Sip in #Autumn with my #SipWatchTweet Fall Sangria

Sip in Autumn with SipWatchTweet’s Red Grape and Blackberry Sangria

I fought it as long as I could, but let’s face it. It IS autumn. Summer is over, the mornings and evenings get cooler. The days get slightly shorter. But there’s always great fall TV. This season has a lot of new premieres, like Prodigal Son on Fox. This season we sadly have final seasons of our favorites as well, like How to Get Away with Murder on ABC.

 

Blah, blah, blah. On to the reason you’re here, my 2019 autumn sangria. If this isn’t your first time here on SipWatchTweet, you know I’m adamant that sangria be made with seasonal fresh fruit. The wine selection and brandy (or other liquor) can stay the same. But the fruit should be sweet, ripe and in season. This year, I chose what was best available in Southern California this fall, red grapes and blackberries. A light fruity red or a citrus forward white wine would match perfectly. I chose the latter, a Chenin Blanc and blend and a drier Riesling. Feel free to try it with both and let me know how much you enjoyed it on Twitter or Instagram @Sipwatchtweet #SipWatchTweet.

Red Grape and Blackberry Sangria

•1 bottle Chenin Blanc/Viognier blend

•1 cup of semi-dry Riesling

•1 cup of Calvados

•1 cup of agave nectar

•1 cup soda

•2 cups of grapes (sliced in half)

•1 cup of blackberries

•1 teaspoon of rhubarb bitters

•2 small limes (juiced)

 

In a large pitcher, place the sliced grapes and blackberries in the bottom. Cover with Calvados and agave nectar, let the fruit soak for at least an hour. Stir in the wine, rhubarb bitters and lime juice. Top with soda and serve. The sangria can be stored up to a week in the refrigerator. But I’m sure you’ll sip it all up well before then!

Sip in summer with grilled watermelon and lime sangria

It’s time to sip in summer! The best time of year for beautiful warm weather, dining al fresco, watching #BigBrother (right?) and of course sipping my latest #SipWatchTweet summer sangria. This season I wanted to try something truly different. You know I always say, seasonally fresh fruit is key to making the perfect sangria. To really mix it up this season, I chose to grill everyone’s summer staple, watermelon. For citrus I used lime in lieu of lemon. The difference in citrus provides a perfect accent to the smoky grilled watermelon. This summer sangria is wonderfully savory sweet and worth the extra step. Enjoy!

GRILLED WATERMELON AND LIME SANGRIA

• 3 cups cubed seedless grilled watermelon

• 2 bottles of Cotes du Rhône (or other dry) white wine

• 2 cups Patron Citronge (or triple sec)

• 1/2 cup agave syrup

• 2 limes, juiced

• Handful of fresh mint

• Extra virgin olive oil (for grilling)

• Club soda (optional)

1.Grill watermelon using extra virgin olive oil on a hot grill for no more than 30 seconds on each side.

2.Place grilled watermelon cubes in a large pitcher. Lightly muddle with a wooden spoon. Add the Patron Citronge orange liqueur and lime juice. Let stand for an hour.

3.Stir in Cotes du Rhône white wine and agave nectar.

4.Tear fresh mint and add it into the pitcher of sangria without muddling or bruising. Stir and taste for sweetness. You can add up to a 1/4 cup more depending on the sweetness of the watermelon and sourness of the lime.

5.Keep chilled and pour over frozen watermelon cubes or ice. This is a liquor forward sangria so you may choose to top with club soda.

Your sangria will last up to a week in the refrigerator. But you’ll never let it last that long! Sip along with your favorite summer show and don’t forget to #SipWatchTweet! Enjoy!

Sip in Spring with my Strawberry Basil Rosé sangria #SipWatchTweet

I think spring is my favorite season. The TV is still entertaining, the days are longer and the nights are a little warmer. Spring is summer’s sexy prelude to hanging out at the beach all day and drinking at pool parties all night. Speaking of warmer weather and water activities, my strawberry basil sangria is the perfect alcoholic pairing to (bring) sip (before) during (and after) along. It’s as easy breezy to make as it is to sip.

STRAWBERRY BASIL ROSÉ SANGRIA

• 1 bottle of dry rosé

• 1 cup limoncello

• 1/2 cup brandy

• 1 lb of strawberries

• 2 lemons

• 1/3 cup rose syrup

• 8-10 large fresh basil leaves

Rinse the fruit and basil. Slice the strawberries and tear the basil leaves both into a large bowl. Cover with limoncello. Let it soak for up to an hour. In a large pitcher, pour the rosé, brandy and rose syrup. Stir feverishly until the the rose syrup is completely blended into the brandy and rosé. Add the limoncello soaked strawberries and basil, including the residual limoncello. Squeeze the 2 lemons into the pitcher (straining out the seeds and access pulp) and combine all ingredients so they are thoroughly infused. Taste for desired sweetness. If you desire it sweeter you can add up to a 1/3 cup more of the rose syrup.

