We’re about a month into school now, so you may be starting to get bored of your go-to alcoholic beverage. If that’s the case, it may be time to mix it up with a fun, fruity twist on your typical red wine. Try out a personal favorite of mine: sangria.

Sangria is a Spanish drink typically made with red wine, juice, fresh fruit, sugar and a bit of brandy, and usually served in a large pitcher. However, you can also buy it bottled at your local supermarket.

I recently studied abroad in Spain, so I was a little bit nervous about buying bottled sangria. Luckily, I was able to find some that is bottled in Spain and imported to the United States, called All Natural From The Farm Sangria.

One of the best parts of sangria is the fresh fruit bobbing around in the drink. Since this sangria is bottled, it needs a bit of preparation, so I cut up some oranges, apples and lemons and dropped the fruit into my cup with some ice.

When the fixings were all ready, I opened the bottle and poured the dark red-violet liquid into my cup. The drink looked very similar to a light red wine, but with a prominent purple tint.

The sangria smelled like black cherry candy with hints of citrus and brown spices such as cinnamon and cloves.

The liquid is sweet and potent without being too thick or overwhelming. It’s thinner than red wine and tastes like something between juice and wine with hints of citrus fruit and cherries and a slight touch of cinnamon.

After the drink is done comes my favorite part: the wine-drenched fruit sitting at the bottom of the glass. The lemons, oranges and apples in my sangria were the best for topping off that glass. Other common fruits to add to this sangria are pineapple, blackberries and sometimes even grapes.

I recommend enjoying sangria chilled. I usually drop a few ice cubes in the glass to keep it cold on a nice day. All Natural From The Farm Sangria sells for about $10 a bottle and has 5.3 percent alcohol.

Published on September 21, 2016 at 8:25 pm