Need great Sangria recipe

Mrs. Satan's Sin is throwing a party Sept. 3 and has ordered me to come up with a winning but not-too-potent batch of Sangria. As most of our friends are drunks, she doesn't want them getting more drunk than usual (hench the shooting-down of my suggestion of Mint Juleps).

I am not satisfied with the recipes I've seen on the Internet so far.

Any suggestions?

(And btw, it goes without saying that anyone on this forum is more than welcome to join us -- just PM me for the address, etc. This party is for an unmarried lady friend of my wife's, a lady of a certain age, shall we say, so handsome unattached men are esp. welcome.)

Thanks in advance!

I don't know about a recipe per se, but I know the perfect theme song:
**
SANGRIA WINE --- Jerry Jeff Walker
When friends come for Saturday night
It's nice to make up some Sangria wine
It's organic and it comes from the vine
It's also legal and it gets you so high
Yeah I love that Sangria wine
When I'm drinking with old friends of mine
Yeah I love that Sangria wine
When I'm drinking with old friends of mine
CHORUS:
Whoa oh oh Woah oh oh I love Sangria wine
Whoa oh oh Woah oh oh I love Sangria wine
Start with some wine
Get some apples and brandy and sugar just fine
Old friends always show up on time
That's why you add Sparkling Burgandy wine
CHORUS
In Texas on a Saturday night
Everclear is added to the wine sometimes
Some nachos, burritos and tacos
Who knows how it usually goes, it goes
CHORUS
Yeah I love that Sangria wine
Just like I love old friends of mine
They tell the truth when they're mixed with the wine
That's why I blend in the lemons and limes

I love Jerry Jeff and Gary P, Nun, and all the gonzo Texas Honky Tonk Kings, but I think Sangria is best when done tradicional like in Spain (instead of Tex Mex)

3 1/4 cup of dry red wine
1 tblespoon of sugar
Juice of one orange (Valencian orange!)
Juice of 1 lemon
1 large orange sliced thin crosswise
1 large lemon sliced thin crosswise
2 medium white peaches, peeled pitted and cut into chunks
1 cup of club soda or Cava

Salut!

These recipes are from the Spanish Table, a Berkeley store that's website is linked to the best tapas restaurant ever, Cesar. I think the second recipe with the Brandy is most like the one they serve at Cesar, which is really good, you can leave the Brandy out if you're trying to keep people more sober!

Recipe No 1:
Sangria can be a totally spontaneous reaction to the presence of ripe fruit. I just
quarter fruit, mostly citrus, limes, oranges and a grapefruit for tartness, and a juicy
apple or even a peach when they are in season. I squeeze them as I put them in the
pitcher to release the juice, then add a magnum of wine. I put the pitcher in the
refrigerator. When ready to serve, I add up to a bottle of 7 Up or Fresca. Then I pour
the Sangria into glasses filled with ice, adding a slice of fruit as garnish.– Steve Winston

Recipe No 2:
1 1?2 liters red wine
(use a medium bodied, fruity red)
juice of 4 oranges
juice of 2 lemon
2-4 T sugar
slices of orange, lemon, apple, and
peach
4 cups sparkling lemon soda
(less for a stronger drink)
Optional - 2 tbsp Orange liquor (Grand
Marnier) or brandy (preferably Spanish)
Combine wine, juices, sugar (use more or less depending on the sweetness of the
oranges), the fresh fruit, and the liquor or brandy if using. Chill for two or more hours.
When ready to serve, combine in a large sangria pitcher with ice and the soda. Garnish
with a few pieces of the fruit.

Another take on SPANISH SANGRÍA

Ingredients:

1 Litre of red wine
Note: I think a real Spanish red really makes sangria taste better. You can use a quality Jug wine, but for a buck or two more per bottle you can buy real vino espanol. No need to splurge for Crianzas, Riojas, or Pirioat, Just a good Joven Rojo from Espana.
2 oranges (juice - "naranjas de zumo")
4 peaches, cut into small pieces
5 desert spoons sugar
2 pieces of lemon skin
Steps:

1: Choose a red wine - Sangria is a refreshing drink and you don't need to use a vintage wine. I recommend a reasonably priced wine from Jumilla, Alicante or Valencia..... Put the wine into a jug, add the sugar, and stir until it is properly dissolved.