My Spring Strawberry Basil Rosé Sangria will last in the refrigerator up to a week. And don’t forget to post your results on Twitter with the hashtag #SipWatchTweet.

Winter Citrus Sangria. Heat it up or ice it down. Sip in Winter.

Winter. My least favorite season. Mediocre TV (sorry, filler shows. But you know I’m right.), shorter days and colder nights. But I make a sangria every season. I will not discriminate against this one. My plan was to make a cranberry citrus red sangria. Timing and Mother Nature had another idea. Sweet raspberries were fresh and in season at the local farmer’s market. When I went to Trader Joe’s, the tangerines were sweet and the temptation to try both pink and Meyer lemons too much too bare. Can you really make a delicious sangria out of such a sweet-tart selection of fruit, you ask? Follow my recipe, sip and answer that answer yourself. 

 Winter Raspberry Citrus Sangria

• 1 bottle of Pinot Noir or other medium bodied wine
• 1 cup of Sicilian limoncello 
• 1/2 cup of Patron Citron liqueur (or other good quality orange liqueur)
• 2 cups fresh tangerine juice (approximately 10 tangerines)
• 1/4 cup pink lemon juice (approximately 2 lemons)*
• 1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice (approximately 1 lemon)
• 1 basket of raspberries 
• Fever Tree Club soda 

After rinsing, put the raspberries in a large pitcher. Pour the wine, limoncello and orange liqueur on top and leave to soak for an hour. After juicing the tangerines, pink lemon juice [*if you can’t find pink lemons, you can substitute with ruby red grapefruit.] and Meyer lemon, lightly stir in with your wine and citrus liqueurs soaked raspberries. Taste for desired sweetness. If more sweetness is desired, you may add up to a 1/4 cup of agave nectar. When serving cold top with soda. When served warm, heat with a cinnamon stick. This sangria will last in your refrigerator up to a week. Sip Watch Tweet with my winter raspberry citrus sangria! 

Fall into Autumn with my #SipWatchTweet Apples and Asian Pear Sangria.

Admittedly I wanted a cranberry spice sangria, alas fresh cranberries won’t be ready for another few weeks. You know my key to amazing sangria (and should be everyone else’s as well), seasonally fresh fruit and inexpensive, extremely drinkable wine. If you wouldn’t drink it alone, don’t put it in your sangria. Period. You’re going to love this sangria. Asian pears, SweeTango apples, Granny Smith apples, Charles Shaw rosé, Napoleon brandy and a little lime makes this sangria fall in a glass. My sangria and the new (and returning favorite) fall TV line up. What better pairing is that? 

Sip Watch Tweet Apples and Asian Pear Sangria 

2 bottles of dry rosé

1 cup of French brandy 

2 Granny Smith apples cored and cubed

2 SweeTango (or honeycrisp)apples cored and cubed

2 Asian pears seeded and sliced 

2 small limes, juiced 

1/3 cup of dark agave syrup

After cutting all the fruit (sans, limes), put them in a large glass pitcher. Pour rosé and brandy over fruit. Let stand for about an hour. Stir in the lime juice and agave syrup. Taste and if more sweetness is desired you can either simply add 1/4 cup more of agave syrup, or use unfiltered organic apple juice to taste. Pour over ice. My sangria will last in the refrigerator for up to a week. Although ours never lasts more than a couple of days, because we drink it all! 

Sip (watch tweet) in Summer with Blueberry Blackberry Sangria

Another season, another sangria. Can you believe it’s summer already? You know when summer really begins? When the first episode of Big Brother airs, well that’s this week so… Last summer I did a blackberry watermelon sangria. This year I wanted to attempt a “healthy” *wink* sangria. I chose blueberry blackberry (with a pomegranate, tart cherry, black mulberry, red grape, purple carrot, cranberry and blueberry syrup. Don’t worry, Trader Joe’s does most of the work). A summer super antioxidant and good for your heart red wine blueberry blackberry sangria…and it’s insanely delicious.

Blueberry Blackberry Sangria 

• 1 bottle of Sangiovese (or similar red wine)
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 2 cups fresh blackberries 
• 1 1/2 cup (good) orange liqueur 
• 1/2 cup berry syrup*
• 1 lemon (juiced)

*berry syrup recipe: Using a small pot, simmer 1/2 cup puréed blueberries, with 1 cup Trader Joe’s To the Power of 7 juice (or blueberry juice), 1 cup of water and 1/4 cup agave nectar, stirring until reduced into a syrup consistency. Pour the berry syrup into a glass pitcher with wine. 

Using the same pot you made the berry syrup in, put all the blackberries and cover with orange liqueur. Let the blackberries soak in the liqueur for up to an hour. Stir into the glass pitcher and add the lemon juice. Let it sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour before enjoying. Pour over ice and sip (watch tweet). 

