Sangria with non alcoholic wine is a great drinks hack
/If you’re not drinking tonight, try this hack: a non alcoholic Sangria or what we like to call a San(s)gria
Not everyone likes the taste of non alcoholic wine and even though there are some great premium options on the market, there are some really bad ones. If you don’t have the means or the time to order higher priced wine online (our recommendations are here) most grocery stores in Canada carry basic low quality non alcoholic wine in all the styles - red, white and rose. If this is your only option, it’s time to make a sangria!
Why non alcoholic sangria?
Non alcoholic sangria is the easiest non alcoholic drink to make and a bit of a hack if you’re sober curious or mindful drinking because any quality non alcoholic wine can be used for a sangria and the flavours of fruit and sparkling soda mask the overly-grapey flavour.
How do we make non alcoholic sangria? There are a few tricks up our sleeve!
First, cut up about 1 cup of whatever fruit you have on hand but try and include citrus - we like peaches/plums/strawberries, blackberries and oranges. Add it with some berries to the bottom of two spritz glasses and pour about 1/4 cup of wine on top of the fruit. Muddle it gently with a wooden spoon and leave for about 5 minutes to integrate the flavours.
For a fall or winter version, use a handful of fresh cranberries, 1 oz pomegranate juice, 1 pears, 1 apples and several cinnamon sticks. Do not muddle!
Add in about 2-3 oz of non alcoholic red wine such as Leitz Pinot Noir or Oddbird Low Intervention Red No 1.
Add in a few droppers of non-alcoholic bitters or Angostura bitters (5-6 drops).
Top it off with non-alcoholic sparkling wine.
Should I use red or white non alcoholic wine?
Either type of wine will work!
If you’re mindful drinking, and don’t mind some booze, use regular Cava from Spain.
Non alcoholic red wines for Sangria
Our favourite juicy non alcoholic red wine for Sangria is the premium Oddbird Low Intervention Red, which is currently unavailable in Canada and the U.S. In lieu of that option, a few other well-priced non alcoholic wine brands are widely available. The JP Chenet Cabernet Merlot is a good choice and it’s available through UpsideDrinks.com. Smoky Bay Shiraz is also available through UpsideDrinks.com. Both of these non alcoholic reds are juicy and fairly close to the real thing, and integrate really well with the fruit flavours and bubbles in a alcohol free sangria.
All our red wine reviews are available here!
You can’t really go wrong with any non alcoholic red wine in Sangria. If you only have Vin Zero or Carl Jung available to you from the grocery store, than don’t be disappointed. With our suggestions above, your Sansgria will be just right!
