Learn how to make sangria with this easy recipe! This wine punch is cool, refreshing, and serves a crowd, so it's perfect for summer entertaining.
This red sangria recipe is perfect for summer entertaining! It’s cool, fruity, and refreshing (and it makes a whole pitcher). As cocktails go, it’s inexpensive and easy to make. What better drink to share with friends on a hot day?
What is sangria?
Sangria is a Spanish wine punch. Its origins aren’t entirely clear, but it likely evolved from a mixture of water, wine, sugar, and spices that the early Greeks and Romans drank. They added wine to their water to make the water safe to drink.
Since then, wine drinks similar to sangria have popped up all over Europe (think mulled wine!), but today, Spain and Portugal are the only European countries legally permitted to market sangria.
Though there’s no one definitive Spanish sangria recipe, the traditional ingredients include red wine, brandy or orange liqueur, sugar, fresh fruit, and sometimes soda water. Keep reading to learn what I use in mine!
Red Sangria Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy sangria recipe:
- Red wine – I use a Spanish red wine such as Tempranillo or Garnacha. Read more about the best wine for sangria in the callout below.
- Fresh fruit – Oranges, apples, and lemons are the fruits most commonly added to classic red sangria. I sometimes use lime instead of lemon, and I always add fresh raspberries for extra sweetness.
- Liquor – Brandy is most traditional, but orange liqueur like Cointreau, Grand Marnier, or triple sec is another great option. Add less or more depending on how strong you want the cocktail to be.
- Orange juice – Instead of adding a sweetener like brown sugar or maple syrup, I sweeten this recipe naturally with orange juice. I love its citrusy flavor with the wine.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
What is the best wine for sangria?
These days, you’ll often see sangria made with white wine or rosé, but dry red wine is most traditional. I like to use a Spanish red such as Garnacha or Tempranillo.
It shouldn’t be expensive. Because you’re adding so many other ingredients to the wine, you won’t taste its nuances. An affordable bottle with a good flavor makes a great base for this recipe!
How to Make Sangria
This red sangria recipe is SO simple to make! Here’s how it goes:
First, prep the fruit. Thinly slice the orange, and then cut those slices into quarters. Chop the apple, and thinly slice the lemon or lime. Add this fruit to a large pitcher along with the raspberries.
Next, add the wine, brandy or orange liqueur, and orange juice. Stir to combine.
Finally, chill. Pop the pitcher in the fridge to chill overnight.
Serve in glasses with ice. Enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Don’t skimp on the chilling time. By chilling the sangria, you give the fresh fruits a chance to infuse the wine with sweet, fresh flavor. If you cut this time short, the punch won’t taste as fruity or as balanced. I let mine chill for at least 8 hours before serving, or overnight for the best flavor.
- Taste and adjust. Whenever you’re making a cocktail at home, be sure to taste and adjust it to your liking. If you want this recipe to be sweeter, add an extra splash of orange juice or a little maple syrup. Like it stronger? Stir in more Cointreau. Have fun finding a balance of flavors you love.
- Change it up! This recipe is great as-written, but feel free to play with it. If you like your sangria to be bubbly, top it off with club soda after it chills. Replace the raspberries or apples with another seasonal fruit like strawberries or pears. Or, for a spiced-up variation, toss a cinnamon stick into the pitcher before you chill it. Let me know what variations you try!
More Favorite Summer Drinks
If you love this recipe, try one of these refreshing summer cocktails next:
Red Sangria
Ingredients
- 1 Granny Smith or other green apple, cored and chopped
- 1 orange, thinly sliced, then sliced into quarters
- 1 lemon or lime, thinly sliced
- â…“ cup raspberries or sliced strawberries
- 1 (750 mL) bottle Tempranillo, Garnacha, or Rioja wine
- ½ cup orange juice
- ¼ to ½ cup Cointreau, Grand Marnier, or brandy
Instructions
- Place the apple, orange, lime, and raspberries in a large pitcher. Pour in the wine, orange juice, and Cointreau and stir. Chill overnight (I like to chill mine for 24 hours for optimal fruit-infused flavor).
- Serve in glasses filled with ice.
I’m making this for my book club Tomorrow evening. I’ve ever made Sangria – but your recipes are always right in the mark.
Thanks for all your great recipes ?
I hope it’s a hit!
Can you use a Pinot noirs?
Hi Patti, yep! You can.
This recipe is the same as mine, but I also add a lot of halved fresh cherries! So good!
My daughter used to live in Spain and she makes the best sangria. Your recipe is very similar, but she always tops it off with Fresca! It’s more bubbly that way.
This is very good, but my Spanish born and raised extended family use Vermouth (no brandy) and lemon-lime Fanta style soda in the mix instead of OJ.
Hi, I’m thinking about trying out this recipe for an upcoming birthday. I was wondering what kind of orange juice you used. There’s so many different kinds each with their own distinct flavors. So I was just wondering what kind you would recommend using for this recipe.
Hi Jordan, 365 brand no-pulp orange juice – nothing super special.
Hi! I made this without the lime because I didn’t have a lime. I used 1/4 cup brandy as well as 1/4 cup of cointreau and it turned out nice and not too sweet. After hiking in the Canadian Rockie Mountains today I found it a special treat to relax with in the evening.
That said, I recommend cutting the fruit into bite size pieces.
Cant wait to try this! Can I add sugar to it to make it a bit sweeter?
Hi, I would do agave syrup or make this simple syrup, just so the sugar is dissolved when you add it: https://www.loveandlemons.com/simple-syrup-recipe/
You can add sugar when adding the brandy then add the fruit to the sugar and brandy mix so it soaks up the alcohol. Also you can top with gingerale when serving.
So excited to try this one.
I found this to be way too tart for my taste so ended up adding sugar at the end.
I’ve spent my teens in spain and tried so many sangria recipes to get a sangria that taste like the ones I had in Spain now when I can’t get there. And this is it! Just like the way I want and think sangria should taste like. Thanks so much. This brings me to Spain although I’m miles away.
Hi Jessie, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you for posting a Spanish style sangria recipe! This is the same one my family would make growing up. My dad’s secret is that instead of plain brandy, use blackberry brandy. Delicious!!
YES!! YES!! YES!!!
This drink was so needed today on this very hot very muggy very humid Canadian day!
C’était fantastique!!! ?
I’m so glad you loved it!
yes a great summer cocktail, mine summer specific wines so far have only been roses, have not had any sangria, so thank you for the reminder and the recipe
If I wanted to make a batch of this to keep in the fridge for the week, should I keep the fruit in or remove it after the initial 24 hours? Basically, would it last longer if I removed the fruit?
Hi Lauren, I kept mine in the fridge with the fruit for 3-4 days and it was fine.