An Easy Summer Sangria Recipe You’ll Make All Season Long

If you're looking for an easy summer sangria recipe look no further! This recipe is simple, sweet and refreshing for summer sipping.

I am the resident wine snob in the family. They all tease me about it. I stand my ground, because once you try a 1988 Lafite Rothschild, it’s hard to go back.

Since I don’t have the bankroll to drink wine like that regularly, I have found that my guilty pleasure is sangria - this easy summer sangria recipe especially!

There is no better porch pounder than an ice cold glass of this fruity and surprisingly strong summer favorite. (Yes, porch pounder. I said what I said.)

The beauty of sangria is there aren’t any serious rules to follow. You can add whatever your little heart desires. Whether it is adding more citrus, or using a heavier hand with all the berries, it’s really entirely up to you.

What Is Sangria?

So, what is sangria? Sangria has been around a long time. Romans were said to drink it because their water was contaminated, dating way back to 200B.C.

Sangria didn't make it to the US until the 1964 World’s Fair. Since then, sangria has remained popular all over the world as one of the top drinks for summer.

In short, sangria is essentially a type of wine punch, combining a mixture of wine, fruit juice, sparkling water, sweetener, liqueur or brandy and chopped fruit.

The only “rules” I follow are lots of fresh fruit, wine, and some sort of brandy. Depending on what you put in yours, you’ll want to sweeten it with simple syrup.

If you make a moscato sangria, you can skip adding any sugar since the wine is sweet enough. Moscato is notoriously sweet but works well in this regard.

Have you ever had a mojito sangria? Let me tell you, it’s amazing! It still uses white wine but combines rum, blackberries and mint. Perfect for summer!

How To Choose Wine for Sangria

When you’re choosing your wines, go with something inexpensive, but stay away from the ultra-cheap bottles unless you like waking up with a headache.

Since sangria has its origins in Spain, I like to use a Spanish red such as a Tempranillo or a Rioja. These tend to be fruit forward, a little dry, and affordable.

You want sangria to have a little bite to it. If it tastes like fruit juice like a certain chain Italian restaurant that shall remain nameless, you’ve made it too sweet.

This is where the brandy and triple sec come in to play. They help keep everything balanced and give a little punch to your mix.

Here’s How I Make My Easy Summer Sangria Recipe

During my years behind the stick, I found that the most popular style of sangria was a blend of red and white wines. White wine sangria rarely sold well, and an all-red version was just too heavy.

This took a bit of tweaking since you probably don’t want a recipe for five gallons of sangria. I’ve made this so many times that I could do it from memory.

Next up, you need to grab fruit juices. Orange, grapefruit, cranberry, apple, pineapple or whatever you have on hand. Unsweetened juices are the best.

I toss in whatever fruits and berries I have in the fridge, along with a lemon and lime. Cut them into slices or wedges. It doesn’t need to be fancy since they’re just in there to add flavor.

Finally, if you like your sangria to be especially refreshing, I like to add a bit of soda water. It adds sparkle and also balances out all the heavier flavors nicely.

1. Combine the wine, brandy, triple sec and fruit juices and mix them up in a big pitcher.
2. Load up all the fruit and add it to the pitcher also and stir again.
3. Refrigerate until well chilled - at least a couple of hours or even overnight.
4. Serve over ice topped with the soda water or sparkling water of your choice.
5. Garnish with the wine-soaked fruit from the pitcher and/or additional fresh fruit.

How To Store Sangria

Sangria needs to be refrigerated once it's all mixed due to the fruit fruit being cut. If it's not refrigerated, the fresh fruit will spoil rather quickly. 

If kept in the refigerator, sangria can be safely stored for up to five days. The flavors will continue to develop the longer it sits and it will get even more delicious.

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