Summer Sangria

Since summertime is fading away before my eyes, closing in on the end as I wish and pray it would just stay on a little longer. Keep me company for just a little bit longer. I jump at every chance I get to sit outside and enjoy her warmth. This month, it's been sparse with all the rain and flooding. ...yes flooding....in Wyoming of all places. The weather has been a bit precarious this year to say the least. Unexpected in every way.
Back to enjoying it though. With wine. Mmmmm wine. End of summer always has beautiful harvests of berries and this time of year you can actually buy them locally without taking out a loan for them at the farmers market. Mmmm berries. So that's what I did. I mixed the two.
There are a zillion different recipes for Sangria. Basically, what it all boils down to, is preferences. Sweet. Not sweet. Lighter. Darker. I tend to lean toward the un-sweetened kind. For this concoction I mixed a Pinot Noir with club soda. (a lot of recipes call for lime flavored soda pop). About half and half. I poured it over cut strawberries, blueberries and table grapes (which I used mainly because they looked so cute and their slogan made me laugh out loud in the grocery store) I cut an orange in half. One half I sliced, put into the wine and the other I squeezed into the mixture. I added about a teaspoon of honey and put it in the fridge to marinate. Mmmm marinated wine. 6 hours later, it was ready.

I sat in the back yard at my little glass table and enjoyed the sun. For just a minute before it rained.

This can also be made with non-alcoholic wine so the kiddos can share with you. I really didn't want to share.