With the heat of summer well on its way, we look to our favorite things to keep us cool. One of the best ways to beat the heat is by sipping on cold brew tea. Cold brewing has several advantages over the traditional hot water steeping. For one, it’s incredibly easy to do. The low temperature also prevents tannins from developing and giving unwanted bitterness in the tea. Another benefit is that cold brewing preserves a higher amount of vitamin C while extracting less caffeine — making for a refreshing beverage to give a steady boost of energy without a caffeine crash. We advise steeping black tea leaves overnight or for 4 hours if using a green tea. Here we used Keemun black tea, commonly used to make other favorites like English and Irish Breakfast Teas. This tea is malty and rich, tasty on its own, and strong enough to stand up to additions like lemonade or fruit.

Cold Brewed Iced Tea

Ingredients

• ¼ cup Keemun black tea
• 2 quarts filtered water
• Sweetener to taste

Instructions

1. Add the tea and water in a pitcher or glass container.
2. For best results, start off with cold or room temperature water.
3. Cover pitcher and refrigerate for a minimum of 12 hours.
4. Strain out the tea leaves.
5. Enjoy on its own over ice, sweetened, or with splash of carbonated water for effervescence.

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We have fallen in love with these tea tube infusers, seen above. Slits at the bottom allow for the perfect amount water flow while the shape and size let the tea expand and steep to perfection. Pop one in a mason jar of water in the fridge overnight with your favorite black tea, and you’ve got convenient cold brew ready to go the next day!