Cabernet Cranberry and Blueberry Sauce

Red Wine Cranberry Sauce — Move over, boring cranberry sauce! Cranberries are so much better with blueberries and wine! Make your own fresh cranberry and blueberry sauce in 30 minutes. It’s so EASY, and everyone LOVES it!

The BEST Cranberry Sauce Recipe

Drinking wine and eating jam are two things I’m great at. Doing them under the guise of ‘cranberry sauce’ is the best idea I’ve had for elevating cranberry sauce from a side dish to a starring dish.

I love fresh cranberry sauce, but I never make it with just cranberries. Too boring. 

I add pineapple and mango, or work in oranges and ginger. This year, I doctored up the cranberries with cabernet sauvignon and blueberries, and this blend is my favorite ever. I had to refrain from eating the whole batch in a day. So good.

This cranberry blueberry sauce is like drinking wine and eating jam all in one, with texture, sweetness, tartness, and juicy berries in full force.

If you’ve never made cranberry sauce using fresh cranberries and your only experience with it is from a can, and you think you ‘don’t like cranberries’, I don’t blame you.

That’s like saying you don’t like cheese if your only experience has been eating Cheeze Whiz. There’s just no comparison.

Fresh cranberry sauce is supremely easy to make, and I always wonder why people buy it in cans or containers. 

From start to finish, it takes 30 minutes, and all you need to do is toss everything into a kettle, stir intermittently, and a half hour later, you’ve got rich sauce with supreme depth of flavor.

If you’re into wine, you’re going to go head over heels for this sauce. While it simmers, the scent of the wine reducing with the cinnamon and berries is heavenly. You don’t need scented candles with this simmering.

As I was shoveling it by the spoonful, I kept thinking how many great antioxidants I was getting from the blueberries and all those great heart-healthy flavonoids found in red wine, and what a great service I was doing my body. Right.

Since I rarely eat turkey, or stuffing, and I’ve never been into mashed potatoes or gravy, and usually most vegetables are way too mushy and overcooked for my taste, Thanksgiving has never been a meal I look forward to, with the exception of the cranberry sauce.

You can have your turkey, stuffing, and everything else. I’m having this. And pie.

What’s in the Red Wine Cranberry Sauce? 

To make this unique Thanksgiving cranberry sauce with blueberries, you’ll need: 

• Fresh cranberries 
• Frozen blueberries
• Cabernet Sauvignon 
• Granulated sugar
• Cinnamon
• Ground cloves 

How to Make Red Wine Cranberry Sauce

When I say this unique Thanksgiving side is so easy, I mean it!

Follow these very simple directions for the best ever cranberry sauce:

1. Simply toss all the ingredients into a large pot and bring to a rolling boil.
2. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and allow it to simmer until it’s thickened up (about 20 to 30 minutes). 
3. Transfer the fresh cranberry sauce to heat-safe jars and allow to cool to room temperature before storing them in the fridge.

This cranberry blueberry sauce will stay fresh for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. 

What Type of Wine Should I Use? 

I used two-buck Chuck (Trader Joe’s Charles Shaw $2.49 cabernet), but any type of merlot, shiraz, or your favorite red will work.

Can I Omit the Wine Altogether? 

Not into wine? You can use water, but that defeats the purpose and the flavor will not be nearly as rich and robust. I don’t know how much alcohol cooks off and how much doesn’t.

I would surmise most is cooked off, but it’s your call if this is appropriate for you or your family members.

I put it into the same category as beer bread. There’s not enough and it’s stretched over too many servings, and it’s heated anyway, so no one will be catching a buzz from cranberries. Darn.

Can Cranberry Sauce Be Canned?

This fresh cranberry sauce was originally posted in 2014, and I have been asked that many times. I’ve never personally canned this cabernet cranberry and blueberry sauce, but there are people who have, and they’re written about what they did in the comments.

If that’s something that interests you, I encourage you to read over the older comments and put your canning expertise to work.

Chances are, if you’re asking about canning this cranberry sauce, then you know how to can. I am not an expert in canning and haven’t dabbled with it with this recipe. 

I have, however, stored this in the fridge for up to 14 days and it was fine. And while I wouldn’t suggest freezing it and then serving it to company, it will keep airtight in the freezer for up to 3 months.

The wine naturally preserves things in my non-scientific opinion, but always use your best judgment.

How Long Does Cranberry Sauce Last? 

My Thanksgiving cranberry sauce typically lasts up to 10-14 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer.

Store it in an airtight container to keep it fresh. 

Can Cranberry Sauce Be Frozen? 

Yes, once the red wine cranberry sauce has cooled completely in the fridge, it can be frozen for up to three months. 

When ready to eat, simply thaw the sauce overnight in the fridge. Make a big batch to freeze for winter dinners, you won’t regret it! 

What to Serve with Cranberry Sauce

Serve this unique Thanksgiving cranberry sauce with your favorite holiday main dishes and sides. Here are some of my go-to Thanksgiving recipes: 

• Honey Baked Ham
• Traditional Thanksgiving Stuffing
• Three Cheese Scalloped Potatoes
• Easy Foolproof Roasted Turkey
• Homemade Gravy
• The Best Classic Mashed Potatoes

Don’t forget to polish everything off with a slice of Homemade Apple Pie! 

Tips for the Best Cranberry Sauce

As you know, I used fresh cranberries and frozen blueberries to make this homemade cranberry sauce (no need to thaw the blueberries first). But if you have a mixed berry blend with blackberries, strawberries, and raspberries, that would be lovely, too.

When making this easy cranberry sauce, I added a generous sprinkle of both cinnamon and cloves, which really adds extra flavor and the warming notes of the spices play off the wine. 

The cinnamon is quite noticeable, and if you’re not a cinnamon fan you may want to reduce the one tablespoon I used down to one teaspoon. Same goes with the cloves. Cut it in half if you don’t want it to be as boldly flavored.

Finally, make sure to use a large pot when making this cranberry sauce. The pot should be large enough for the sauce to triple in size. The juices from the berries release and as the mixture boils rapidly, it will foam and a too-small pot will easily overflow.

More Cranberry Recipes:

Spiced Cranberry Sauce with Apples — Spice up your holiday celebrations with this scrumptious FAST and EASY homemade cranberry sauce that’s made with cranberries, apples, apple cider, cinnamon sticks, and allspice for the PERFECT must-make side dish! A lovely balance of sweet-yet-tart with warmly spiced flavors so you’ll never want to think about using store bought sauce again! 

Cranberry Orange Bread with Sweet Orange Glaze — The fresh cranberries in this cranberry orange bread contrast nicely with the sweet orange glaze, making it the perfect blend of sweet and tart!

Cranberry Bliss Bars {Starbucks Copycat recipe} – Dangerously good and a dead ringer for the Starbucks version! 

Crustless Cranberry Pie — Somewhere in between pie, cake, and blondies is what you get with this FESTIVE recipe! Take advantage of those fresh cranberries!!