Now that the great winter of ’13 is over, it’s time to celebrate on the porch with a pitcher of sangria, ideally every Saturday afternoon.
Sangria also happens to be a pretty ideal Mother’s day brunch beverage (along with raspberry cocktails and pan-roasted halibut; just sayin’), and it’s dead easy to make.
For our sangria, we used a bottle of Osborne estate Solaz Tempranillo Cabernet Sauvignon. This Spanish wine has a deep colour, intense fruit aroma, and smooth finish, making it ideal for sangria. We used Duff Gordon’s brandy, because it’s spicy flavour is a nice contrast to the fruit. We also used Cinzano’s red vermouth, because why mess with a classic?
Ingredients
1 750 bottle of red wine
2 oz. brandy
2 oz. sweet red vermouth (be sure to refrigerate the remainder)
1 cup pineapple juice
1 cup passion fruit juice
Slices of oranges, limes, and strawberries
Soda water
Directions
Add all the ingredients, save the soda water, to the pitcher and stir.
The pineapple juice and passion fruit juice may be bottled, but insist on fresh oranges, limes, and strawberries; using concentrate would be beside the point.
Refrigerate for at least four hours.
When you’re ready to serve, top up with soda water and gently stir.
