Drink: Sangria

Generally, the idea of sangria just offends my senses. When I think of sangria, I think of watered-down, low-quality wine with artificial sweetness, and of course random fruit.

That said, on a hot day, from a trusted source, I can push those thoughts out of my mind and settle in for a sangria. I've even been known to make a "white wine sangria", which I reconcile as a summer cocktail in my mind.

On a recent trip to Spain, I threw my tourist hat on and beat the heat with sangria at almost every place I sat down. I had to try it. I'd then get a nice dry tempranillo-based Rioja if needed to balance the taste. I can say that most of them were pretty darn good. While some were watered down further with club soda, and one even had *shudder* a thick layer of sugar at the bottom, for the most part I was pleased.

At a trattoria-pizzeria, I had one of the best ones. I settled down in a sidewalk table by a crowded square. I wanted to wind down a bit before dinner, so I ordered sangria and waited. People around me were drinking beers and mojitos, so I had no indication of what was in store for me. When the waiter set my beverage in front of me, my expectations were low, the bendy straw had that effect. Drinking wine, with ice, through a bendy straw. I set that aside and took my first sip.

It was surprisingly full bodied and dry. It was so tasty, I ordered uno mas.

I shared pitchers, I had pint glasses, I even had a 1/2 liter stein of sangria (overkill if you ask me). Overall, I enjoyed my sangria adventures, with my own snobbishness aside.