Comments on: How to Make (or, not make) Sangria

By: Nathan

Nathan — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 15:44:43 +0000

Tried this recipe last night, to-the-letter. It’s dangerous! The Rioja was a good choice for a base – fruity, but not sweet, and the simple syrup was the right amount to give a hint of sweetness.

I used St. George Qi White Tea Liqueur for the orange liqueur. I think next time I’ll try the Grand Marnier (I didn’t have any on hand last night) to see if it’s better. I think the GM might make things a bit sweeter, though.

The market had some amazing blackberries and pears, so that was the fresh fruit in the mix.

Thanks Jeffrey! Good stuff. I can’t wait for your next Small Screen Network episode.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 18:56:39 +0000

Hi, I wanted to make some sangria in mason jars as a bridal shower favor. When do you recommend pouring into the jars and can I make a warm batch and leave it out before refrigeration …say overnight so I dont have to keep cool at the shower? THanks!

By: Marley

Marley — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 19:56:13 +0000

Jeff:

Could you give us your recipe for a white wine sangria?

By: Grant

Grant — Sat, 30 Jun 2012 16:31:57 +0000

Well after hours of scanning the web I finally landed on some sangria principles, thank you Mr. Morgenthaler! I could now relax and with principles in hand forge ahead into the unknown. The tip of buying a red wine from the Rioja region stood me well not only because the wine seemed perfect with the fruit, but also turned out to be a conversation piece as one of the guest’s family was originally from that region of spain – and he gave me two thumbs up on the sangria – phew! Finally I could really relax. (Or maybe that was the sangria working its magic.)
Having had some great sangria in Costa Rica earlier this year, one of the best parts was the wonderful small bits of fruit seemingly infused with magical stuff (like sugar). So I chose blue berries, strawberries and mango (small cubes, perfectly ripe) with some larger slices of apple. When I saw I had one third of a 2 liter pitcher full of fruit I threw in Grand Marnier (3/4c), Brandy (1/3c?), (2tsp) bitters, orange juice (3/4c I only had 2 oranges) and just enough wine to cover the fruit (forgot about the simple syrup altogether). Once at the party I added the rest of the wine (2 bottles). Clearly I had somehow muddled all the proportions and was really beginning to sweat it. The first few sips were like – this is just wine – but as things gelled nicely and the sweet mango got in there it really turned into nicer and nicer sangria as the pitcher emptied. Everyone loved it. Success! Thanks again.

By: Ginty

Ginty — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:32:31 +0000

Jeffrey! We had some great patio weather up here in Ontario so I broke out your recipe, and everyone declared it the best they’ve had! Thanks for the recipe, I might riff a little on it next time. Maybe a little suds on top,…

By: Marta Monteiro

Marta Monteiro — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 05:18:47 +0000

Hello, Jeffrey!

I am a Portuguese bartender who hated Sangria until I’ve started working at a bar who does this amazin Sangria not only with Red wine, but also white wine a Sparkling wine or Champagne.

You are completly right: there is no perfect solution for a Sangria.
the basics is: wine, fresh fruit ( all fruit you wish – for the champagne raspberries to go along are amazing!!), some sugar, liquors. My mother even puts cinnamon, vodka and sprite!

Don’t ever buy bottled sangria – it sucks!!
Don’t ever EVER prepare the sangria the day before!! It should allways be prepared in the moment. My mother told me the fruit ferments and the result is not so good!! eheheheh

I’m glad to see this recipe here! And glad you have enjoyed it!

Many thanks.
Marta

By: Steve

Steve — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 21:07:37 +0000

Great advice. Not sure if the picture is an actual photo of your sangria or not, but from what I can see in the photo, there’s one slight problem with the sangria: the fruit isn’t diced properly. It may be more photogenic as it appears above, but in my opinion, drinking sangria should not only be delicious, but fun, too. Thus, I’d recommend dicing your apples into tiny bite-sized pieces so that you can take in a small cube with every sip. One of the most satisfying things about drinking sangria is the experience of crunching down on a juicy wine-infused piece of apple.

Maybe some people like to save a bigger apple slice for the end, but I’m a big fan of having fun every step of the way rather than waiting for the finish. To each his own…

By: Duff

Duff — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 18:04:38 +0000

Awesome recipe. I like that is is simple, and restrained- focusing on the flavors. I have had a lot of terrible sangria from chain restaurants. There was also a terrible trend of making “sangria” for parties in college.

One question, besides Grand Marnier, what are your thoughts on other “orange” liquers? If I were to sub in Cointreau, do you think it might be wise to reduce the amount of syrup to balance it out?

By: Ben P

Ben P — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 19:11:55 +0000

Made a double batch of this for my friends engagement party last night. It was a big hit. Built it up in a glass gallon jar. Upped the simple syrup a tad from 1 1/2 oz to 2 oz of 1:1. Also found Rioja wine, which I was worried I wouldn’t find. Substituted Patron Citronge for the Grand Marnier, mostly for reasons of cost. Figured it was better to skimp there than on the wine. I was very happy with the results. Next time I’m going to add the simple syrup last and see how it tastes without the extra sugar. While it wasn’t overly sweet, I wouldn’t consider what I made to be “dry”. It also seemed to taste better to me after sitting on some ice for a little bit, for some cooling and watering down.

