How to make Tea-rrific Iced Tea
Welcome to June! Warm weather, the opening of swimming pools, the official first day of Summer, and National Iced Tea month!
Ice tea began appearing in the U.S. in the 1860’s and continued to grow in popularity through the late 1800’s. But it was the debut of iced tea at the 1904 World's Fair that caused its popularity to soar, and cemented it’s standing in our nations beverage market. Of the tea consumed in the U.S., 80% is iced (Tea Association of the USA’s 2022 fact sheet).
Here are a few different ways to make Iced Tea
- Basic Iced tea: brew tea according to package instructions or to your taste. Let it cool or pour over ice immediately.
- Flash Chilled Method: this quick prep ice tea method is what is usually used in coffee shops and cafe's to make iced tea. The tea is brewed at 2 to 3x the suggested strength to ensure the flavor remains vibrant when diluted. The hot tea is then stirred or shaken (in cups or a cocktail shaker) in ice. Then poured over ice and served.
- Cold Brew: just as it's name implies the tea leaves are steeped in cold water rather than hot water. To do this, the leaf and water combination is put in the refrigerator to steep for the desired amount of time. The leaves are strained out, resulting in a smooth and flavorful iced beverage.
Each brewing method produces slightly different results from the same tea leaves. There's no right or wrong, and some teas may be better suited for one method over another. Personal preference and time are also factors in selecting which method to use.
Generally I prefer cold brewing iced tea. My daughter, Georgiana, loves Shipwreck Alley Strawberry – cold brewed, not flash chilled, hot-to-cold, or even hot. It’s also one of my favorite cold brews, along with Rosie and Lake Life. Occassionally I'll flash chill teas if I've not had the forsight to prepare a cold brew the night before. Alternatively there are teas I prefer to use the flash chill method on, such as Michigan Masala Chai, Mackinac Island Paradise, and Brighton Berry.
My favorite way to prepare iced tea is cold brewing. In my opinion, cold brewing is the ideal way to prepare iced tea. If you like iced tea, I encourage you to try Cold-Brew Tea. Check out the Cold Brew STEAPing Guide.
Happy STEAPing,
Samantha
