Sangria

You make classic red sangria with one bottle of dry Spanish red wine, 4 cl orange liqueur, 10 cl orange juice, a tablespoon of sugar and fresh fruit. That fruit is citrus at its core: orange and lemon. Diced apple or peach is welcome too.

The most important thing is time. Let the jug infuse in the fridge for at least two hours, so the wine takes on the flavour of the peel and the fruit. Overnight works too. Only add the ice and the sparkling water just before pouring, otherwise the jug gets watered down and the fizz disappears.

Choose a wine without much oak, for example a young Rioja, Garnacha or Tempranillo. A wine that is too heavy and oak-aged goes less well with the fruit. Sweeten the jug cautiously: taste after the steeping and only then add extra sugar if needed.

You make white sangria with cava in the same way, but with a bottle of dry white wine as the base and cava instead of sparkling water. Let the white wine steep cold for two hours with orange liqueur, a little sugar and lighter fruit such as peach, lemon and apple. Just before serving, pour in half a bottle of cold cava brut.

Cava is the Spanish sparkling wine with its own protected designation of origin. According to the specification of the DOP Cava, published by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, the bubble comes from a second fermentation in the bottle using the traditional method. The wine must mature on the lees for at least nine months; for a Cava Reserva that is at least 18 months. A Brut contains less than 12 grams of sugar per litre, which does not make the jug extra sweet.

In Spain the white variant has its own name. The EU regulation names Clarea: a drink based on white wine under the same conditions as sangria, and that name may only be used for product from Spain.

You make alcohol-free sangria with alcohol-free red wine or red grape juice as the base. Replace the orange liqueur with an extra splash of orange juice and leave out the sugar when using grape juice, as that juice is already sweet on its own. The fruit, the cinnamon stick and the steeping in the fridge stay exactly the same.

With alcohol-free wine the jug stays closest to the original, because that wine is drier and still has some tannin. With grape juice it becomes a softer, fruitier jug. A few drops of lemon juice keep everything fresh. Here too, only top up with ice and sparkling water when you are about to serve.

Strictly speaking, this is not legally a sangria. The EU definition requires an alcohol content of at least 4.5 percent. For home or a party, the name alcohol-free sangria is simply common usage.

A bottle of sangria is a ready-made product that has to comply with European rules; making it yourself is a recipe you can adapt in every way. Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 on aromatised wine products describes sangria as a flavoured drink based on wine, flavoured with extracts or natural essences of citrus fruits, optionally with juice of those fruits, spices and carbon dioxide.

The drink may not be coloured: the colour must come from the raw materials themselves. The alcohol content is between at least 4.5 and less than 12 percent. The name Sangría may only be used as a sales denomination for a product from Spain or Portugal. Made elsewhere, the label says flavoured drink based on wine, with the statement produced in and the country.

Whoever makes a jug themselves chooses the wine, the fruit and the sweetness themselves. That takes some preparation, but the result is fresh and tailored exactly to the company.

Voor rode sangria is Beronia Rioja Crianza een goede Spaanse basis uit de Rioja. In totaal staan er nu 415 flessen rode wijn in de winkel, dus er is altijd een droge rode wijn die in een kan past.

For the orange liqueur you can choose between Bols Triple sec and De Kuyper Triple Sec, or between Cointreau and Grand Marnier Cordon Rouge. In the recipe you use the same 4 cl of each. For the white sangria with cava, Vilarnau Cava Brut Reserva is ready and waiting, a cava with at least 18 months of ageing on the lees.

Unsure about the quantity for a party or about which wine works best? Feel free to call or drop by ’t Bockje at Brink 2 in Bathmen.

The shop is at Brink 2 in Bathmen. Open Tuesday to Friday from 09.00 to 18.00 and Saturday from 09.00 to 17.00. For advice, call 0570 541 278 or email info@bockje.nl.