Best Ever Summer Sangria
Summer is here! And so are pool parties and outdoor cook outs and barbeques! Be the host with the most by serving my refreshing Best Ever Summer Sangria! You do all the work the night before and set up takes just 5 minutes the day of!
- 2 bottles red wine
- ½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- ½ cup white rum
- 24 oz ginger ale (2 cans)
- 2 cups strawberries
- 3 limes sliced skin on
- 1 lemon sliced skin on
- 1 orange sliced skin on
- 2 cups frozen white grapes
- Wash strawberries, limes, lemon, and orange, and remove stickers off of skin.
- Slice limes, lemon, and orange into thin slices, leaving skin on.
- Remove stems from strawberries and set aside.
- In a large pitcher, add 2 bottles of wine, orange juice, and fruit. Muddle using a wooden spoon. Leave in fridge for a minimum of 5 hours to overnight.
- Add ginger ale and rum just prior to serving.
- Fill cups with ice and frozen grapes to keep extra cold.
Disclaimer: This is for 21+ only! You can substitute the alcohol in the recipe for a red sparkling juice and simply have a summer punch! Keep all guests happy by making a pitcher of each version, just don’t get them mixed up!
Nutritional Content Source: Best Ever Summer Sangria
| MACROS | Calories | Carbs | Fat | Protein | Cholest | Sodium | Sugars | Fiber |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best Ever Summer Sangria | 272 | 26g | 0g | 1g | 0mg | 14mg | 16g | 2g |
The orange juice can be substituted for orange liquor if you want the sangria to have an extra kick! I just so happened to have some freshly squeezed OJ in the fridge and used that. Both options help enhance the citrus flavor and the sweetness helps balance out the dryness of the wine and ginger ale. Make sure you let the fruit marinate in the fridge for a minimum of 5 hours, and overnight is the best!
I also don’t add any sugar, since the ginger ale and fruit add the right amount of sweetness for me, if you find that it isn’t sweet enough for your taste add pure cane sugar since it dissolves easily. Another option is to swap out the ginger ale for a sweeter soda, such as sprite or 7 up. You really can’t go wrong once you have the basics down:
- Choose dry red wines, like a cabernet sauvignon or merlot. Stay away from purely sweet varieties since there are several ways to sweeten the sangria. In this recipe I used one bottle of sweet red and one dry and it turned out delicious, not too sweet nor too dry.
- Add the ginger ale just 1 hour prior to serving, so it doesn’t go flat.
- Frozen fruit works in your favor, it helps maintain the pitcher cold without watering the sangria down.
- Go for cheap wine, I never spend more than $5 per bottle since it’s going to be a mixed drink in the end. TRUST ME ON THIS!
This recipe is for a large pitcher, if you’re making a 3 liter jug, you’ll need 4-5 bottles of wine, the entire 1 liter of ginger ale, 2+ cups white rum, and double the fruit! Cheers!
