Holy moly, Batman....fan-freaking-tastic! One of the best experiences -- and products -- in my…read more(several) trips to Puerto Rico.
The Sangria Factory is where Los Hermosos Sangria is mixed and bottled. You probably haven't heard of it if you're not from/in Puerto Rico, as it is currently not available on the mainland. (That will be changing....the permitting process is in progress in California for US-wide distribution.)
It is in Caguas, south of San Juan and a little off the beaten path. The location itself is near the mall and department stores, but is located on one of the innumerable one-way streets. There is ample parking nearby (paid, but not expensive) at Gatsby department store less than 1 block away.
if you are not a local, you may be worried that you cannot find the location. Street addresses are not clearly marked...but if you see a door painted entirely with a Puerto Rican flag (light blue....not dark blue), that's the right place. Knock on the flag, and you will be welcomed into the tasting room.
The tasting room is intimate, but not cramped. The day my husband and i went, we were greeted by the owner/founder himself, who apparently works "hands on." There was a short video about the sangria company, and then you get 4 FULL glasses of their locally made sangria. (Not little one-ounce shots....these are wine glasses full to the brim with sangria and ice.) DO NOT ATTEMPT THE TASTING ON AN EMPTY STOMACH or you will have to have someone pour you out of the door.
The day we were there, there were four tastings: passion fruit, guava, tamarind, and cranberry. My husband hates passion fruit with a passion (pun intended), but loved the passion fruit sangria. They have additional flavors (grape and "fruitas," for example), and the owner was happy to give small tastes of those as well.
In addition to the sangrias, there was locally produced farmer's cheese with an assortment of crackers and bread. This helps offset the alcohol in the sangrias (which run from between 7.5% and 9%, roughly) a little and could almost be a light lunch. After the glasses -- I hesitate to call them "tastes" since they are so large -- of sangria, they were followed by a toast of flavored rum with the owner, who also pointed out some of the local museums.
On the mainland, the owner/creator would not usually be the one to greet people into his tasting room, much less serve the drinks, talk about the history, and answer questions. While he apologized repeatedly for his "poor English," he spoke clearly, and we had no trouble understanding him.
Brave the drive south from San Juan. Go to this place. Have some of the best sangrias in the Western Hemisphere. Buy lots of bottles....and then hope that you see it soon closer to home.
