Sangriaah!

John and I love to sip sangria on a warm evening, despite the fact that it goes down like dangerously icy buttah. Beware the smooth deliciousness – there’s alcohol in that glass even if it doesn’t taste like it.

John in particular is a fan of Masa’s sangrias, one sparkling, one white, and one red. I made up a prosecco sangria last week and with every glass he reminded me, “Good, but not as good as Masa’s.” Grrrr.

So I had to laugh yesterday when I opened the Star Tribune and saw a feature on sangrias, led off by no less than Masa’s three beauties. Sangria serendipity? Apparently so…

I made the Sangria Tinta (the red version) and I have to admit, it’s pretty damn fantastic. And yeah, it’s better than the prosecco version I made up. Grrr.

Masa’s Sangria Tinta
From www.startribune.com

Stephanie’s note: I cut the recipe by 2/3 (adjusted for one bottle of wine; worked nicely). Recipe for simple syrup is here. I made this sangria in the afternoon and it was delicious by evening.

3 (750 ml) bottles Rioja (Spanish red) wine
1 1/2 c. brandy
1 1/2 c. orange juice
3/4 c. simple syrup
2 oranges, quartered
Sparkling water
Lemon-lime soda
Orange slices for garnish

Combine wine, brandy, orange juice, simple syrup and orange quarters. Refrigerate, covered, for 2 days. Remove oranges.

Add ice to a glass and pour in half wine mixture, and 1/4 each sparkling water and lemon-lime soda. Garnish with an orange slice.