Glad I had a little strainer to filter out some of the orange pulp. Guess I need a new orange juicer.

By: Tommy

Tommy — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 22:18:19 +0000

I just tried this recipe (no alterations) with a Beaujolais over the 4th with rave reviews. I really liked the Grand Marnier in the mix. Thanks for making the celebration a hit!

By: Cindi L.

Cindi L. — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 12:58:04 +0000

Thank you for explaining Sangria simply. I plan to try this over the weekend and see how my guests like it. I’ve only ever tried sangria once before, it was a fall sangria cocktail I got from another blog I follow. The recipe was good but involved cooking the apples/alcohol together and waiting over night for it to chill. It also had a cinnamon harvest sugar rim. The taste was great and our party guests loved it. I guess that experience lead me to believe I had to cook all Sangrias. I see that’s not a standard approach now after reading your post. Thanks and keep up the great posts.

By: Stuart

Stuart — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 08:51:51 +0000

Very nice. Was a good drink – I’d like to turn it into a staple :)

By: BarsAndBartending.com

BarsAndBartending.com — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 03:38:13 +0000

Thanks for a standard sangria recipe. I was probably like most of the people at the party originally – I expect sangria to be horrible if I don’t make it myself. I usually add a little lime bar mix for the sweetness instead of the simple syrop.

By: Deric

Deric — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 21:38:32 +0000

Do you recommend after preparing and adding fruit to let it chill in the fridge overnight or longer?

By: Jae Penzien

Jae Penzien — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 12:12:33 +0000

Thank you so much, this was a good read. I was actually born in Spain (I’m not telling you what year though!) but was moved around europe and lastly settled in the UK when I was 7. I dont remember an awful lot of the few years I was in spain, but the smell of spanish food always seems to get me going or something. It’s weird how I dont remember anything except the smells,isn’t it! Anyway, thank you again. I’ll get my son to add your website to my rss thing…

By: mata

mata — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 18:45:53 +0000

I bet you make better Sangria than they do here in Spain ha ha ha!

By: janice

janice — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 22:10:15 +0000

Where are you? I miss reading your blog. And don’t think hauling out the eggnog recipe again is going to suffice…

By: Sully

Sully — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 22:25:55 +0000

Excellent recipe.

You might try making a sherry-based sangria sometime. A local tapas restaurant makes an okay one. Done right, it’s like the combination of fruit and nuts. I wish I could offer you a recipe but I have hunch that simply the suggestion is enough for someone like you.

Keep blogging! I found you from the post about neat/up etc. and it was entertaining to read the comments.

By: Jeffrey Morgenthaler

Jeffrey Morgenthaler — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 19:02:01 +0000

Thanks Federico, glad you like the recipe.

By: federico Cuco

federico Cuco — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 18:16:00 +0000

Jeff, hermano,
Very correct recipe, very good recipes from other countries to teach in your blog.
Sangria is a great way to share wine with friends.
Greetings from Argentina, your friend.
Federico Cuco

By: Tony Harion

Tony Harion — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 22:02:23 +0000

Oh! just a reminder: don’t forget to eat the fruit!

By: JD

JD — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 17:42:37 +0000

I’ve found that white sangrias are tasty if made with vinho verde. The low ABV and ever-so slight fizziness mean that it plays very well with a variety of hard liquor additions. Or if you go easy on the booze then you have the ability to quaff quite a bit without keeling over.

I once tasted what may be the worst sangria ever. A friend bought a jug of pre-made, sweetened sangria from (I believe) Carlo Rossi, not knowing that sangria is not a style of wine that is then turned into a “sangria punch”. She proceeded to use this concoction in a regular recipe, adding even MORE sugar, grenadine, and bottom-shelf triple sec. It was so syrupy, with the viscosity of maple syrup. One sip made my stomach turn. Gross.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 21:17:39 +0000

I’ve messed with the Fee Brothers bitters in both white and red sangria and have had some awesome results. I also really enjoy adding Vermouth into the mix.

I know the season has recently changed, but this Blanco Sangria Recipe killed for me all summer at the bar and a few weddings I tended.

Blanco Sangria
1 750ml bottle of white wine (really most work well, but steer away from Rieslings and Grigio)
4 oz Cointreau
4 oz St. Germain Elderflower
3 oz Boissiere Dry Vermouth
Juice of 1 lemon
2 ounces 1:1 simple syrup
4-5 heavy dashes of Fee Brothers Rhubarb bitters

Build in a pitcher with little ice, add fruit, and serve on ice.

By: Brain

Brain — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 16:34:36 +0000

Thanks for helping to correct the record on Sangria!

There are many more recipes, published in the earliest cocktail books, for Sangria (or Sangaree, as the were called) — and they don’t even have to be based on wine.

http://www.classicmixology.com/sangria

By: Jeffrey Morgenthaler

Jeffrey Morgenthaler — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 20:30:55 +0000

Jeremy

As I said, feel free to use this as a base for your experiments. I like the earthy, Christmas spices in Angostura but you might like playing with Fee Brother’s Old Fashioned Bitters, or whatever strikes your fancy.

That said, I find that recipes that use orange juice, orange liqueur, and orange bitters to taste like, well, orange overkill.