Sangria Recipe with Red Sangria or White Sangria in glasses

Easy Sangria Recipe

We weren’t immediate fans of Sangria at first. The first few times we sipped this popular Spanish drink was in restaurants and they were often too sweet, too bitter or just blah. We knew Sangria didn’t have to taste like bad fruity wine and there were more possibilities to this refreshing drink. After a few homemade tests with our sangria wine recipe, we’re now hooked. Making it to your personal taste is SO MUCH better, friends. A little bit of this, a little bit of that and boom, it’s a personalized pitcher of refreshing goodness that we can’t stop drinking. When the weather is warm and sitting outside with a few glasses of sangria is a perfect afternoon. Life is good when your pitcher of sangria is cold, customized and refreshing.

Sangria Recipe with Red Sangria or White Sangria in a glass jar

Pouring red sangria into wine glasses

Best Red Wine and White Wines for Sangria?

Most dry Spanish wines are perfect for sangria (after all, it is the home of the sangria). Sangria’s aren fussy, so don’t feel limited to your choices. And you don’t have to use an expensive bottle of wine. Our general recommendation is to have fun, pop open a bottle that is pleasant to drink, but not so pricy that it gets lost in all the additions. We’ll usual stick with drier wines, as you are already adding sweetness to the wine when making the sangrias, and it is easy to quickly become too sweet.  For any wine, adjust the fruit & sweetness to your preference.

  • Red Favorites: Traditionally, Spanish sangria is made with rioja and or a combination of tempranillo/garnacha grapes. So Grenache, Tempranillo, Zinfandel, Red blends-particularly Spanish style blends & Rhone Blends are great. 
  • White Wine Favorites: Sauvignon Blanc, Chablis (or other dry, unoaked Chardonnays), Albarino, Pinot Gris
  • Rosé & Other Favorites: Grenache Rosé, almost any dry rosé, a nice dry sparkling Cava or Prosecco

Video: How to Make Sangria:

Cutting fruit for boozy punch with alcohol recipe from whiteonricecouple.com

Cutting board with chopped fresh fruit for boozy punch recipe from whiteonricecouple.com

What Fruit to Use for Sangria?

There’s so many fruit options, the possibilities are endless. Use ripe fruits that you’ll want to eat and that will also complement the existing flavors of the wine. Or you can use fruit to counterbalance the Sangria. For example, if you’re using a sweet wine, try adding a touch more orange juice or citrus to balance out the flavors. Or if you really love your drink to be sweet, add some muddled berries and really ripe stone fruits. It’s hard to go wrong with most fruits and best of all, eating the infused fruit is the extra special treat at the bottom of the glass.

  • Apples and Pears
  • Stone fruits: Peaches, nectarines, plums
  • Berries: Blueberries, strawberries, black berries
  • Melons
  • Kiwi
  • Oranges, Tangerines, Mandarins
  • Cinnamon Stick (isn’t a fruit, but it adds a nice sweetness and fragrance)

Pitcher of fruit with red wine pouring into the pitcher for sangria by whiteonricecouple.com

Ice, No Ice, Fizzy?

You can do either, or or all. There’s different schools of thought about ice and it’s more about personal taste. Some folks don’t like ice because they don’t want their sangria watered down. We personally like to ice our Sangria because it makes the drink extra cold. It’s refreshing to have a cold drink on a hot day. If you don’t like it flat and you can add a splash of carbonated soda, light soda or something fizzy. You can also use a sparkling dry wine, such as Cava or Prosecco. There’s something for everyone when you start with a great pitcher and everyone will be happy and refreshed.

Enjoy and as always friends, drink responsibly.

-Diane and Todd

Check out more of our Cocktail Recipes Here

Sangria Recipe with Red Sangria or White Sangria in glasses

Sangria Recipe with Red Sangria or White Sangria Recipe | WhiteOnRicecouple.com

Sangria Recipe (Red, White, or Rosé)

The sweetness level is so dependent on the type of wine and your personal taste, so the additional simple syrup sweetener is optional. We found that 2 Tablespoons of simply syrup is a good all around amount for most dry wines (red, white, or rosé). But if your wine is a little sweeter or if you like your Sangria less sweet, you can adjust the amount of simple syrup.
It’s best to chill the sangrai with the fruit for at least a couple hours (overnight is fine too) to let them infuse together, then add ice to individual glasses if you prefer to serve with ice (as we personally do).
5 from 5 votes

Ingredients

  • 1 (750 ml) bottle dry red, white, or rosé wine , chilled *see note below
  • 2 cups chopped fruit (apples, peaches, nectarines, melon, berries)
  • 1 small orange , cut into thin pieces
  • juice of 1 orange or 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 1/4 cup brandy , rum, grand mariner etc., or to taste
  • 2 Tablespoon simple syrup , or to taste
  • 3-4 cups (optional) ice
  • (optional) extra slices of fruit for garnish

Instructions 

  • Add your chopped fruit and cut orange slices in a large pitcher. For more fruity flavor, you can muddle a few pieces of the fruit.
    Cutting board with chopped fresh fruit for Sangria recipe from whiteonricecouple.com
  • Add wine, orange juice, brandy, & simple syrup to taste. Stir to combine.
    If you’re making this ahead, you can cover and chill the sangria at this point. We like making the sangria a day ahead or chilling for at least 3 hours so all the natural fruit flavors combine with the wine.
    Pitcher of fruit with red wine pouring into the pitcher for sangria by whiteonricecouple.com
  • Before serving, add ice to your individual glasses (or have an ice bucket out for everyone to serve themselves), stir and serve with some slices of fruit for garnish.

Notes

Note 1: Wine for Sangrias
Most dry Spanish wine are perfect for sangria (after all, it is the home of the sangria). Sangria’s aren fussy, so don’t feel limited to your choices. Our general recommendation is to have fun, pop open a bottle that is pleasant to drink, but not so expensive that it gets lost in all the additions. We’ll usual stick with drier wines, as you are already adding sweetness to the wine when making the sangrias, and it is easy to quickly become too sweet. For any wine, adjust the fruit & sweetness to your preference.
Red Favorites:
Grenache, Tempranillo, Zinfandel, Red blends-particularly Spanish style blends & Rhone Blends
White Favorites:
Sauvignon Blanc, Chablis (or other dry, unoaked Chardonnays), Albarino, Pinot Gris
Rosé & Other Favorites:
Grenache Rosé, actually - almost any dry rosé, nice dry sparkling Cava or Prosecco
Note 2: A basic simple syrup is a 1:1 ratio of sugar dissolved in water. We'll usually make 1 cup sugar heated & dissolved in 1 cup of water. Let it cool before using. We usually make larger batches and keep on hand in the refrigerator.

Video

Nutrition Information per Serving

Calories: 216kcal, Carbohydrates: 26g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 20mg, Potassium: 306mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 20g, Vitamin A: 357IU, Vitamin C: 31mg, Calcium: 28mg, Iron: 1mg

 

Hope you enjoy our sangria wine recipes! Here’s a great list of Sangria ideas.