Watermelon Sangria – Homemade melon water is mixed with Pinot Grigio, chunks of fresh watermelon, mint, and a little triple sec to make for a refreshing end-of-summer drink
I cannot believe stores are already pushing out summer supplies and stocking their shelves with pumpkin decor and pumpkin spice-flavored-everything. Is summer already coming to an end?! As far as produce goes, it’s still summer for me – strawberries are still juicy, peaches are still flavorful, and watermelon is still in plentiful supply.
Before you let go of summer, make sure you try this Watermelon Sangria. It serves up watermelon in a way you probably haven’t had it before. And by adding in just a splash of sparkling water and few mint leaves, it will be the most refreshing way to send of summer.
Here is my Watermelon Sangria!
Making this sangria
Sangria is one of the easiest drinks you can make. All the ingredients go in a pitcher and are stirred together. Boom – that’s it! But this recipe adds in one additional step that gives the sangria all its watermelon flavor.
Making the melon water
Melon water is just juiced watermelon strained to remove all of the pulp and make it beautifully smooth. To do this, the watermelon is blended until smooth – I had to use the juice button on my blender to get it perfectly smooth. After doing that, the juice is passed through a mesh strainer with a cheese cloth to get all the pulp out.
Watermelon can be a little bland so white wine vinegar and a pinch of salt are added to pump up the flavor a little.
Tips and Tricks
- Strain the melon water. This step is not to be missed. If you leave in the pulp, the drink will be gritty.
- Chill the wine. To keep from adding ice to the pitcher, you want the ingredients of the sangria to be as cold as possible. So chill the wine before making the sangria.
- Bruise the mint leaves. To get the right about of mint flavor from the leaves, you need to bruise them up a little. I do this by muddling them into the sugar. The sugar acts as an abrasive surface to help bruise the leaves.
- Add sparkling water last. Sparkling water will loose its fizz over time so make sure to add the sparkling water just before serving.
Watermelon Sangria
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 10 mint leaves
- 1/4 cup triple sec
- 1 750 mL bottle Pinot Grigio
- 2 cups melon water
- 2 cups watermelon cubes
- 12 ounces lime sparkling water
- ice (for serving)
For the melon water:
- ¼ medium watermelon rind removed; chopped
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Add sugar and mint to a pitcher. Muddle them together to bruise the mint a little. Add in triple sec. Stir to dissolved the sugar. Add bottle of Pinot Grigio, melon water, and melon cubes to mixture. Stir together. Finish by adding lime sparkling water.
- To serve, fill glass halfway with ice. Fill to the top with sangria. Serve immediately.
For the melon water:
- Blend watermelon, vinegar, and salt in a blender until smooth. Pour juice over a strainger with a cheese cloth to remove the pulp. This will take about an hour for all the juice to pass through. Discard the pulp.
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This summer I’ve become addicted to watermelon based drinks and I am so glad I came across your recipe. I made it yesterday and it was amazing!
Yum! This watermelon sangria is so refreshing and delicious on a hot day. I especially love the fresh mint!
This is such a perfect summer sangria! The melon added such a refreshing flavor. Will definitely put this on our summer menu again before fall comes. So good.
In summer here in Italy, we always have watermelon at home and cold pinot grigio in the fridge! So, it was easy to make this sangria as soon as I saw the recipe. I was a little sceptical about the vinegar but I have to say it’s not noticeable and the sangria is so fresh and delicious!
Delish! It was my first watermelon sangria and not my last!
This watermelon sangria was delicious and refreshing! Perfect for a summer drink! I will definitely make it again! Thanks for the share!
I had a lot of watermelon left over and this was the perfect use for it! So summery and fresh. Thanks!
I have been seriously missing out, never made watermelon sangria before. It looks and sounds super refreshing and very flavorful. Love the way you served it too, so pretty!
I know what you mean, I’m still looking for cool summer foods and they’ve got fall and Halloween on the shelves. Ridiculous! But this watermelon sangria is definitely on my menu! I always associate watermelon with summer and this sangria was the perfect way to enjoy a refreshing happy hour. Thanks for keeping summer present for a while longer.
Watermelon is such an under-utilized drink flavor, so I’m really excited about this recipe. It’s going to lighten up that sangria taste a bit, and create the perfect beverage for hot days!! thanks 🙂
Perfect delicious and refreshing summer drink we just love it and so easy to make!
Oh wow, this looks so delicious. My family is going to devour it!
This looks amazing and refreshing for these hot summer days
I need this sangria so much right now! It is so hot I can’t even think, so a glass or two of it would definitely help!
Oh mu yes! What a brilliant idea. I’m in!
Nice and summery sangria! I will be making this often!
My guests went crazy for this watermelon sangria. So delicious and easy!
This is summer in a drink! How amazing are these flavors? It’s so perfect for summer. I’ll be making this again for sure!
Ohhh! This is sooo perfect for summer! I love cocktails and this watermelon flavor really does brings that up a notch!
Such a perfect summer drink! I need to make it asap
This looks like such a refreshing drink to sip on during the summer!