Sangria

Has any one ever made Sangria? What wine isthe best for its base, or are there kits out now?

Made it many years ago. Seems we used the cheapest red table wine we could find. Wine, sugar and fruit. Maybe some lime juice, maybe some rum. Like BBQ, curry, it's whatever is traditional tempered by what's available. Google it and you'll get a half million hits.

la playa estate merlot works really well. That merlot is already smooth, which creates a wonderful sangria.

Might it be worthwhile to look into one of the fruit/grape hybrid wine kits? I think I may go that route, b/c my girl is getting into the idea of me brewing her a Sangria (or, I guess, a Sangria base, as I imagine you don't want to stick fruit in the bottles.)

The best wine for making a bunch of sangria for a relatively low cost has got to be the Franzia wine in the box.


Hmm, premade sangria in a bottle? Interesting concept. Normally sangria is made with red wine, fresh fruit, a supplementary liquid such as club soda or lemon-lime soda, and a few shots of a spirit, such as brandy or gin. To get this premixed in a bottle, I'd say there are two ways to go or possibly a mix of the two.

You could use wine and all fruit juices to maintain a pulp free product.

Or, you could rack the wine onto the fresh fruit and let it do its thing, then rack off the sangria and leave behind the fruit trub(?).


A "White Sangria" would be nice as well. I make a quickie one for parties in the summer that is basically white wine, usually a Sauvignon Blanc, white grape juice, apple juice, orange juice, lime juice, and a few shots of brandy with plenty of ice in the pitcher (oh yeah, typically they are made by the pitcher).


Deliciously refreshing!

Does Sangria taste better when mixed with club soda as it's served, or would it be cool/tasty to give it a little priming sugar (say, 1/4 cup in the bottling bucket) to give it a little fizz? I might bottle it in beer bottles, then.

I'm thinking: A merlot or merlot/fruit juice blend into the primary, maybe a little whole fruit in secondary, then a bit of brandy and the little bit of priming sugar in the bucket.

How does that sound? Will the brandy kill the yeast and prevent bottle conditioning? Or is there a level of brandy that the yeast can handle?
This is exciting!

I think trying to put the fruit in the fermenter would eliminate the sweetness they add to the final product. Won't know until you try it.

The brandy won't raise the ABV enough to matter, most red wine yeasts are good for 17-18%. Two bottles in five gallons would only kick it 3%.

We expect you to report back with the results.

Oh, you know I will! I don't know how long it will take to ferment, but I'll keep everybody updated and do some pics. I may start it this week, depending on how much the starting juice/kit costs.

Well i plan on brewing a base for my sangria. Could I age the final produce in bottles after adding the fruit?

This recipie is always a big hit at our parties. Take a 5 gal water cooler, add 2 boxes franzia sangria, 1 liter OJ, 1 liter Sprite, 5 lemons, 5 limes, some oranges, apples, and whatever fruit is cheap. I like kiwi and grapes. Add most of a liter of Everclear and then ice to the top. Once everyone has had a few glasses add the rest of the bottle of Everclear.


Have Fun,

Russ

Is sangria something that has to sit around, or is it just mix and serve?

Usually mix and serve with fresh fruit. Something like this, although I usually don't use brandy

http://www.marthastewart.com/portal...a0aRCRD&autonomy_kw=sangria&rsc=ns2006_pic_m1