This cold weather-inspired apple and pear white sangria is spiced with a touch of cinnamon to bring on the season. With only a handful of ingredients, it's easy to make, and you can double or triple the recipe for the ultimate crowd cocktail.

Close-up of apple and pear sangria in a glass.

We love seasonal cocktails that use fresh ingredients. This spiced apple and pear white sangria is made with sweet apples and pears and mixed with white wine, pear liqueur, fresh apple cider, and a touch of ginger beer. It's a great choice for Fall and Winter.

Here is what you will need to make this apple and pear sangria.

Apple and pear sangria in a glass on a wooden board. — Double or triple the sangria for a crowd.

White wine Choose a dry wine or crisp white such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc.
Apples Use a good sweet apple. We use honeycrisp and gala varieties, but any apple you enjoy eating would make a great choice.
Pears Bosc or Bartlett varieties are the sweetest and hold up well to the wine.
Pear liqueur we highly recommend this one from St. George. It smells like Fall in a bottle.
Apple cider Apple cider enhances the apple flavor and adds sweetness.
Ginger beer Ginger beer has an intense ginger flavor. You can sub in ginger ale as well.
Cinnamon sticks Adds a touch of festive and slowly infuses the drink with warm spice.

See the recipe card for full ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions and variations

This sangria is easily adaptable to ingredients that you may already have on hand. Try experimenting or adding a little more or less to suit your taste.

Instead of white wine, opt for sparkling wine such as Prosecco or a dry cider wine.
Try apple juice instead of apple cider. It will have a less intense flavor.
If you can't get the spiced pear liqueur, you could use a good-quality triple sec, orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier) ora good quality apple or pear brandy.

You don't need any fancy equipment for this sangria. Got a pitcher and something to help with stirring? If so, you are all set! Make sure your pitcher is at least 1-liter capacity.

Close-up of two glasses of apple and pear sangria.

Keeping leftovers

This sangria can be made in advance and stored in the fridge until ready to serve. It gets even better as it sits since the fruit starts to flavor the wine. We like to prepare it 4-6 hours in advance. If you have any left, you can store it in a covered pitcher for up to 2 days in the fridge.

Top tip

Want to impress your guests? Take a pear, (leaving the stem intact) and slice it thin lengthwise. Line the glasses with a pear slice (like in the photo). It makes a great presentation.

Kitchen questions

Can we make sangria ahead of time?

Absolutely! This is one cocktail you can prep in advance. The sangria gets better with time since it absorbs the sweet flavor of the fruit. This is why it's the solid cocktail for all your holiday gatherings that serve a large crowd.

How far in advance can we make this sangria?

Give the sangria a good 4-6 hours to let the fruit marinate, however you can make this sangria 24 hours in advance.

Do we peel fruit for sangria?

It's totally up to you. We prefer to leave the skins on for the apples (we love seeing the pretty reds), while we tend to peel the pears for a cleaner look. If you choose to leave the skins on, make sure your fruit is washed well.