Saffron Sangria
Photo: Ajna Jai & Carolina Ayala / Contributors
Traditionally, sangria may be made with red wine but a summer as brutal as this one calls for lighter libations, especially when served up with summer fruit over ice. While most spices are warming to the body, saffron, the beautiful crimson stigma of Crocus Sativus, is one of the unique ones that cools the body. These days, even in Spain, where sangrias originated, wildly different iterations of sangria exist along with sangria blanca, white wine sangria.
This is one we experimented with at the restaurant a couple of years ago and has become my favorite drink this summer. It’s light and deeply flavorful and the saffron cools the back of your throat as it goes down. If you prefer not to have alcohol, add lemon juice, and turn it into a lemonade! Feel free to add local berries or freshly pitted cherries to the sangria.