Sangria
Since we are on a roll with the food posts, I thought it would be appropriate to mention a little, delicious and dear friend I have in Spain called Sangria. It really is not fair to visit Spain and not get to know my friend.
It is indeed consumed by the tourists here, than probably anyone else, yet the Spaniards will sip it at informal parties or gatherings from time to time. I don’t know why, but for me, I take it as a complete honor and delight to indulge in its satisfying taste. When I have good Sangria, and that is for sure, not all Sangria is good, I cannot just simply have one sip. I will go on and on. Let’s talk a little about its logistics. This admirable drink is considered a sweet, fruit punch, typical of Spain, Portugal and Italy. It normally consists of 4 important ingredients, but the masters of this art add or ignore some of them. So red wine (usually Tempranillo), or white wine (for “Sangria Blanca”), sliced fruit (orange, apple, lemon, peach, berries, and pineapple are all possibilities, and on more rare occasions, you can find melon, grape or mango), next is sugar, honey, or some kind of fruit juice (like orange juice), here is where it gets tricky with the other alcoholic part (the only one I’m familiar with is brandy), and sometimes, this is actually not necessary, but carbonated soda to give it a little spark. Now as for preparation, wine acts as the base. After that, the fruit is sliced up, and then they are mixed with the wine and the other ingredients except for the ice and carbonated soda. Before those are added, the fruit and the rest of the ingredients should have had a lot of time to sit and blend together. That is the process, but the actual result, is hard to achieve when you have tasted such great Sangria before. There also exists a non-alcoholic version, called “Sangria Señorial,” which could also be good for those of you who do not wish to be inarticulate after several pitchers, and still enjoy a really good taste. For this version, wine grapes are used instead. So at either bars, pubs, or restaurants, Sangria is usually served in 1 liter pitchers, since a big container is needed to hold all the ingredients. Voilà, Sangria. I highly recommend her if you are looking for a way to satisfy your taste buds. Enjoy.
