How To Make Sangria
Knowing how to make sangria is a skill that anyone who drinks should have.
Sangria is a cold wine punch originating in Spain and it is incredible. I am fully convinced that there is no “right” way to make sangria … but I may be murdered by a very tough Spaniard with amazing fencing abilities for saying that. Basically it’s wine with some juice to water it down and then some booze to strengthen it back up again. In Spain, brandy is usually the bolstering booze that is added to red wine and various juices. I’ve made it with all kinds of liquors and liqueurs, though. I offer you a loose guideline to start with but ultimately, it’s up to you and your taste and of course, what do you have in stock?
One strong recommendation, though: get cheap wine. No sense in spending money on good wine if you’re just going to adulterate it. Sangria is the perfect recipe to make any crappy bottles of wine that show up on your doorstep in whatever mysterious way (hello, 3 for $10!) taste a lot better and seem a whole hell of a lot fancier than they really are. Sangria is also a great way to dress up box wine, not that there’s any shame in drinking it right from the plastic pouch. Hey, it’s ecological!
Case in point: one of the best birthdays I ever had was a few years ago, in my yard, playing bocce ball, eating a giant hoagie, and drinking sangria with the few unlucky bastards foolish enough to have answered my tearful, early-morning phone calls in which I complained that I had no plans for my birthday, which was today, by the way and could you please come over and bring cheap wine?
How to Make Sangria – Sangria Recipe
Sangria Recipe
Use any wine you like, and any fruits you like. It’s always good!
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 1 750ml bottle of wine (white, pink, red, sparklin’, don’t matter)
- 1/2 cup juice (I like fresh citrus like oranges and lemons, but have used lime and grapefruit and apple juice with good results)
- 1/4 cup booze (fruity liqueur or brandy or probably even vodka would work)
- 1 cup chopped up fruit (berries, peaches, apples, fresh, frozen, makes no difference)
Instructions
- Mix it up. Put it over ice. Sometimes I add club soda. Sometimes I add sugar. Anything is allowed on Planet Sangria.
- Live it up!
For a video demo, check this out! It’s one of our early videos and you can tell by my awful hair and stilted conversation
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I had a garden party a few years ago and we had Sangria. It was a ton of fun. Love it!
I love a garden party.
oh yum, makes me long for summer!!
It’s a good substitute for Summer, too, in the Winter.
You’re speaking my language….spring/summer officially starts with the first pitcher of Sangria on a patio.
Then I guess it’s started at my house!
You’ve got the drinks, I’ll bring the appetizers! 🙂
Sounds fab!
My girlfriend and I LOVE sangria. Usually we have red…but I think I will surprise her by making this white sangria. Weather was so nice today here in NY….would have been a perfect day for this drink! 🙂
Enjoying the recipes! Consider this one fly-by, stranger’s vote for that “how to make limoncello” recipe sooner rather than later. My state is one of those that likes to over-regular the booze, and the ABC stores stopped carrying any decent brand of limoncello. Gracias.