Spanish Red Sangria Pitcher

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A proper Spanish-style sangria built the way tapas bars do it: fruit macerated in sugar and brandy first, then a whole bottle of juicy Garnacha poured over and chilled overnight so everything tastes like one drink instead of wine with fruit floating in it. Made entirely in a pitcher, finished with a splash of soda at the table — the easiest thing you can hand a room full of guests.

Ingredients

• 1 navel orange, scrubbed, half sliced into thin rounds and half juiced
• 1 lemon, scrubbed and sliced into thin rounds
• 1 firm apple (Honeycrisp or Granny Smith), cored and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup Spanish brandy (Brandy de Jerez) or Cognac
• 1 cinnamon stick

• 750 ml dry Spanish red wine (Garnacha, Tempranillo, or a young Rioja), chilled
• 2 tablespoons orange liqueur such as Cointreau or triple sec (optional)

• 1 cup cold club soda or sparkling water
• 4 cups ice cubes
• 1 handful fresh mint sprigs
• 1 orange, sliced into rounds for garnish

• 1 2-quart (or larger) pitcher
• wooden spoon

Instructions

1. Add the orange slices, lemon slices, and cubed apple to a 2-quart pitcher. Sprinkle the sugar over the fruit and press it gently with a wooden spoon 8 to 10 times — enough to bruise the citrus rinds and start pulling out juice, but not enough to shred the fruit into pulp.
2. Pour in the fresh orange juice (you should have about 1/4 cup) and the brandy, and tuck in the cinnamon stick. Stir for 30 seconds until most of the sugar has dissolved, then let the fruit macerate at room temperature for 30 minutes. The liquid should look syrupy and smell strongly of orange oil.
3. Pour in the entire bottle of red wine and the orange liqueur, if using. Stir well from the bottom up to dissolve any remaining sugar crystals.
4. Cover the pitcher tightly with plastic wrap or a lid and refrigerate at least 4 hours and ideally 12 to 24 hours. This step is not optional — overnight is where the wine, brandy and fruit stop tasting like separate ingredients.
5. Before serving, taste the sangria cold and adjust: if it tastes tannic or sharp, stir in 1 to 2 more tablespoons of sugar (or a splash of orange juice) a little at a time. If it tastes flabby or sweet, add 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice.
6. Fish out and discard the cinnamon stick and the lemon slices, which turn bitter after long soaking. Leave the orange slices and apple cubes in the pitcher.
7. Fill wine glasses or tumblers about two-thirds with ice. Pour the sangria over the ice, leaving 1 inch of headroom, then top each glass with a 1- to 2-ounce splash of cold club soda. Garnish with a fresh orange slice and a mint sprig, and serve immediately with a small spoon or cocktail pick for the fruit.
8. For a self-serve setup, keep the pitcher in the fridge and set out a bowl of ice, the bottle of club soda, and the garnishes beside it so guests build their own glasses and the pitcher never goes warm or watery.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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