¡Salud to Sangria!

All right all of you sangria lovers... who has the best sangria in Boston?  Red, white, pink..,which is your favorite sangria?  Here are my top choices for good-but-not-as-good as Spain's sangria:  

• Solea   
• Toro
• Casa Romero
• Taberna Horo
• Cuchi Cuchi
• Emmas Pizza: random right? Their Sangria is simple, yet good like their pizza.
• Noche

I've been drinking sangria since birth, okay maybe since I studied abroad in college(but it seems that long ago).   I've sampled sangria at various places in Madrid - restaurants, tapas bars, bull fights(ole!), el parque retiro, un futbol game… I’m starting to write in spanglish. It's so difficult to forget about the good ole times in Spain.  Aside from Madrid, I've sipped sangria in Barcelona, Sevilla, Marbella, Ibiza, Granada, San Sebastian, Asturias, Leon... I'm not sure if I traveled around Spain for the sights or the sangria.?  If only I was chosen instead of Gwyneth Paltrow to appear in the series of On the Road Again Spain.

Sangria at Parador de Leon

After traveling over the mountains and plateaus of Spain, I've concluded that the best sangria was made in a lovely top floor apartemento on Calle Velasquez in Madrid.  This is where my host family lived, and my host mom Mary Carmen was responsible for my everlasting love of sangria.  I don't recall the exact ingredients, but I do remember that there was quite a bit of brandy was involved.  That was the evening I converted my sweet 'rebel southern bell' roommate into a 'discoteca lovin yankee' :-)  We'll save that story for another time.  Back to the topic - How could the Boston varieties ever compare to Mary Carmen’s home made sangria?  The bottom line? They can’t compare.