Honeycrisp Apple Sangria

Making honeycrisp sangria was a risk.  Frankly, I don't like red wine based sangria (the only kind I've tried), but because I love honeycrisp apples and chardonnay, I thought this would be a fun try.  And if it was good I'd make a larger batch for Thanksgiving dinner.

The biggest challenge was finding 'unoaked' chardonnay.  Not every bottle makes it clear if the wine is unoaked so with the help of my local market's wine steward, I found a nice and inexpensive bottle to experiment with ($12.99). 

My test batch was just half a recipe.  I feared I would ruin an entire bottle of wine if I didn't like this drink.  I combined the wine, fruit, schnapps and spices in a tight sealing tupperware and placed in the fridge overnight. (I did not use pisco as called for in the recipe)

Today I anxiously awaited the sangria taste test.  I garnished the wine glasses with sugar and cinnamon. Such a beautiful color and great addition to a autumn decorated dinner table.

The finished product?  A crisp, refreshing and perfectly fall flavored cocktail.   It was so good my husband was asking for more and I knew this would be a great drink to start off our Thanksgiving dinner at my mom's.  Now back to the store for more unoaked chardonnay!



Honeycrisp Sangria, adapted from Adam Seger & Food and Wine Magazine

2 Honeycrisp apples
One 750-milliliter bottle unoaked Chardonnay
1/3c peach Schnapps
1/4c pisco (I excluded)
1/4c honey
2 oranges- 1 quartered
1 lemon – quartered
1 lime – quartered
2 cinnamon sticks
2 quarter-size slices of fresh ginger
3 whole cloves
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Ice
Club soda

Peel, core and chop one of the apples. In a bowl, combine the Chardonnay, Schnapps, pisco and honey. Add the quartered orange, the lemon, lime, cinnamon sticks, the chopped apple, ginger and cloves and refrigerate at least 4 hours. (I let mine sit overnight)

Strain the sangria into a pitcher. Peel, core and finely chop the remaining apple. Peel, section and chop the remaining orange. Mix the apple and orange in a bowl.

On a small plate, blend the sugar and cinnamon. Moisten the rims of wine glasses and dip in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Fill the glasses with ice. Pour in the sangria until three-quarters full. Top with a splash of club soda. Garnish with a spoonful of the chopped apple and orange.