If you love tea, you might have wondered if you can cold brew your tea leaves and get a delicious and refreshing drink. The answer is yes, you can! Cold brew tea is a simple and easy way to enjoy your favorite teas without any hassle or heat. In this blog post, we will show you how to cold brew tea, what teas are best for cold brewing and some tips and tricks to make your cold brew tea even more amazing.
What is a Cold Brew Tea?
Cold brewing tea means steeping your tea leaves in cold water for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator. This method extracts the flavour and aroma of the tea leaves slowly and gently, resulting in a smooth and sweet brew that has less bitterness and caffeine than hot brewed tea. Cold brew tea is also more convenient and eco-friendly than hot brewing tea, as it does not require any boiling water, electricity or ice.
What Teas are Best for Cold Brews?
You can cold brew almost any type of tea, but some teas are more suitable for this method than others. Generally, high-quality loose leaf teas are the best choice for cold brewing, as they have more intact leaves that preserve their flavor and aroma longer. Tea bags with crushed or dust-like leaves are usually not recommended for a cold brew tea, as they release most of their flavour in the first steep and may become stale or mouldy.
Certain types of tea that are especially great for a cold brew are:
- White teas: These are the least processed teas, with delicate and floral flavors. They can be cold brewed for about 4 hours or longer, depending on your preference.
- Green teas: These are lightly oxidized teas, with fresh and grassy flavors. They can be cold brewed for about 3 hours or longer, depending on your preference.
- Oolong teas: These are partially oxidized teas, with complex and diverse flavors. They can be cold brewed for about 5 hours or longer, depending on your preference.
- Herbal teas: These are not true teas, but infusions of various plants, fruits and spices. They can be cold brewed for about 8 hours or longer, depending on your preference.
Flavoured teas or blends may also work well for cold brewing, as long as they have natural ingredients that do not lose their flavor or aroma over time. Some flavoured tea that can be used for a cold brew are peach green tea, blueberry white tea, orange blossom oolong tea and mint herbal tea.
How to Cold Brew Tea?
Cold brewing tea is super easy and fun. You just need to follow some simple steps:
- Choose your tea leaves and measure the amount you want to use. Generally, you should use about one teaspoon of loose leaf tea per cup of water (8 oz), but you can adjust this ratio to make your cold brew stronger or weaker according to your taste.
- Put your tea leaves in a glass pitcher or a mason jar with a lid. You can also use a reusable tea infuser or a fillable tea bag if you want to avoid straining the tea later.
- Fill up the pitcher/cold brew bottle/jar with clean cold water. You can use spring water or bottled water for the best flavour.
- Cover the container with some sort of lid and place it in the fridge. Let it steep for several hours or overnight, depending on your tea type and preference.
- Strain the tea leaves from the water and enjoy your cold brew tea. You can drink it plain or add some sweetener, lemon juice or milk if you like.
Tips and Tricks:
Here are some additional tips and tricks that can help you make your cold brew tea even better:
- Experiment with different combinations: You can mix different types of teas or add some fresh fruits, herbs or spices to your cold brew to create your own unique blends and flavors.
- Make it fizzy: You can add some sparkling water or soda to your cold brew to make it fizzy and refreshing. Try adding some lemonade or ginger ale to whilst cold brewing a green tea for a zesty twist. Check out our post: How to Make a Strawberry Lemonade Cold Brew with Lemonade
- Make it creamy: You can add some coconut milk, almond milk or oat milk to make it creamy and smooth. Try adding some vanilla extract or cinnamon to your cold brew black tea for a cozy treat.
- Use a cold brew bottle: Make cold brewing tea easy and convenient with a purpose-built bottle. Cold brew bottle’s are the perfect size, ideal for carrying around with you, and they have built-in infusers to stop any leaves escaping. You could go for a luxury style bottle such as the Sayuri Cold Brew Tea Bottle, or a cheaper, all-round option like the Hario Filter-In Cold Brew Bottle.
Benefits of Cold Brewing
Cold brewing tea has many benefits for you and the environment. Here are some of them:
- You save time and energy: By cold brewing tea, you don’t need to boil water, use electricity or wait for your tea to cool down. You can just prepare your tea in advance and enjoy it whenever you want.
- You reduce waste: By cold brewing tea, you use less tea leaves and water than hot brewing tea. You also don’t need to use ice cubes or plastic bottles to chill your tea. You can just reuse your glass pitcher or jar and compost your tea leaves.
- You enjoy better flavour: you extract the natural sweetness and aroma of the tea leaves without any bitterness or astringency. You also preserve the antioxidants and other beneficial compounds in the tea that may be destroyed by heat.
- You enjoy less caffeine: By cold brewing tea, you reduce the amount of caffeine in your tea by about 50%. This means that you can drink more tea without getting jittery or affecting your sleep quality.
Conclusion
Cold brewing tea is a wonderful way to enjoy your favorite teas in a refreshing and delicious way. You can cold brew almost any type of tea, but some teas are better suited for this method than others. You just need to follow some simple steps and tips to cold brew your tea properly and get the best results. Cold brewing tea has many benefits for you and the environment, such as saving time and energy, reducing waste, enjoying better flavor and less caffeine. So, next time you crave a glass of iced tea, don’t reach for the kettle or the store-bought bottle. Cold brew your own tea and see how amazing it tastes!
Check out some of our other interesting articles:
- How to Make Your Own Flavoured Syrups for Tea and Coffee
- The Best Sweeteners for Tea: How to Find Your Sweet Spot
- The Art of Re-Steeping: How to Enjoy Multiple Cups of Flavour
- How to Turn Your Tea Into a Latte: A Simple and Tasty Guide
- Loose Leaf Tea: How to Improve The Quality And Flavour in 4 Steps
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Photos by Charlotte May: https://www.pexels.com/photo/crop-unrecognizable-woman-holding-glass-french-press-teapot-with-tea-5946806/
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