There are few things more soothing to the eye and the mind than to see a pitcher of sangria being readied with care and precision. Red wine, orange juice and a medley of fruits,infused for over eight hours, some and lots of passion. The Sangria will spread cheer for sure.
While Americans first tasted this red wine punch at the 1964 World Fair in New York, the history of Sangria can be traced back to 200 BC in Spain. The historical sources however has contradictory opinions on the origin country of Sangria.
Spain began planting vineyards for wine making and trade with the Romans. Wine became the most popular drink across age.The popularity of wine drinking however had its origins in medical science.Water was thought to be full of bacteria and unfit for consumption.Any liquid with some alcohol infused in it killed the bacteria making it the beverage of choice. People who lived near the vine yards added other fruits and spices to the wine, giving it a different flavor. These ingredients together paved the way for the traditional Spanish red wine punch- Sangria.Sangria had another twist during the 1700’s and 1800’s when the British and French got a taste of it. The new base of the punch became Claret (the British term for the French Bordeaux).Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot were often added to the mix to be finished off with a mix of fruits.A jar of Sangria began to be found at every party from Cadiz to London.
While America does not have a legal standard for the drink, European Union does. It is defined as,“a drink obtained from wine, aromatized with the addition of natural citrus-fruit extracts or essences, with or without the juice of such fruit and with the possible addition of spices, sweetened and with CO2 added, having an acquired alcoholic strength by volume of less than 12 % vol. The drink may contain solid particles of citrus-fruit pulp or peel and its colour must come exclusively from the raw materials used.” While Sangria is more often a red wine drink, white can be used too. A variety of fruits like oranges, apples, pomegranates, peaches are used. The most obvious component of Sangria remains the wine. While there is definitely some room for variation on all of the other ingredients, there is no Sangria without wine. While one could make a Sangria with a different sweetener and a plethora of fruits, wine must be an ingredient, so the history of wine is forever tied to the history of Sangria.
Historically Sangria was preceded by Hippocras which was a spiced and sweetened wine that could have been served warm or cold. Any sort of spice or flavorful stuff was added to it. It was filtered through a filter named “the sleeve of Hippocrates”, hence the name. The name of this drink thus comes from the bag that the drink was filtered through. Some historians point out that the origin of Sangria dates back to the 14th century and can be traced to Ecuador or the Caribbean Antilles Islands. The European Union passed a decree that the name Sangria is under exclusive rights to Spain and Portugal only, similar to what the French have done with Champagne in Spain; one cannot call it Champagne in Spain, instead it is called Cava. Legends say that some Spanish sailors started calling it Sangria, which means bloodshed, because wine is the body of Christ, and must not be altered or tampered with, initially they would have been up-hauled watching Caribbean locals mixing fruit juice with wine, but it eventually became popular. Although one associates sangria with warm weather months, it is equally as delicious in winter.The first day of winter in America is celebrated on December 21 as the National Sangria Day. Till 2008 it was illegal to serve Sangria in Virginia because of an antiquated law that prohibited mixing wine or beer with spirits.The law was written in 1934 just after Prohibition ended and was repealed in 2008 by the Virginia General Assembly.
For me Sangria is refreshing any time of the evening. A tall pitcher with colors and friends with laughter.My tips for assembling the sangria. One will need decent red table-Wine,Cointreau Orange Liquor or Rum or both, Orange juice and the juice of one lemon, Sugar, but not too much, fruit slices of your choice such as lemon, orange,apple.Using a muddler or the back of a wooden spoon, muddle the fruits with the wine. Stir to combine all ingredients. Stir the sangria then cover the top of the pitcher with plastic wrap. Place pitcher in refrigerator and chill several hours or overnight. Serve in festive glasses with a lime slice garnish. Choose a wine that is fruity but dry. Make sangria a day ahead of when you are going to serve it so that the flavors in the sangria can infuse.
Sit around a table with friends, help yourself out of the Sangria pitcher and share the happiness and warmth. The flavor lives on in the cheer the Sangria spreads.
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