Traditional Red Sangria
Time: This shouldn’t take more than 20 minutes for one batch, but if you are making multiple batches for a party, it can be time consuming to cut up the fruit. It’s also best if you make it 24 hours or so before drinking.
Serves: This recipe yields 6 large wine goblet sized glasses, or 10 smaller glasses.
Inspired by: My visit to Barcelona, Spain in the early 1990’s to visit my friend Georgia when she was living there. We had fabulous sangria with fabulous friends. I think the fruitiness/sweetness of sangria goes well with many of the spices and garlic used in some of the typical Spanish tapas. I don’t make this often, but now and then it’s fun and festive for a party.
Ingredients:
- 1 bottle of red wine (wine suggestions in the “notes” below)
- 1/2 cup of orange liqueur (I prefer Grand Marnier to Cointreau but both are better than triple sec)
- 1-1/2 cups of orange juice
- 1 orange sliced into thin rounds
- 1 lemon sliced into thin rounds
- 1 lime sliced into thin rounds
- 1 apple cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1 nectarine (or other stone fruit – peach, plum, mango) cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1/4 cup sugar (optional)
Preparation: Put the wine, orange liqueur, and fruit into an airtight container (ideally something easy to shake). Refrigerate it overnight and then taste it to decide if you’d like to add some sugar to sweeten it a bit. If you do, first dissolve the sugar in 1/4 cup of boiling water. Let it cool to room temperature and then add it and shake up your sangria well. You might even want to add a little bit at a time so you can taste it before you add too much.
Notes: Most sangria recipes call for at least 1/4 cup of sugar per one bottle of wine – but I often feel this makes it way too sweet. Sweetness will depend a bit on the type of wine, liquor and orange juice you use, and it is also just a matter of personal preference. Don’t waste your fine wine on sangria, but don’t use 2 buck chuck either! You can usually get 1.5 liter bottles of a basic Mondavi or Woodbridge Cab or Zinfandel at BevMo for $10 and that is a good enough base. You can blend different a couple of different varietals too.