2: Squeeze the two oranges, and add the juice to the jug. Save a slice of orange skin to decorate.

3: Wash the peaches, peel them and cut them into small quarters (e.g. six per peach). Add them to the jug. If it is not Summer, you can use any other in-season fruit.

4: Put the jug into the fridge. Sangría should always be served chilled. If you want to reduce the alchohol concentration, add icecubes and slices of lemon. If you want to increase the alcohol concentration, add a small amount of cognac or rum.

Use quality ingredients:

Use wines from Jumilla, Alicante or Valencia. They are usually quite inexpensive, and are the best choice because of their color, alcohol content and bouquet.
Tips/Secrets: Make it nice and fruity. Apples, pears, kiwis, bananas, tropical fruits.... can be used instead of (or aswell as) peach. You can experiment by adding more or less drinks such as cognac, rum, gin and vodka, or you can dilute the alcohol content by adding more orange juice and ice cubes. Some sangria fans like to add drinks such as a can of 7-up, or Fanta Orange or Squirt.

Mrs. Pineapple..great place! Tapas…love some Tapas. When I lived in San Fran. I used to shop at Spanish table for Piquillos and smoked saffron. Great chorizos, too!

My three favorite tapas restaurants/bars in USA are
Jaleo in DC
http://jaleo.com/
Casa Juancho in Miami
http://www.casajuancho.com/accolades.cfm
Xunta in NYC
http://www.xuntatapas.com/

Oh it just came to me...Tiki Tapas. Now that is a great idea.

Guys -- thanks so much!

Took me a while to find a sangria recipe I liked (looks similar to the --here's the one I usually make:

750 ml bottle of red wine (spanish rioja or merlot are what I tend to use)
2 tablespoons brandy
2 teaspoons cointreau
3/4 cup orange juice (fresh squeezed is best)
1/4 cup lemon juice (fresh squeezed is best)
2 tablespoons superfine sugar (regular granulated works, too, but takes longer to dissolve)
1/2 orange (thinly sliced)
1/2 lemon (thinly sliced)
variety of bite-sized ripe seasonal fruit (apples, peaches, plums, strawberries, limes, grapes, etc.)

Combine all ingredients into a large jar and let sit in refrigerator for a few days, stirring to make sure sugar fully dissolves.

Serve in a punch bowl--make sure to include some of the fruit in the glass when serving. If you want to lighten the sangria up a little, add about a cup of club soda.

On 2005-08-20 15:15, Rum Numb Davey wrote:

5 desert spoons sugar

First off I'm sure you meant "dessert spoons". But here's where I got lost; What's a dessert spoon?

In my minimal cooking/baking experience I have to grit my teeth and admit that I had never heard this term before.

A quick Google search turned up this:

***A dessert spoon is a spoon on the scale of a soup spoon, but with a pointed rather than rounded bowl, in a similar manner to a tablespoon or teaspoon. It is commonly but not exclusively used in eating desserts, since a teaspoon may also be used for this.

It is not to be confused with the tablespoon, which is used for serving.***

I'm still in a quandary. Can someone put this in to terms I can work with? Such as 1 dessert spoon = 1.75856 teaspoons?

Or do I need to buy yet another measuring device.

I need help!

My Friend Rarg makes a form of Jungle-hooch that he calls "sangria", having tasted proper sangria in Spain its far from the ice cold refreshing drink i came to love.

RARG'S SANGRIA

A Liter Carton of cheap red wine
a Liter of cheap orange juice
fruit
sugar

In a large clear plastic bottle add the wine and orange juice together, jam roughly cut chunks of fruit into the bottle, add sugar. Then place bottle in warm place where it won't get nicked, the porch of a tent is best. The heat of the sun plus fruit and sugar should re-ferment the wine and return the "sangria" to the full alcohol level.
Check bottle periodically in case of explosion, serve warm in a dirty plastic cup.

