Camp That Site: Enjoy BC with the right site the first time

What is Sangria?

Sangria is the Spanish name for a sugar-sweetened wine and fruit cocktail. Rumored to be first introduced to the US at the 1964 World’s Fair. Today, it’s the world’s most popular wine cocktail.

As a lover of Sangria I have tried a lot of recipes and there are severa tasty ones out there. The first question I asked when I started to drink Sangria was “What Type of Wine Should You Use?” The good news is there is not a wrong answer here. If you want to stay true to the Spanish tradition then use Garnacha or some other kind of a medium bodies red wine. For White Sangria pick an aromatic wine such as Torrontés, Chenin Blanc, Riesling or Pinot Gris. I have found you don’t need an expensive wine to make a great Sangria.

Here is my favourite Red Sangria recipe.
2 750 ml red wine
3 oz Triple sec.
2 oz Brandy
1/2 Cup Orange juice
1/4 Cup Lemon Juice
1/4 Cup White sugar
2 oz Water
1 Quart Soda water

Add all ingredient except soda water and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add cut up fruit and allow it to sit for at least and hour. Add 1 quart soda water just before serving. This is a great recipe but be warned it is very strong so limited your portions.

Here is my favourite White Sangria recipe
1 bottle of white wine (I use Pinot Gris)
3 cans of Fresca
Fruit cut up (grapes, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries)

Combine wine and fruit in a pitcher and allow it sit for an hour. Before serving add the Fresca, easy as that but it taste great.

Classic Spanish Sangria Recipe

1 750 ml bottle of red wine (a medium bodied red wine like Garnacha, Merlot or Tempranillo)

1 cup soda water or Cava (Spanish Champagne) to top off
¼ – ½ cup sugar
Juice from 1 orange or 1 lemon or 2 limes
lime wheels for garnish
Pomegranate Sangria
2 bottles red Spanish table wine
1 cup brandy
1/2 cup triple sec
1 cup orange juice
1 cup pomegranate juice
1/2 cup simple syrup, or more to taste (equal parts sugar and water, heated until sugar dissolves, cooled)
Orange slices
Apple slices
Blackberries
Pomegranate seeds
Directions
Mix all ingredients together and let stand in a tightly sealed container or pitcher for at least 24 hours in the refrigerator before serving.
White Peach Sangria with Cava Recipe
1 750 bottle of Cava or Prosecco (a zesty or aromatic white wine like Torrontes, Chenin Blanc, Riesling or Pinot Grigio)
¼ cup Brandy or Triple Sec
2-3 tablespoons sugar
3-4 White Peaches
Juice from 1 Lemon
Add brandy and lemon juice to the bottom of your pitcher. Cut up the peaches into cubes and add with ice. Top with Cava or Prosecco and serve immediately. As you sip, the peaches macerate in your drink.

Sexy White Wine Sangria
1 bottle of Sauvignon Blanc
1/2 litre of club soda (or ginger ale if you like it really sweet)
2 kiwis
1/2 cup of raspberries
2 limes
1/2 cup of sugar
Cut the kiwi and the lime into wedges. Pour the wine into a large, preferably glass, pitcher. Add all the fruit and the sugar then mix well. Cover and let it sit in the fridge for at least one hour. When you’re ready to drink, add the club soda and about two handfuls of ice. Mix again and serve immediately.

Campfire Sangria, please note I have never tried this but in doing a camping blog I felt I had to mention it.

1 Box of red wine, the smaller the better – non-expired, new wine will work just as well as old, (Merlots, Malbecs, and Cabernet Sauvignons all work splendidly.)

1 Two liter of Sunkist 10 (if you’re watching your calories), or regular Sunkist (if calories be DAMNED!)

1 Small-medium lemon

All you need to know is that the ratio of boxed wine to Sunkist is 1:1. Then chop up a lemon – you’ll only need half for the sangria itself (provided you’re not making more than a pitcher at a time), so the remaining slices can be used for a garnish. The lemon successfully neutralizes all those funky, overly tannic wine notes in the wine, and mellows out the funky artificial stuff in the soda. You could throw in half an orange or others fruit for color.