SPANISH SANGRIA

i love red wine...and it's good for the heart! during the hot summer days (however rare in san francisco) it's hard to fully enjoy a glass of red wine because it's definitely not very quenching in the heat. so, what do you do? turn it into a refreshing sangria. i took a friend of mine to a cooking class for her birthday last year and the theme was spanish seaside. in addition to a fabulous paella, she made a sangria. sangria's are an easy, yet impressive cocktail option you can serve at any party. it says fun and classy. unfortunately, i lost all the recipes from that cooking class (this is part of the reason why i started a blog), so when i was planning a friend's bridal shower, i scoured the internet for a recipe. then, i found my ultimate go-to. it was perfect!

SPANISH SANGRIA

posted on thibeault's table on may 5, 2009 (original source: barbara hansen's mexican cookery 1981)

• 1 bottle, dry full bodied red wine (i chose an argentina malbec - bodega norton)
• 2 T orange liqueur, such as grand marnier (triple sec works, too)
• 1/3 c simple syrup *see recipe below
• 1 lime thinly sliced
• 1 orange thinly sliced
• 1 lemon thinly sliced
• juice of 1 orange (or 1/2 cup o.j.)
• 1 c club soda

combine wine, simple syrup, orange liqueur, and orange juice and stir. add sliced fruit (do not let the fruit sit in the sangria for more than an hour before serving, as the peels may cause the drink to be bitter.)

and just before serving, add the club soda.

SIMPLE SYRUP

• 1 c sugar
• 1 c water

bring water and sugar to a boil and simmer until liquid is clear and the sugar has dissolved. pour into separate jar and refrigerate. keep for 3 weeks.

my yummy tip: i made this the night before for a 1pm party and kept it in the fridge overnight to let the wine breath. this was so light that even not-so-often drinkers enjoy it. also, in the original recipe, it does say not to let the fruit sit in the drink for more than an hour, but i added that the night before and it sat in the drink the whole party and was fine.