Apple Cinnamon Sangria

Helllllo October! And where the heck did September go?! Last year at this time I thought time was flying because I was planning a wedding, but this year is no joke! I'm trying to soak in every last bit of the fall goodness before we start traveling, Christmas shopping, and I get a year older. Who am I kidding, I'm already Christmas shopping!

So in honor of the first day of October, I wanted to make a good boozy beverage to enjoy on our back porch now that the leaves are starting to fall and the bugs aren't eating me alive. I mentioned my Liquid Apple Pie cocktail last week, but Publix didn't have any apple cider yet so that had to wait.

Good thing I was lazy though because I'm pretty obsessed with the random concoction I threw together!

 
After scouring Pinterest for a good fall sangria recipe, I decided a Monday night was as good as any to try one out. The problem was I didn't have all of the ingredients for any of the recipes and was too lazy to drive a mile down the road to Publix. Yes, literally 1 mile is all the further I had to go for the grocery store.

Ingredients:
1 bottle of Pinot Noir (can substitute Merlot if you like that better)
1/2 liter of Sprite
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
2-3 Apples
3-5 Cinnamon sticks

This is a pretty simple process so I didn't take many pictures. First combine the wine, sugar, and spices in a medium pot on the stove. Let simmer for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved.

While the wine mixture is simmering, chop the apples into slices. If you like pears, you can add those too.

Put the chopped fruit and your cinnamon sticks into a pitcher, top with ice, and add the wine mixture after the sugar has dissolved.

Refrigerate until cold. Add Sprite, then serve!

The sprite makes it sort of like a spritzer, which I like a lot. I'm looking forward to more back porch and fall sangria action tonight! The hubs doesn't like fruit so I've got this baby all to myself. Bonus!

Have a great October first y'all!