It is officially iced tea season down here in the South. Afternoon temperatures are reaching the high 80's on a daily basis and it will only get hotter in the next few weeks. I don't love the heat and have to keep myself from wishing the Summer away and pining for the coolness of Fall already. My son will be two this Fall and I don't want to wish away this sweet baby time with him. Plus, there are so many fun Summer things that I am excited about...fresh veggies and berries from the garden, Fourth of July, roadtrips...and iced tea.
Lately, I've been cold brewing with this Cold Brew Tea Set from Zens Lifestyle. The glass and bamboo set allows tea to be brewed over a period of several hours as ice slowly melts, the cool water steeping the tea as it drips through the filter.
When I used the set for the first time, I was worried that the brew method wouldn't fully extract the tea since the water doesn't rest on the leaves for very long before dripping through but this wasn't the case. The final brews of the teas that I used came out just as flavorful without any astringency and with a lighter mouthfeel. This method works best with green and white teas. My favorite tea to use was a Japanese green tea which came through with all the expected floral and vegetal notes with a sweetness not present when hot brewed.
After experimenting with it a few times, I found the ideal brew parameters to be 12 oz of ice over 2 tsp of tea. Total brew time averaged around six hours, making it necessary to plan ahead if I wanted the tea to be ready during the toasty afternoon, but this was easily done. The final cup is just enough to share with a friend or plenty to enjoy on your own.
I've really enjoyed using this set with teas that I'm already familiar with to see what different flavor profiles are pulled out by the ice. I'm excited to add this cold brew method to the iced tea rotation that will be going on all Summer long!
- Steph