sliced)

2 Lemons (juiced)

2 Cinnamon Sticks

2 TBSP Honey

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Prep all fruits in advance.
2. Add sliced fruits to large pitcher.
3. Juice lemons into the pitcher. If you’re not a tart person, only juice one lemon!
4. Add the honey to the pitcher.
5. Pour the wine and gin into the pitcher. Stir a few times.
6. Place the pitcher into the fridge and let all of the flavors mix for ~2 hours.
7. Pour into a glass filled with ice and take a fruit slice and a cinnamon stick for presentation.
8. Cheers!

WANT TO CHANGE THIS FALL WHITE WINE SANGRIA UP?

You can try this sangria changed up a few ways:

• Try red wine instead of white wine, or even sparkling wine!
• Experiment with different fruits, like cranberries or pomegranates.