This post contains affiliate links. See our disclosure policy here.
Cocktail History
The Black Magic Sangria is a Halloween cocktail that was created by Chrisy Toombs, recipe developer and blogger at Homemade Hooplah. Designed to be a batch cocktail for Halloween parties, the recipe mixes several dark-colored fruits with red wine, raspberry liqueur, and brandy to make a palatable boozy drink that would please any crowd.
Cocktail Ingredients
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:
Red Wine: This is a type of wine made with red grapes. We used La Riojana Co-op Malbec because it has a semi-dry flavor. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Karuna Karviva Unwined Non-Alcoholic Malbec-Inspired Wine in place of the red wine.
Cranberry Grape Juice: This is the liquid juice of cranberries and green grapes. We used Ocean Spray Cran-Grape Juice.
Raspberry Liqueur: This is a liqueur made with raspberries, sugar, and alcohol. We used Chambord Liqueur because it has rich notes of blackberries, blackcurrants, Cognac, vanilla, citrus peel, honey, and spices. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Monin Premium Wild Raspberry Syrup in place of the raspberry liqueur.
Brandy: This is a spirit made with distilled white wine. The recipe calls for Cognac, but we used Driftless Glen Distillery 5 Year Reserve Brandy because it has a rich taste with notes of cherry, vanilla, and caramel. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Escape Mocktails Non-Alcoholic Cognac Alternative in place of the brandy.
Blackberries: This a glossy black berry formed by multiple small fruits that each contain a seed.
Red Grapes: This is a small, sour red-ish purple fruit.
Black Plum: This is a round fruit with a thin, smooth blue-black skin and juicy flesh.
Bartending Tools
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:
Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. We used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.
Bar Spoon: This is used to stir ingredients. We used the Barfly Stainless Steel Teardrop Bar Spoon.
Paring Knife: This is used to cut ingredients. We used the OXO Good Grips 3.5 Inch Paring Knife.
Tasting Notes
The Black Magic Sangria has deep, dry aromas of red wine accented with fruit and starts with a sweet, berry-like flavor mixed with dry Malbec, and finishes with more fruit chased with a hint of burn and tannin.
Our Opinion of This Cocktail Recipe: We both thought the Black Magic Sangria offered a pretty great flavor combination and think it would be the perfect wine-based punch for a Halloween party.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Alex’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐
“It doesn’t get much better than this for a sangria! Although it contains more actual juice than I might typically prefer, this version comes out with plenty of fruity sweetness to mellow out the otherwise strong, dry wine. Plus, it has that perfect dark purple, almost black color that it’s named for. It’s definitely an easy drink to serve to partygoers this Halloween. You just might want to dial back on the juice for the more wine-savvy people.”—
Kendall’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
“Of the two Halloween-themed sangria recipes we tried this fall, I liked this one best. The other was more fall-inspired, and it paired red wine with apple cider, which I didn’t think blended very well. This one is just red wine with loads of dark-hued fruits, so it’s hard not to enjoy it. It’s really just sweeter, fruitier wine, and that’s the magic of it, no pun intended.”
Recipe
This cocktail recipe was adapted from Homemade Hooplah, a food and beverage recipe blog.
Pit and cut plums into slices.
Add red wine, cranberry grape juice, raspberry liqueur, brandy, blackberries, grapes, and plums to a pitcher.
Stir for 30-45 seconds.
Refrigerate for 2 hours.
Ingredients
Directions
Pit and cut plums into slices.
Add red wine, cranberry grape juice, raspberry liqueur, brandy, blackberries, grapes, and plums to a pitcher.
Stir for 30-45 seconds.
Refrigerate for 2 hours.
Make It a Mocktail: Use Karuna Karviva Unwined Non-Alcoholic Malbec-Inspired Wine in place of the red wine, Monin Premium Wild Raspberry Syrup in place of the raspberry liqueur, and Escape Mocktails Non-Alcoholic Cognac Alternative in place of the brandy to try a booze-free version of this drink.
Shop Glassware & Tools
Find collections of cocktail glassware and bartending tools we recommend for your home bar in our Amazon shop.
More Halloween Cocktails
If you like this Halloween-inspired cocktail recipe, here are a few others we’ve tried that you may enjoy:
Witch’s Brew Lemonade: A gin cocktail made with lemonade, blue curaçao, lemon juice, and a rosemary sprig
Poison Apple: A rye whiskey cocktail made with cinnamon syrup, cranberry juice, apple cider, lemon juice, and apple slices
Vampire’s Kiss: A lemon vodka cocktail made with raspberry liqueur, cranberry liqueur, lemon juice, grenadine, cherry, clove, and cinnamon bitters, and red food coloring
Empress Corpse Reviver No. 2: A gin cocktail made with triple sec, Lillet Blanc, lemon juice, absinthe, and an orange twist
This post contains affiliate links, meaning we make a small commission each time you purchase a product using our links. Product images sourced from Amazon Product Advertising API. Amazon affiliate links last updated on 2024-04-28.
