Best Traditional Spanish Sangria Recipe - Spanish Sabores (2024)

My authentic Spanish sangria recipe is the best and easiest sangria recipe that exists. Make sangria the Spanish way with my tips!

Looking for non-traditional variations of sangria? Try my recipes for white wine sangria, warm spiced sangria, and cava sangria.

Spanish sangria-- it's one of Spain's most popular yet misunderstood drinks!

Introduction

Before food blogs and TripAdvisor, tourists to Spain expected little more than paella, sangria, and flamenco. Fortunately nowadays, more tourists are interested in the local specialties, such as Spain’s best craft beers or our popular gin tonics.

You might be wondering: is sangria simply a tourist trap, or is it an authentic Spanish creation? Yes, sangria is definitely Spanish!

The name comes from sangre (blood), alluding to the red color of the drink. Sangria can be a variety of wine-based co*cktails, include cider and sake sometimes. However, here in Madrid, you’ll usually find Spanish recipes made traditionally, and this Spanish sangria recipe is no different.

History

The story of sangria started over 2,000 years ago when the Romans inhabited the Iberian Peninsula and made their own wine. At this time, water wasn't always safe to drink, so it was common practice to add some alcohol to kill off the bacteria. This practice eventually gave rise to the first sangrias, which were likely a mix of wine, water, herbs, and spices—anything they had to make the water taste better!

In 1964, sangria surged in popularity after thousands tried it for the first time in the Spanish Pavilion at the New York World's Fair. Americans enjoyed this delicious red wine punch, and before long, countless variations had been invented by cookbook authors and bartenders.

Although sangria enjoys great popularity in America, it’s not as common of a choice with locals in most of Spain. Although many people make it at home with whatever ingredients are on hand, it can also be purchased in the soft drinks section of the supermarket. Of course, many bars serve their version of sangria to tourists, but locals often prefer the simpler tinto de verano drink in the summer.

Ingredients

Wondering what ingredients you need to make a delicious, authentic batch of Spanish sangria? Let's chat about what you need and what's optional.

• Red Wine: Use a good quality, young and fruity table wine; something you would drink on its own, but not one that is complex or expensive. Avoid poor quality wines and ones with an oak flavor.
• Fruit: The most common choices are citrus fruit, such as lemon and orange. Other optional fruits are peach, apricot, and green apple.
• Spices: Traditional sangria recipes keep it simple and stick to a flavorful stick of cinnamon.
• Sugar: This is optional; add it only if you want a sweeter sangria. I prefer adding sugar in the form of simple syrup, as it incorporates better.
• Soda: This is optional. Traditional Spanish sangria doesn't have any carbonation because these drinks hadn't been invented when sangria was created. If you like the extra fizz, add a bit of soda water or lemon soda to your sangria right before drinking.

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Variations

• Spices: Experiment with adding star anise, nutmeg, ginger, or cloves for more flavor options.
• Wine: If you swap the traditional fruity red wine for a different variety, you'll have a different variation of sangria. Feel free to experiment if you want.
• Extra Alcohol: If you want your sangria to pack more of a punch, add a couple of ounces of Spanish brandy or vermouth. My favorite sangria bars in Spain add vermouth to their sangria jugs.

How to Make

If you’d like to see the full ingredients and instructions, scroll to the bottom of the post for the printable recipe card.

1. Make a simple syrup. I like to use a 1:1 ratio of water to granulated sugar by volume. Let it cool while you prepare the rest of the sangria.

2-3. Peel and juice the lemons.

4-5. Peel and juice the oranges.

6. Pour the wine into a big pitcher or pot and add the citrus juice and rinds. Add simple syrup to taste.

7. Stir everything until it's well combined.

8. Add the spices, any additional fruit, and brandy or alcohol (if using).

9. Voila! You made traditional Spanish sangria to enjoy with your favorite tapas. If you want to use soda, add it right before drinking.

Recipe FAQs

Serve

Sangria is the perfect beverage while enjoying a variety of Spanish tapas. Some of my favorite tapas to make with a pitcher (or two!) of sangria are:

• Spinach and chickpeas recipe
• Shrimp with garlic recipe
• Fried eggplant with honey recipe
• Ham croquettes recipe
• Sesame cheese puffs with honey
• Almond coated fried goat's cheese
• My favoriteSpanish empanada recipe
• Homemade patatas bravas recipe

Store

Make Ahead: Sangria can be made ahead of time, and it actually tastes better that way. I recommend making sangria the night before serving it, which gives the fruit plenty of time to macerate and release flavor. Then, right before serving, add the soda (if using).

Leftovers: I recommend keeping sangria no more than two days in the fridge. By that point, the fruit is past its prime.

Expert Tips

• Use the right red wine. Choose a good quality young, fruity red wine that doesn't have an oak flavor. Avoid poor quality wines to prevent hangovers, but don't waste complex, expensive wines on sangria.
• Change up the spices. Experiment with cloves, ginger, anise, allspice, and other warm, sweet spices for a variety of flavors.
• Add the simple syrup to taste. Feel free to omit if you want a less sweet sangria.
• Add fresh green apple, peach, or apricot for a modern touch.
• Let the sangria sit for at least 2 hours, or preferably 8 hours, before serving over ice.

More Sangria Recipes

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Photography by Giulia Verdinelli