Sangaree is a vintage cocktail that consists of fortified wines sweetened with sugar and served with grated nutmeg.
Sangaree – Photo © Cocktails & Bars
Not to be confused with sangria which is a more modern invention, sangarees are said to date back to the 1700’s and originally consisted of fortified Spanish wines such as Jerez and Madeira. The early cocktail derives its name from the word sangre, which means blood in Spanish.
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Jerry Thomas The Bartender’s Guide 1862 reprint lists six variations of the cocktail including gin, ale and porter:
Port Wine Sangaree: 1 1/3 wine-glass of port wine, 1 teaspoonful of sugar
Sherry Sangaree: 1 wine-glass of sherry, 1 teaspoonful of fine sugar
Brandy Sangaree: 1 teaspoonful of sugar, 1/2 wine-glass of water, 1 do.* brandy, 1 small lump of ice
Gin Sangaree: 1 teaspoonful of sugar, 1/2 wine-glass of water, 1 do.* gin, 1 small lump of ice
Ale Sangaree: 1 teaspoonful of sugar, dissolved in a teaspoonful of water. Fill the tumbler with ale, and grate nutmeg on top
Porter Sangaree: This beverage is made the same as an ale sangaree, and is sometimes called porteree.
Harry Craddock’s The Savoy Cocktail Book which dates back to the 1930’s features three Sangarees, either shaken or stirred with ice and finished with grated nutmeg on top.
Savoy Sangaree: 1 Teaspoonful Powdered Sugar, 1 Glass of Sherry or Port
Sherry Sangaree: 1 Wineglass of Sherry, 1 Teaspoonful Fine Sugar
Port Wine Sangaree: 1 1/3 Wineglasses of Port Wine, 1 Teaspoonful Sugar
In The Ultimate Bar Book by Mittie Hellmich, the Brandy Sangaree gets an addition of chilled club soda:
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 ounces brandy
2 to 3 ounces chilled club soda
1/2 ounce ruby port
Fresh grated or ground nutmeg
The Dead Rabbit Drinks Manual‘s Porter Sangaree expands on Jerry Thomas’ Porter with the addition of lemon sherbet, tincture and bitters:
3 dashes of Mace Tincture
3/4 ounce Lemon Sherbet
3 dashes Dead Rabbit Orinoco Bitters or Angostura Bitters
6 ounces Founders Porter
Fresh nutmeg, grated for garnish
Lemon peel, for garnish
The brandy sangaree recipe below combines brandy and tawny port with a small amount of rich syrup to round up the flavours. It’s easy to drink, be it as an aperitif, after dinner drink or on a cold winter’s night.
Sangaree: Brandy Sangaree Recipe
Ingredients
- 60ml brandy or cognac
- 30ml tawny port
- 10ml rich syrup
Glassware: wine glass
Garnish: freshly grated nutmeg
Method
Add brandy, port and rich syrup to a mixing glass with ice and stir until chilled. Strain into a chilled glass and garnish with grated nutmeg on top.
* “do.” is an abbreviation for ditto used by Jerry Thomas and refers to the preceding measurement.
