Delicious Fall Cocktail With Apple And Cranberry

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This tasty fall cocktail is just the thing to help you embrace those chilly evenings. Made with apple, cranberry and just a hint of cinnamon, it’s the perfect accompaniment to crunchy leaves and pumpkin carving!

a top view of a stemless wineglass with apple cider colored liquid and garnished with a lemon lice, cranberries and a cinnamon stick

The great thing about this fall cocktail is that it’s sweetened with apple and cranberry juice rather than being loaded with sugar, making it a healthier option. Try this healthy sangria recipe or our Friday night buzzy kombucha drink if you’re looking for more ideas for healthy cocktails.

Autumnal Cocktail Perfect For Fall

I love an apple and cranberry juice cocktail because the sweetness of the apple complements the tart cranberry flavor for a mouth-watering taste. The alcoholic kick in this cocktail comes from rosé wine, which makes this cocktail reminiscent of sangria, but with a fall twist. I’ve used cinnamon sticks to add a gentle spice, perfect for the season.

We’ve also made this fall cocktail as a mocktail recipe before with great success! It’s a good option if you’re looking for ideas for drinks for kids; just make sure that you put mocktails in different glasses so that your alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks don’t get mixed up.

The kids loved it when they felt like they were joining in with the grown-ups, and I loved them getting some extra fruit in!

side view of two wine glasses on a wood tray. Glasses filled with cloudy apple juice and have an orange peel showing through the glass

Ingredients

Rosé – Use your favorite Rosé!
Cloudy apple juice – The cloudy color adds to the warmth of the drink. Look for 100% apple juice or apple cider.
Cranberry juice
Orange slices – Oranges add a delicious flavor to the drink but they can also be used as a garnish. You know people always eat the orange slice! Wash the orange before slicing to make sure it doesn’t contaminate the drink
Cinnamon sticks – These are optional but they make the drink so festive! Each guest only needs one or two and you can keep it in the glass as you refill it.
Fresh Cranberries – These are just a garnish as well and I would keep them out if serving to kids. They are tart and won’t taste very good on their own

How to assemble this fall cocktail

side view of an empty stemless wine glass with a cinnamon stick, orange slice and a few cranberries — In an empty wine glass, add your garnishes such as a cinnamon stick, fresh cranberries and orange slices. You can reuse the fruits and cinnamon sticks that were soaking in your drink overnight! No waste and extra flavor!

stemless wine glass with about 1 inch of pink rose wine with a cinnamon stick, orange slice and cranberries — If you prefer to make some drinks without wine, do not add the Rose to the pitcher when soaking everything overnight. Instead, add it to the glasses separately.

side view of a wine glass with cloudy colored apple juice and the skin of an orange slick showing against the glass. — Add the fall sangria drink that has been sitting overnight.

How To Make This Delicious Fall Cocktail

This fall cocktail is super easy to make!

All you need to do is take all of your ingredients and add them to a large pitcher, and then let it sit overnight. Letting it sit is essential so that the flavors have time to develop. This drink is best served cold, so if you have room, stash the pitcher in the fridge while you’re letting it sit.

When you’re ready to serve it up, pour it into glasses, and make sure you get a slice of orange and some cranberries in each glass.

Enjoy!

Tips and Tricks

Cranberry juice. We like to use unsweetened cranberry juice because sweetened juice will have a lot of sugar that you don’t need. Unsweetened cranberry juice is quite tart, but with the apple juice, it tastes great!
Mocktail recipe. If you would like to turn this fall cocktail into a mocktail, simply leave out the rosé and add an extra cup of apple and cranberry juice. Alternatively, you can top it up with sparkling water.

Frequently Asked Questions About KEYWORD

What fruit is similar to cranberries that I can use as a substitute?

Cranberries are tart, so juices like cherry, blueberry or lingonberry. If you find the cranberry juice too tart, you can also try one that is mixed with another fruit juice.

Can this be made a few days ahead of time?

Yes! The longer the drink sits the more flavor it will have. I would wait until the night before to add the rosé.

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