With summer finally here (yes, even in Scotland) and the excitement of Wimbledon upon us we thought it was about time to explore the simple pleasures of iced tea.
Although it’s one of the most refreshing drinks around, iced tea is still very much frowned upon in the UK, which is strange given its prominence around the rest of the world (particularly in the US). Have a go yourself with our simple guide and let us know how you get on.
There are two main ways to make iced tea:
HOT BREW METHOD
This is the quickest way to make iced tea.
- Brew some tea. Use roughly 2 teaspoons of tea leaves per cup of boiling or hot water depending on tea type. That’s 8oz or 227ml give or take of hot water, so about double the amount of leaves as for normal hot tea. Remember never use boiling water for green or white teas – instead leave the kettle off the boil for about 2 mins. Brew the tea for the recommended time before removing the leaves (generally 3-4 mins for most black teas).
- Pour over ice. Pour the concentrated hot tea over ice cubes in a temperature resistant jug. If your iced tea goes cloudy, add a touch of boiling water. Add more ice if necessary but be aware that this will dilute the tea. A clever option is to pre-prepare some ‘tea ice’. Just make a little extra iced tea, fill your ice cube tray with it and put it in the freezer. Why not be a little adventurous and try your tea ice with some different drinks or cocktails?
- Do you want it plain? If you want a straightforward plain iced tea, use the best quality leaf tea you can find. It’s generally best to go for teas that have bright top notes rather than more malty teas like Assam. Teas with natural floral or fruity notes chill particularly well.
- Do you prefer it sweetened? Sugar and honey make good sweeteners. If using honey, it’s a good idea to add it to the hot tea first and stir until dissolved. If using sugar, it’s best to boil one cup of water with one cup of sugar and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. You can then add the sugar syrup to the iced tea to taste.
- Try adding other things. Another option is to add fresh or frozen fruit or fruit juice to your iced tea. Or experiment by adding various spices while the tea is still hot (we particularly like cinnamon, nutmeg or ginger). Fresh herbs like mint, basil or lemongrass also work well when added to your iced tea.
COLD BREW METHOD
This method is only recommended for green and white teas. For best results, use a good quality leaf tea and filtered water, which helps extract the tea better when brewing cold.
Use roughly two teaspoons of tea leaves per cup (roughly 8oz or 227ml) of cold water (again roughly double the amount of leaves as you would for normal hot tea). Add cold water to the leaves and refrigerate overnight (or longer for a stronger taste). Sweeten or garnish as desired.
Here is a list of our most popular teas to make iced
Unflavoured Tea: Ceylon Lover’s Leap, Second Flush Darjeeling, Ceylon Vert & White Peony.
Flavoured Tea: Life’s a Peach, Jasmine Chun Hao, Blooming Marvellous, White Peach.
Herb & Fruit Infusions. Although they don’t contain any tea so not strictly iced teas, these herb & fruit infusions work really well iced: Strawberries & Cream, Zen Zephyr and Cranberry Apple Riot.
Please let us know how you get on with your iced tea or if you have any interesting recipes or ideas (hello@eteaket.co.uk).
Happy experimenting.
© eteaket ltd June 2010
