Collegiate Times

Two Elrods bartenders make Sangria.

The Virginia House of Delegates voted 89-10 on Friday to legalize the distribution of the popular Sangria, a Spanish drink mixed in restaurants.

As of Feb. 4, the bill has passed on to the Senate and it has been referred to the Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee.

Sangria, wine mixed with fruit, has always been legal and available. The issue comes about when Sangria is mixed with brandy or other spirits that raises the alcohol content of the drink. Alcohol-boosted Sangria was illegal because of a 1934 law formed post-prohibition to keep the percentage of alcohol low in drinks.

"Virginia has many old and outdated laws, and we are working to change that," said Delegate Adam P. Ebbin, who introduced the bill to legalize Sangria.

The codes that prohibit Sangria mixed with brandy or other spirits are VA Code 4.1-324 and 4.1-325. These codes aren't specifically "sangria codes;" they are just codes that pertain to the pre-mixing and/or storage of any beverage.

Ebbin said that this law is obscure and out of sync with contemporary times. Another bill similar to Ebbin's also has passed in the Senate.

There are over twenty restaurants and bars in the downtown Blacksburg area that serve alcohol. Only two restaurants in the Blacksburg area serve Sangria and neither serve it with mixed spirits.

Both El Rodeo and Cinco de Mayo serve Sangria infused with fruits. Other bars in Blacksburg, including Boudreaux's, Cabo Fish Taco, Gillies, Lefties, Poor Billy's, Sharkey's, The Cellar and Top of the Stairs, keep the drink off their menu altogether.

Charles Howard, manager of the Cajun restaurant Boudreaux's, says that it's not the law that keeps Sangria off their wine list, but rather the lack of demand for it.

"We don't have much of a call for Sangria," said Howard. "I've only ever had one person request it."

Rebecca Gettings, the director for public affairs for the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, said only two charges have been filed in the Commonwealth of Virginia regarding Sangria violations. One of the two has not been adjudicated, so it is still pending.

"Whenever appropriate, ABC officials try to work with the restaurant in question of a violation and may distribute a warning to keep the restaurant in compliance with ABC regulations," Gettings said.

Blacksburg restaurants that do serve Sangria make sure that their recipe is within the legal boundaries of Virginia ABC law.

"We buy it already mixed instead of making it in house," said Julio Arellano, manger of El Rodeo restaurant. "It probably doesn't taste as good as the real stuff, but we have to comply with the law."