Sip (watch tweet) Spring with Honeydew Citrus Sangria

Another season, another sangria. Spring isn’t my absolute favorite season. I do enjoy the longer days of sunlight, warmer weather (except this year 😁) and most television shows are off of hiatus. Actually, truly the only thing I dislike about spring is all the sports. Baseball, March Madness (I’m not even really sure what that is all about but I know it’s basketball related) and it tends to rain more in Southern California in the spring.

Ok, on to what you come to sipwatchtweet.com for, my latest sangria recipe. This season I decided on honeydew citrus with a Pinot Gris wine base. The citrus fruits I selected were pomelo and Meyer lemons. This may be my best spring sangria yet. Admittedly it takes a little more time because you have to soak the citrus in Cointreau and muddle for a while. But trust me, it’s worth it.

HONEYDEW CITRUS SANGRIA
* 1 bottle of Pinot Gris
* 1 cup of Cointreau
* 1/2 cup of simple syrup or agave nectar
* 1 pomelo
* 2 Meyer lemons
* 1 honeydew melon

Muddle (or use food processor) pomelo and Meyer lemons (peeled and quartered) with Cointreau and simple syrup until almost a thin purée. Let that mixture set while you cut the melon in half, remove seeds and use a melon baller to scoop out fruit and add to a pitcher. When complete, add the juice of the melon to the pitcher. Pour in the Pinot Gris and with a sieve add the citrus and Cointreau mixture. Stir and let sit in the refrigerator for about an hour before enjoying.

Sip (watch tweet) in winter with Pomegranate Blood Orange spiced Sangria

Winter is my least favorite season. Even in Los Angeles the weather gets too chilly (at least in the evening) for cute little dresses and open toe wedges. Most of our favorite shows are on hiatus and gin and tonics are just no longer an acceptable “day drink”. But there’s the good side of winter; some entertaining reality TV, some new scripted shows, the days eventually get a little longer and back to big red wine and manhattans by the fire with your loved one at night.

 

I’m sure your favorite part of winter, or any new season for that matter is my sangria recipe. This winter I decided on pomegranate and spiced blood orange sangria. I used orange spice from Root Bitters in lieu of just a cinnamon stick or nutmeg to spice it up for winter. Full disclosure: I had to use Cara Cara oranges because in California, the blood orange from farmer’s markets to Whole Foods, were very dry. Some farmer’s at my local farmers market have even refused to sell them because of the poor quality this season. You know I’ve always said, a sangria is both made and broken by bad fruit and/or fruit that is not in season. Because of that, I chose the closest to blood oranges that had sweet and juicy flesh, Cara Cara.

Pomegranate and spiced blood orange sangria Recipe

* 3 medium blood (or Cara Cara) oranges
* seeds from 2 pomegranates (it’s easier to buy the arils already loose in lieu of pounding them out yourself)
* 1 cup Thatcher’s blood orange liqueur
* ¼ cup Tres Agave agave nectar
* 1 bottle of Zinfandel (or other jammy fruit forward red wine)
* 25 dashes of Root Bitters orange spice

Peel and cut blood oranges in quarters. Muddle the oranges and arils (pomegranate seeds) in a large pitcher. Add all the other liquids, except the bitters. Let everything set for about an hour for the flavors to integrate. Add bitters, stir and taste for sweetness. You can add a little more agave nectar if needed. This winter sangria can be sipped and enjoyed chilled or warmed. Your sangria will last in the refrigerator up to a week. Mix up my pomegranate spiced blood orange sangria and #SipWatchTweet your favorite shows along with me on Twitter.

 

 

Sip into Autumn with my Fall Fig and Fennel Sangria

Autumn 🍂. Fall’s stripper name. Another season, means another sangria. But not just any season, the season that blesses us with a plethora of entertaining television shows; shows both network and cable, scripted and reality. This year, this season brings the series finale of our favorite #TGIT show, Scandal. I’m devastated and I know many of you are as well.

Like any true “Gladiator”, despite my devastation I must carry on. Carry on I shall, as I’ve been doing every season for the last few years. As per usual, I only use fresh fruit that is currently in season. Seasonal fresh fruit and complimentary wine is key for amazing Sangria. This fall I’ve decided to use black figs and fennel with a Chardonnay wine base. I wanted to use brown figs but they weren’t readily available yet. Feel free to sub out the black figs for brown later in the season if you so choose. If you’re not a fan of fennel, you can sub it out for 10 or so dried apricots.

FIG AND FENNEL CHARDONNAY SANGRIA

1 btl Chardonnay (or other full bodied white)
1c limoncello
1/4c agave nectar
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
1/2 fennel bulb
10 fresh black figs halved
Dried mission figs for garnish

 

Cut the half fennel bulb into quarters and layer on the bottom of a large pitcher along with black figs cut in halves. Add the limoncello, agave and lemon juice. Place in refrigerator at least 2 hours (but its best overnight). Remove fennel quarters (if using dried apricot substitute or if you love the flavor of fennel you may leave it in) and add the Chardonnay. Taste for sweetness, if more is desired add up to 1/4 cup more agave nectar. Sangria will last up to a week in your refrigerator.