JOYA Sangria Red is a blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha and Bobal sourced from vineyards around the town of La Puebla De Almoradiel in the province of Toledo, inside the Castilla-LaMancha region of Spain. You are probably familiar with Tempranillo and Garnacha, Bobal is a grape native to Spain that traditionally has been used for producing very affordable, everyday Red wines. If you go to Google Translate and type in “Sangria” you will find that it translates to “bloodletting“, hopefully because of the color of the wine. JOYA Sangria is 100% wine with “the essence of fresh Mediterranean fruits.” The alcohol content is 12%, which is the rating for an average bottle of wine, most per-mixed Sangria are under 10%. Since ice (along with sliced citrus and fruit) is usually added to the wine and both can dilute the Sangria, the JOYA will still provide an adult beverage.
The color is reasonably “bloodletting” red, maybe more black cherry than blood-red. The nose is ripe red berries and a potpourri of citrus spice, a balanced almost subtle scent. The JOYA Sangria Red is medium to light bodied and fairly dry. I am sampling it chilled, but straight out of the bottle, no ice and no added fruit or citrus and it holds up as a tasty glass of Sangria. The base wine is smooth with just a touch of tannins and the acidity shows balance. The “essence of fresh Mediterranean fruits” really adds character and interest to the flavor profile.
The JOYA Sangria Red provides an authentic taste of Spanish Sangria. It works well straight from the bottle, but sliced Blood Oranges (in keeping with the bloodletting) and diced apples, along with a generous amount of ice will boost the enjoyment level. JOYA will also work as a base for wine cocktails, the JOYA website has a few recipes and suggestions. Sangria is made for fun, for parties, it is made for drinking, not thinking, let the wine and the good times flow. And to that end JOYA is not only available in 750 ml bottles, but in 3 and 10 litre boxes (3 Lt = 4 Bottles, 10 Lt = 13 to 14 bottles, now that’s a party).
