This festive Winter Sangria is made with a base of Vino Verde and infused with pomegranate, pear, and fresh lime. It’s festive, delicious, and can be made ahead of time!
Back in the day when I was a bartender, I was sort of known for my many sangria concoctions. At one point in Grad school, I worked in a hotel bar and would host a sangria night once a week (basically a happy hour).
While I mainly created variations of red sangria recipes then, I’ve gotten much more into creating white and rose sangria recipes since. There is something so nice about a light summer sangria made from white or rose and infused with vibrant, in-season fruit at its peak of ripeness.
When Winter comes though, you have to get more creative. Even on the West Coast, there are limits to what is available at the market in the middle of the winter. I got inspired to create a festive white sangria for an adults-only potluck we hosted for the parents of our older son’s class.
I used pomegranate, pear, and lime with a base of Vino Verde (sparkling white wine) to create this white sangria and it’s quickly become a favorite! More than a few of the parents at party said, “I don’t usually like sangria but I LOVE this!” and followed with, “Can I have the recipe?”
So, I had to share it here with you guys and then point them in this direction.
winter sangria ingredients:
- Vinho Verde Wine: Light Portuguese white wine
- Cointreau: High-quality orange liquor
- Organic Cane Sugar
- Pomegranate arils
- Sliced Pears
- Sliced Limes
White Sangria Tips
- To Save Time: make sure to buy pomegranate arils and not whole pomegranates.
- Sugar: You can make this sangria with either coconut palm sugar OR regular organic sugar. It’s important to note that if you want the sangria to have the clear color shown in the photos, you NEED to use the regular organic sugar. I actually prefer the taste with the coconut palm sugar but it does turn the sangria a light brown. I show the brown option in the in-process photos to give you a sense of the color difference. Totally up to you!
- Make Ahead: You can make this the day before but I don’t recommend letting the lime slices sit in the wine mixture for too long or it will turn bitter. It’s best made a few hours before planning to serve.
- What is Vino Verde: Vino Verde is a mild, young wine from Portugal. While it can be red, rose. or white, it’s most commonly sold as white wine in the US. And, often sparkling.
Appetizer Ideas to Serve with Winter Sangria:
Marinated Caña de Cabra (Spanish Goat Cheese)
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below!
This festive Winter Sangria is made with a base of Vino Verde and infused with pomegranate, pear, and fresh lime. It's festive, delicious, and can be made ahead of time!
- 2 750 ml bottles Vino Verde
- 4 ounces Cointreau
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 1/4 cup cane sugar can sub palm sugar
- 4 ounces pomegranate arils
- 1 medium green pear thinly sliced
- 2 medium medium limes thinly sliced and divided (one for the sangria and one for serving)
- ice cubes for serving
- sparkling water for serving
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Combine boiling water and sugar until sugar is completely dissolved. Set aside.
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Thinly slice a lime and the pear into rounds (discard seeds).
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In a large pitcher or other jar, combine Vino Verde, Cointreau, sugar water, pomegranate arils, sliced pear and sliced lime until well mixed. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve - no longer than 6 to 8 hours.
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Serve over ice topped off with club soda and a slice of lime and Enjoy!
- To Save Time: make sure to buy pomegranate arils and not whole pomegranates.
- Sugar: You can make this sangria with either coconut palm sugar OR regular organic sugar. It's important to note that if you want the sangria to have the clear color shown in the photos, you NEED to use the regular organic sugar. I actually prefer the taste with the coconut palm sugar but it does turn the sangria a light brown. I show the brown option in the in-process photos to give you a sense of the color difference. Totally up to you!
- Make Ahead: You can make this the day before but I don't recommend letting the lime slices sit in the wine mixture for too long or it will turn bitter. It's best made a few hours before planning to serve.
- What is Vino Verde: Vino Verde is a mild, young wine from Portugal. While it can be red, rose. or white, it's most commonly sold as white wine in the US. And, often sparkling.
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
UPDATE NOTES: This white sangria recipe was originally published in October 2016 and was updated in November 2019 with edited photos, helpful tips and more recipe information.
Sounds like a wonderful recipe idea for holiday party!
Yes! It always disappears quickly 🙂
Mmmmm I want a glass now!
Right? Perfection
I’m pretty sure you can never have too many sangria recipes!
Agreed! Sangria is always a good thing 😉
I love white sangrias too! And very cool that you were a bartender!
This looks like the perfect cocktail for a celebration!
I love the idea of this! I am making for my next party.
I might make this tonight for the adults while the kids are trick-or-treating – I even have pomegranates on hand! Looks delicious and refreshing! I am always looking for new sangria recipes.
Hope you loved it Erin!
I’ll take the coconut sugar version! Though the other one looks good, too. 🙂
This sounds so amazing! I want a tall glass now 🙂
When I have used sliced lime in my Sangria, it makes the drink bitter. How did you
Avoid that?
Try peeling the lime before slicing and adding to the jar.
Hi Pat!
Just don’t let it sit too long and you won’t have that problem. Make it in the morning or afternoon and serve that evening. Alternately, you could peel the lime.