Summer Wine Is Refreshing And Fun!

Is the last of the summer wine gone? I hope not, because I thoroughly enjoyed these fresh light fruity wines. I do drink my favorite reds throughout the summer, but this is the time of year I like to switch it up, and enjoy different whites and fruit wines.

And of course there is red wine sangria. I usually make a big jug of red wine sangria for barbecues, or on hot summer nights for gazing at the stars on my patio.

Try this recipe for summer sangria

Fantastically easy strawberry wine made from your own garden strawberries(or buy them)

I start with a lighter red wine. I like to make by sangria with a lighter, fruity red rather than say a Shiraz, it's just my personal preference. I make it either the night before, or in the morning.

That way the flavors have time to blend together and develop. I add my fruits first to the wine. Just depends on what I have on hand, but my favorite fruits to put in my sangria are sliced strawberries(the juice comes out easier when they are sliced), Grapes, peaches, oranges, kiwis and dragon fruit.. But you can experiment with different fruits that you like to get just the right blend.

Everyone's tastes are different, so experiment till you find what you like. Need some help coming up with ideas? Than take a look at 101 Sangrias and Pitcher Drinks lots of recipes in here to try out. summer wine Some people like their sangria tart, so they add lemons and limes. I tried this once and really didn't like it, I found it made it taste very little bitter as well as too sour.

I love lemon flavored anything, but not wine :-( To finish off making the jug, I add a shot or two of triple sec or just one shot a grand marnier.

Cover with plastic and leave in the fridge for several hours, or preferably overnight. When you're ready to serve it, add the ice and leave the fruit in. It looks very pretty and festive in the glass... This is your perfect summer wine!

In the winter, for the most part I usually stick with red wines. But when summer rolls around I mix it up with the whites as well. I do love white wine sangria...But a nice chilled white wine also is a great summer wine to chill out on the patio with.

I have found that white wine also attracts far less mosquitoes and fruit flies and red does, I don't know why that is...it just is. My favorite summer white is Sauvignon Blanc, a close second is a nice dry a chardonnay. Both fantastic wines to take along on a picnic. I really like the wines packaged in small cardboard boxes for this. I think they came out with this style of packaging about 4-5 years ago, maybe longer but that's when I noticed them in the liquor store.

No chance of the wine bottle breaking if you're taking your picnic on a long hike. Also great if you're going camping to take these handy cardboard containers along. At first I didn't like wine package like this, I love using a corkscrew and popping off the cork to get into my wine. But for the convenience factor for picnics and camping, they're perfect. It's the same theory as the bigger boxed wines, and they stay very fresh. A nice rose is also a perfect summer wine. I know wine shouldn't be too cold when served but...I think rose wine when it's 110° outside is the exception. (the folks from Provence, France where some of the best rose wine in the world is made also agree over ice)

Served over ice after a long sweaty day of work(there's no air conditioning at the golf course I work at) rose over ice is a great way to end my day.

But I do look forward to the very near future when I can spend those hot sunny summer days at home in the airconditioning or on holiday :-)

The last type of summer wine I enjoy is fruit wines, just slightly chilled. There is a winery here in Langley that has a variety of fruit wines, and you can easily find them in wine specialty stores. I love their strawberry wine, if you like tart wines they also do a great cranberry wine.

Check out your local wineries, I'll bet you find a few that specialize in fruit wines. I would love to try a batch of homemade strawberry fruit wine someday. So if you have a really good recipe for strawberry wine please send it to me. Well, as I sit and write this summer is here... So pour a glass of your favorite summer wine and enjoy! Before the last of the summer wine is gone.

Cheers

white wine

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