It’s About Fig’in Thyme

Inspired by the claret snap, we LOVE the beautiful fall colors of the cabernet wine layered onto the bronze cider-brandy blend

A traditional sangria consists of wine, a low-alcohol spirit or liqueur, fruit, and fruit juices. You can create some really great recipes based of this formula. For the yuletide season we wanted to do a sangria with a winter vibe.

When creating this drink we thought about constructing a new recipe like soup, with many layers of flavors. Fig, apple, pear, and thyme are classic pairings that were obvious choices for our cider sangria idea. Apples and pears are winter fruits and the fig just naturally complements their bright flavors with a honey-like sweetness. The chili-fig jam and cinnamon adds depth to the recipe with their warming qualities. Adding the subtle fruit taste of the brandy just brings it all together.

This recipe is scaled for 150 oz which is a little over a gallon and makes about 20-25 servings depending on your glass size. The recipe for one drink will be at the end so you can calculate to your needs.

The infused cider needs to sit a minimum of 2 hours but can sit overnight. (There may be some browning of the fruit floating in the blend.)

1. Wash the thyme, cut pears, and cut apples. For a large drink server you’ll need roughly 2-3 apples, 2-3 pears and 4 .5 oz containers of thyme. Place fruit and herbs in the drink canister.

2. Mix in with the cut fruit and herbs, one 96 oz apple cider, one 32 oz container of pear juice, 12 oz of brandy, and 4 oz of lemon juice.

3. Whisk in one 9 oz jar of  Divina Chili-Fig Spread. We highly recommend this brand however, if you cannot find it in your local grocery store, try ordering it online at divinamarket.com, Amazon.com or WorldMarket.com. The jam is absolutely worth the time and effort of waiting for it to arrive at your doorstep! The chili adds a depth of flavor allowing a warmth to pass through your body while sipping this cider, without it overpowering your palette. If you don’t want the warmth of the chili spice (it’s not very strong at all) then plain fig spread is good.

4. Let the blended cider sit in a refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours.

5. Once you’re ready to serve you can choose to pour it over ice OR warm it in a crockpot (or pot on the stove). Both ways are delicious!!

6. Once you ladle it into a glass, take a spoon and layer your favorite red wine over the top for a beautiful presentation. We prefer to gently mix it when we are ready to drink.

This drink is so versatile. It can be served hot or cold, spicy or mild. You can make it into a LA(low-alcohol) cocktail and skip the red wine topper, or keep the wine and skip the brandy. If you want to serve it to family of all ages, try making it into a mocktail by leaving out the wine and brandy and only serving the fruit and herb infused cider. For the red wine we used a Hectare Cabernet Sauvignon from California with notes of dried fig and smoke. (You might find this at Total Wine or your local liquor store.) The best thing about it, the wine is only $3 a bottle! You can try your favorite red wine as well. Let us know how it tastes!

To make one serving if you a treating yourself:

• In a standard 2 cup mason jar with tight fitting lid add, 1 cinnamon stick, 2 slices of apple, 2 slices of pear, a big squeeze of lemon wedge, 2 washed sprigs of thyme, 1/2 teaspoon (or more to taste) of chili fig spread or plain fig jam.

• Add 1.25 oz. of Pear Juice

• Add 2.75 oz. of Apple Cider **Stop here if doing a mocktail, put the lid on it and marinade in the fridge for at least 1-2 hours

• Add .5-1 oz. of Brandy **Stop here and marinade with lid on the jar for 1-2 hours if you’d like to do a LAH-cktail (low alcohol cocktail)

• Once the cider has infused with these flavors for at least 1-2 hours in the refrigerator with the lid on, you can take it out and add your Claret Snap of red wine on top!

• For the addition of the red wine on top, we recommend pouring about 1.25 oz. (more or less to your personal taste)

• Serve over ice or heated and warm! This cocktail is extremely versatile!!

Everyone at the expo at Clark Plantation in Newberry, FL loved it!