Summer marks the beginning of beautiful warm weather accompanied by weekend family barbecues and patio parties. It is the time to be outdoors and relish the warm sunny weather while enjoying delicious food and refreshing cool iced beverages with the family!
There is one homemade beverage that these family barbecues and parties cannot go without. Iced tea is an essential tasty cool beverage for the entire family to enjoy
A brief history of iced tea
Iced tea has been around since the early 1870s. At the time, it started to gain attention in the U.S. when recipes for iced tea was being circulated and used across hotel menus and various railroad stations across the nation. However, it’s popularity sky-rocketed when Englishman Richard Blechynden cleverly introduced self-made iced tea at the World’s Fair in St. Louis (1904).
His theory? Simple! In the sweltering heat, he noticed that no one was lining up eager to drink the hot tea he was selling at the World’s Fair. And after noticing an ice delivery for a nearby food stand, the idea struck him to combine a glass filled of ice with hot brewed tea. His creation became a hit!
Our iced tea tasting experiment
In our Instagram post about iced tea, we encouraged you to experiment with our Light Oolong Rolled, Smallholder Black, or Thyolo Peony White tea.
Well, we have conducted an experiment ourselves to see which Tea Rebellion teas best suits our taste buds!
Prep-equipment
Kettle or pot, looseleaf tea, strainer, and 2 pitchers (1 heat-resistant pitcher for steeping and 1 regular 50oz pitcher).
Our recommendation for the perfect iced tea
Before we get into the recipe, it is important to understand your taste buds. If you prefer stronger iced teas, then we suggest you use 2 cups of cold water. If you prefer a more subtle iced tea taste, then we suggest you use 3 cups of cold water.
Remember, after you steep your cups of water and tea, place the strainer over the pitcher. We then suggest to slowly combine the hot tea into the cool water and ice. For a more cool and refreshing taste, we recommend to let the pitcher cool down for 30 minutes in the fridge before serving.
Without further ado, here’s our hit list of Tea Rebellion teas brewed as iced teas in order of popularity
Our personal favourite for a strong and tasteful classic iced tea. We recommend no additional sweetener as the taste is naturally sweet!
- 4 teaspoons of tea
- Steep for 5 minutes
This tea is grown at lower altitude than the Kanchanjangha Black Tea, so it has a stronger maltiness and full bodied tannins.
- 4 teaspoons of tea
- Steep for 5 minutes
- Note: while we recommend our ice teas to be enjoyed unsweetened we know many of us do have a sweet tooth! If that refers to you, do go ahead and add honey into the tea while it’s brewing for an extra sweet taste!
This iced tea looks and taste like a classic oolong. It is less strong in taste than the above two black teas. First we have given hot brew instructions but note our additional notes on how to cold brew this tea.
- 3 teaspoons of tea (*this tea has less bulkiness compared to other teas and this is about the same weight)
- Steep for 5 minutes
- Optional: Cold brew this tea by simply adding cold water and letting it sit at least 3 hours at room temperature or overnight in the fridge. Lowers caffeine levels and great for making a whole big pitcher of it!
If you’re looking for an alternative to black that is still full bodied, this is the tea for you!
- 4 teaspoons of tea (*we suggest 4 here to be comparative with the black teas)
- Steep for 5 minutes
If you prefer to have your iced tea with a delicate yet sweet taste, we recommend the Thyolo Peony.
- 7 teaspoons of tea (*we suggest 7 here as this is a very bulky tea so this will be about the same weight as the others)
- Steep for 5 minutes
- Note: while we recommend our ice teas to be enjoyed unsweetened we know many of us do have a sweet tooth! If that refers to you, add 2 teaspoons of honey while tea is still hot to slightly sweeten the tea.
We hope we have satisfied your taste buds for the perfect iced tea beverage – hot or coldly brewed. Let us know what you think and which one you liked the best by tagging us in your iced tea adventures! Cheers!