Sangria! A very summery drink. Some people follow a recipe, simmer spices and fruit on the stove, add sugar, or let it steep for days. For us, the day called for it, so Elizabeth made this in an afternoon with what we had in the kitchen, which was simply, fruit and wine.

I’ve had some sangrias that are too sweet, or with an overly “mulled-spice” taste. Luckily, this one was in no danger of that because Elizabeth tends to avoid sugar, and there were no spices (I’ve often seen cinnamon, for example) involved. Because this one didn’t steep for long, the flavor was very close to wine, which is another favorite in this house, and it was nice to have this ice-cold sipper on the porch while watching the day go by. In future, we might take the time to steep the fruit for longer, use additional fruit (peaches and apples would have added a nice flavor), or add just a hint of complementary spices.

Around this time, people were buzzing about a new comet, called Neowise; that evening, folks were supposed to be able to see it with the naked eye. We brought our sangria with us as we sat in chairs outside, then walked the neighborhood to try to see it…no luck. But the sangria was delicious!

Enjoyed on July 21