It’s Sangria Season, Baby!

Fast Facts:

• NV Maria Jola Sangria, Petersbach, France ($6.99 @ Trader Joe’s in California) 

It’s deep summer. And it seems to be hades hot in every corner of the contiguous United States. So this caught my eye while prowling the Trader Joe’s in the beach town of Ventura, California.

The first thing that attracted me? $6.99 for a 1.5ml bottle. That is some crazy QPR given that this is a double sized (plastic) bottle priced like a single. But could it pass the taste test?  The answer is: well, sorta.

You see, there is nothing inherently wrong with this Sangria. Poured over ice, it tastes fine. It just doesn’t taste like a true Sangria should.  Better to think of this as a “Sangria Starter.”  It’s made by the French after all. Sangria from France???  Let us thank them for their contribution of solid red wine and “natural flavoring” and take it from there.

What is missing is effervescence and a bit of sweetness. You can remedy this with a big splash of soda water, orange soda, or the Pellegrino pictured below. Heck, some Prosecco would do the trick as well. I would use a 3:1 ratio of Sangria  to bubbles.  Add some sliced fresh fruit (oranges, lemons, limes, strawberries, etc.) and you are ready to pah-tay!

Tasting Notes:

Well-balanced.  Nice red wine foundation upon which flavors of citrus are added. What more could you ask for?  Well, some effervescence. But we covered that above. ABV is just 7%, drink up!

 

We like this more than the Costco Sangria that we have previously reviewed. But it is interesting that both bottlings are $6.99 and in both cases, we thought they needed doctoring before serving.

Need More Wine Picks from Trader Joe’s – or Costco?

If your search for this wine lands you in Trader Joe’s, take along our handy Lucky 13 list of TJ’s wine here.

And if your wine shopping excursions land you in Costco, prepare by grazing our most recent reviews of Costco wines here in our Lucky 13 list.

Cheers!