I loves me some sangria, but have one problem: headaches. Two out of three times, I develop a headache after (or even while) drinking sangria. Be it my own recipe or dining out at gen-u-wine Cuban, Mexican, or Spanish restaurants. Love the taste, hate the headaches. Several friends feel the same way and believe it has something to do with all the sugar and fructose. Can anyone shed any light on this phenomenon? Are we crazy? Also, this isn't an "I drank too much" hangover thing as none of us ever drink more than two in a sitting.

-Joe

Remember, guys, Mrs. Satan Sin does not want her house trashed! Not too much Alkehawl for SS debauched drunkard friends. This is a mild fiesta, not a West Texas barn burner, ZZ Topesque fandango!

We have a lot of great Cuban and Spanish Restaurants in Tampa and our favorite is Cafe Don Jose.

They do their terrific Sangria this way:

A half bottle of red Spanish wine - some decent wine. I tasted it before mixing and it was not too dry - very fruity.

2.5 oz. of Brandy

Muddled fruit - mostly oranges but a few grapes, limes, a couple of sprigs of mint, and some cherries if I remember correctly

A teaspoon of sugar

They swizzle it in the pitcher with ice and strain into a sugared wine glass.

[ Edited by: pablus 2005-08-23 05:00 ]

I got this recipie from my sister in law's father in law. I was at a party and the sangria he made was so good I got the recipie. Then I made this recipie card from my drink database because almost everyone there saw me get it and wanted me email it to them.

The Food Channel (http://www.foodtv.com) recently had a show where they made a white sangria that looked pretty good.
Here is the recipie link:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_27606,00.html
If you search Food TV's main page for "Sangria" you will get about 40 hits and many of them are for white wine sangrias.

An update on how the party went, which was great, and due in no small part to the Sangria served. It was consumed completely, and I wish I'd made another batch. Mutinous guests were quelled by an onslaught of Cosmopolitans.

(The Tiki Central contingent was ably led by Mr. and Mrs. Shipwreckjoey.)

I printed out all the recipes on this thread and Mrs. Satan's Sin and I went over them carefully, debated them hotly, soothed our disagreements by actually mixing various batches up and trying them out.

But suddenly the eve of the party was upon us and undecided as I was, as overwhelmed by my chores as I was, I threw caution to the wind and willy-nilly concocted a brand-new recipe, untested. But my hands had learned much from this forum, and taking a lesson from this one and that one I boldly grabbed this ingredient and that and prayed for the best.

Everyone loved it! Young and old, hip and square, the recipe (and seconds) was asked for again and again.

And here it is, which I have christened "The Helpful Tiki Central Forum Sangria."

3 bottles Merlot
1 bottle Brandy (the size that is bigger than a hip flask but smaller than a fifth)
Very generous dollop of Triple Sec
juice of 4 Oranges
juice of 4 Lemons
4 Oranges thinly sliced
4 Lemons thinly sliced
4 Peaches, diced

Combine all into a container. Refrigerate overnight.

Pour into punch bowl. Add a generous dollop of 7 Up. Add ice.

Tiki Central, thank you!

from observing the bartenders at the columbia in tampa:

put ice in a pitcher, about a cup of club soda, add a split of frexinet champagne, squeeze in fruit juice (lemons, lime, orange, etc) add marachino cherries, jigger brandy, jigger orange curacao.

This is the BEST!!!

johnkremski, welcome to Tiki Central and thank you very much for an interesting recipe!

I think there are some other TCers in Tampa. Tampa's a great town; I lived there when I was a little kid for a while, on Bayshore Blvd. I remember a really great seafood restaurant on Bayshore -- the Colonade. Always packed. Is it still there?

I also remember when no white man would dare go into Ybor City after dark but on my last visit saw that it had been all hipped up -- or at least part of it -- restuarants for yuppies, art galleries, etc. Really nice.

I also found that the Cuban sandwiches were still excellent.

[ Edited by: Satan's Sin 2005-09-23 13:47 ]

The Colon-aid is still there.
Still packed.
The food is...annnhhhh.
Lots of better places for fresh fish now.

I always thought they should go Tiki with their decor.
But then - I think that everywhere I go.