White sangria, the recipe

Author: Liz Andersen

White sangria: a delicious drink for this summer

As spring finally arrives and the sun returns, our minds start to look forward to our annual holidays, perhaps to Spain …. this year, however, COVID-19 may have the upper hand!

Don’t despair … why not create a touch of authentic Spain from the comfort of your own kitchen and say Hola! Summer …. we are so ready for you.

Some might say that Sangria is in fact, one of the greatest holiday drinks of all-time! It has a charming simplicity, whether you’ve grabbed a ready made carton in a Spanish supermarket or made it before at home … it really is a crowd pleaser. The flexibility of the sangria ingredients mean it can be adapted to appeal to most tastes.

Traditionally, the majority of Sangria is made from a base of red wines (after all, the word Sangre is the Spanish word for blood), freshly sliced fruits, a mixer, plenty of ice …. It’s one of my earliest memories as a child on holiday in Majorca, (only allowed to sniff it, you understand).

Here’s something a little different to try at home (self-isolating shouldn’t all be about home schooling and trying to decide which box set to start next) …… try making a jug of seriously refreshing sangria using the following ingredients:

Sangria recipe: the steps

1. Choose your white base wine – try the Stanlake Park Bacchus still white to give a citrus and elderflower base, or their sparkling and refreshing Heritage Brut, which packs citrus and apple flavours.  But do choose a base wine that is dry, whether sparkling or still as the added mixer and fruits will add more than sufficient sweetness. 
2. Pick a mixer, from traditional lemonade to fruit juice or cordial.  This very much depends on how much sweetness is required …. Soda for example will retain the dryness, lemonade would add more sugar.
3. Add a touch of something stronger, but with a fairly low ABV as the focus here is on refreshment rather than producing an alcoholic fruit bomb!  Perhaps to keep the citrus theme going, some orange liqueur or a pale fino sherry would work for you. 
4. If you can bear to wait, leave your newly made pitcher of white sangria in the fridge overnight.  This gives time for the fruit to really become infused with the wines and any spirit added.
5. When you are ready to serve, garnish with fruit, working with the underlying refreshing nature of the drink … for example sliced lemons and oranges.  One of the most delicious white sangria’s I have had recently had fresh peaches and nectarines chopped into it.
6. And serve in a tall glass  ….. paper umbrella is completely optional!

The perfect food accompaniment to your freshly made White Sangria is paella, or a selection of tapas …. Online delivery at this time is a wonderful thing, slots permitting.

All you need to do next is sit in this beautiful Spring sunshine, close your eyes, and imagine the sounds of the Mediterranean Sea gently lapping the shore…..There, that’s better.