Forward by Jennifer Rae Vliet
I am basically a teetotaler but when my husband purchased a bottle of Chocolate Box wine (all of their reds have a hint of chocolate in them) from a trip to Florida and we made a Sangria with it, I enjoyed some! It was scrumptious! That sparked memories of growing up in an Italian home and my mother often made an Italian version with peaches only. Here are some tidbits about the history of this Spanish beverage and a superb America’s Test Kitchen Sangria recipe to punctuate today’s Food & Drink post.
History Of Sangria
The history of sangria is actually pretty straightforward. Over 2,000 years ago, the Romans made their way across the Iberian Peninsula and planted vineyards along the way. As water at that time was unsafe for drinking, it was common to fortify it with alcohol to kill off any bacteria.
The first sangrias were likely heavily watered-down mixes of wine, water, herbs, and spices. The Romans would add anything to kill off the bacteria in the water and to disguise the terrible taste of the table wine. The name of the drink comes from the Spanish word sangre (which itself comes from the Latin sanguis), or blood, and refers to its dark color.
Most food historians agree that Spaniards introduced some version of sangria to the Americas in the early 1800s. Official accounts place the US introduction to sangria at the 1964 New York World’s Fair, when the Pavilion of Spain served it to visitors from the Taberna Madrid kiosk. Since then, Americans have been quick to embrace the Spanish cocktail, and in recent years many bars have started to serve a signature sangria to their guests.
Sangria In Today’s Spain
The easiest way to think of modern-day sangria is as a wine punch, often involving fruit and other alcohols. But it’s important to note that there’s no standard recipe here in Spain. As a result, the complex and delicious sangria you might be expecting could likely lead to disappointment.
While cocktail culture has flourished in the US and other countries in recent decades, the Spanish cocktail scene still lags behind. And although Madrid has some great cocktail joints nowadays, this wasn’t always the case. So while every bar and restaurant in the US is serving up specialties like white wine passionfruit mango sangria or spiced sparkling strawberry sangria, Spain is still stuck in a rut.
Establishments know that tourists expect sangria, so you’d better bet they’ll serve something by that name. But more often than not, you’re getting overcharged for a much cheaper (and very popular) Spanish drink called tinto de verano.
Tinto de verano is simply red wine, ice, and either lemon soda or casera (artificially sweetened soda water). It’s delicious and actually what many Spaniards drink instead of sangria, but many visitors are unfamiliar with it. As a result, in many Madrid restaurants the barman adds a splash of vermouth and a couple of slices of orange to a glass of tinto de verano, then charges double for their “house sangria.”
READ MORE AND ENJOY 7 RECIPES FOR SANGRIA>>>>