Another drinkable treat!
Once again, I found myself using up something in the refrigerator that my parents, this time Dad, had opened, but hadn’t finished. Specifically, a bottle of peach wine and a bottle of a dessert wine. Both bottles had about a glass of wine left in them. Lord only knows when that would’ve been poured, since much to Dad’s delight, eggnog season had come early. Even Mom had temporarily switched from her evening nip of Triple Sec* to eggnog.
*If you’re wondering, “Isn’t Triple Sec usually used to make such drinks as a margarita?” You’d be absolutely correct. For years, Mom loved sipping peach schnapps or peach brandy at night, occasionally adding a splash of OJ to make a Fuzzy Navel. Then, one day, she tasted Triple Sec and that became her nightcap.
I came across those two nearly empty bottles while hunting for something else. Since the shelf where they resided was prime territory, I brainstormed how to use them up. I certainly wasn’t going to drink them as they were since I prefer dry, full-bodied reds. So, I fell back on my old favorite white wine concoction: sangria.
I’d used a pint-sized mason jar to handshake other cocktails in the past, which seemed like the perfect serving size for the four of us. Since Mom and Dad are both in their 80s, they only took a “taste,” whereas my sister and I essentially had double portions.
I chopped up two limes, a peach and an orange, placing them in the jar. Then I poured in the two wines and topped it off with Cointreau. Everyone else had sat around the kitchen table, watching me put the sangria together. I announced that we’d drink it with tomorrow’s dinner.
So, of course, Dad sampled it before the appointed time because “it looked so pretty.”
We all got a healthy share of the fruit with our drink. Since Dad had already taken his taste, I only served him the alcohol-infused fruit. The peaches were the best and the limes were best to add to a glass of water.
Since Dad only had a glass of fruit, he let me know every time he had to deal with a lime, complaining that I’d put in too many and some slices were cut too thick. I think he was more bitter than a lime because he wasn’t served more sangria, but out of all of us, he’s the one who really should drink the least.
I realize that it’s a fool’s mission to “clear out” my parents’ refrigerator, one cocktail at a time, since they have all day to go out and buy even more stuff. I just like to consume things so they don’t go to waste. It’s a win-win when something delicious can be made in the process.