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The history behind Sangria

 

While the versions of Sangria of today are endless, traditional Sangria goes back a few years, way back.

 

The Greeks and Romans always mixed their wine with spice, sugar and whatever was on hand and was heated during the winter months, it was called 'hippocras.' Hippocras is considered to be the common origin of both sangria and mulled wine. Then this concoction was widely consumed, by the young and the old. Water was often unsafe to drink and by mixing a bit of alcohol with water, the bacteria was killed and the water was then safer to drink. The spices & fruit helped to make it drinkable. In Spain this watered down wine with other ingredients added was know as 'sangre, or blood because of the dark color.

 

In what is now modern Spain, many conquerors of the area were no longer interested in wine and so sangria and drinking in general did not return to the area until the late 1400's. Traditional Spanish house Sangria made a return, typically made with Tempranillo with citrus added. However, every 'house' had their own recipe.

 

The U.S craze for sangria began in 1964 at the World's Fair in New York. Spain's pavilion featured the drink and America has been enjoying sangria in many forms since.