Winter Sangria with Homemade Cinnamon Simple Syrup

One thing Joe and I love to do together to either unwind from a busy day at work or spend some time together on the weekend is cooking together. Joe was hunting the later half of last week and all last weekend so when he came home I was ready for a little rest and relaxation. Otto is such a good kid but he’s still a toddler and will give you a run around pretty much from sun up to sunset and then a bit after. Every fall there is a restaurant called Public in Zeeland, MI that has the BEST fall sangria. It’s sweet but also has these earthy fall flavors of brandy and cinnamon. I have been dying to recreate it for years at home (Zeeland is about a 40 minute drive) and it was Sunday afternoon and I was in my sweats. I bought all the ingredients that I thought might be used in it and went to work.

Joe and I lined up all the ingredients from the brandy to the fruit and slowly got to work. I also made my own cinnamon simple syrup which I think was the ingredient that sealed the deal. The longer you let everything sit the better it all tastes, especially the cinnamon syrup. I made that in the morning so when it came to be late afternoon it was ready for use.

I had all different fruits from oranges to pomegranates and sliced a few and tasted as we went. We started with a bottle of merlot and slowly added ingredients 1/4 cup at a time until we got what we think, is the perfect fall sangria recipe. I’m serious when I say don’t skimp on the cinnamon simple syrup, it really completes the drink. It also makes more than you need but it would be so good in other drinks (like a hot chocolate).

The fruit, I’ll leave up to you. We sliced up pears and oranges and thought that was good enough for us. I floated an orange slice in the drink which smelled so good with each sip. The glasses are a recent purchase from my friend’s Dann and Chip’s store RebelGR. I dipped the rims in water and then sugar which added a little something sweet to finish it off. this will make about 2 liters (I used weck jars to store) and will be good for about 24 hours (I doubt it will last that long though).

Here is what you will need:

1 cup of sugar
4 cinnamon sticks
1 bottle of merlot
1 cup of pear cider juice
1/2 cup of triple sec
1/2 cup of brandy
fruit of your choice (we used pears and oranges)

To make the cinnamon syrup
Bring the 1 cup of water to a simmer and whisk in the 1 cup of sugar, stir until dissolved. Place the cinnamon sticks in a jar with a cover and pour the hot sugar mix over and allow to cool in the fridge. The longer it sits the better it is.

In a large pitchers whisk together all of the ingredients. Taste as you go to see if you would like more or less of something. There are no wrong answers to sangria! Dip the glass rims in water and then into sugar for a fun effect. Garnish with fruit and serve!

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