sangaree is a cold mixed drink consisting of a base ingredient, usually a wine, sweetened, diluted with ice or ice water, and topped with spice or a float of port wine. See float. It originated as a spiced Madeira punch, referred to as Sang-Gris by the French clergyman and adventurer Jean-Baptiste Labat (1663–1738). According to Labat, it was an English drink, and the translation, “gray blood,” was a term in the British horse trade for a variety of gray mare. In 1694, Labat encountered Sang-Gris in Martinique, later describing it as “made from Madeira wine which is placed in a crystal or faience bowl with sugar, lemon juice, a little powdered cinnamon and clove, a lot of nutmeg, and a crust of toasted bread” and then passed through a fine cloth to filter. This wine-based punch’s relation to the Spanish Sangria, to which it bears a close resemblance, remains to be established. See punch.
In 1736, new restrictions on the gin trade were imposed in Britain, and at least one hawker of gin punches turned to “a new Punch made of strong Madeira Wine, and called Sangre.” This Madeira punch was known as Sangaree by the 1780s and was popular throughout western Europe and the Americas. The definition of Sangaree eventually broadened, and by the late 1820s included mixtures calling for port wine, claret, porter, and stronger spirits. Jerry Thomas included six different Sangarees in his 1862 Bar-Tender’s guide: two with wine, two with spirits, and two with beer—and none with Madeira. See Thomas, Jeremiah P. “Jerry”. Mentioned in works by Dickens, Hawthorne, Thackeray, and Kipling, the Sangaree is a mild, refreshing drink, once considered suitable for invalids and the mildly temperate.
Recipe (Port Wine Sangaree): In a cocktail shaker, stir 10 ml of sugar into 90 ml of tawny port, fill with ice, shake well, and strain into tall glass over fresh ice. Grate nutmeg over the top.
Labat, J. Baptiste. Nouveau voyage aux isles de l’Amerique. Paris: 1722.
Nichols, J. “Historical Chronicle, 1736, September.” Gentleman’s Magazine 6 (1736): 550–551.
By: Doug Stailey