The sun’s been out for just a few days now which can only mean one thing - summer is FINALLY here! Now, if you’re not particularly sold on the old wives' tale that hot tea cools you down in summer, then fear not, we’ve got some cracking ideas to share with you which show that it’s possible to make a HUGE variety of amazing summer drinks with a good ol teapigs tea temple!
Hands down, our favorite summer time drink is iced tea - did you know that iced tea can be SO much better than the sickly sweet non–tea flavored drinks we’re all so familiar with? Well, it can – and we’re going to share our favorite recipe to create the perfect, full of flavor, real iced tea every single time.
Ingredients:
for one glass:
- 1 teapigs tea temple
- 1 cup water
- Fruit to garnish
- Agave syrup, honey or sugar (optional)
If you fancy being kind and sharing, this recipe works perfectly on a larger scale – just use 1 tea temple per person and increase the amount of water/ice accordingly!
how to make:
- Take 1 tea temple per glass or 4 tea temples for a 1 quart jug
- Add freshly boiled water so that it just covers the tea temples (about an inch high)
- Brew for 5 minutes
- Top with cold water and ice
- Add some fresh fruit for extra flavor and prettiness. Lemons and limes go well with traditional teas and red berries and passion fruit taste amazing with our fruit and herbal teas.
(We like to keep the temples in, as they will continue to infuse - but feel free to take them out if you'd prefer!)
Our favorites
All our teas work brilliantly iced, whether you fancy black, green, blue or herbal – each and every one creates a powerful flavor after just a few minutes brewing time!
However, we do have a few favorites which reside particularly close to our hearts:
the classic one – teapigs darjeeling earl grey tea temples, a squeeze of fresh lemon and some lemon slices for decoration
the elegant one – teapigs mao feng green tea temples, a handful of cucumber and lime slices, and 3-4 mint leaves
the “wow, that’s a lot of flavor” one – teapigs liquorice and mint tea temples. Straight up. The peppermint leaves in these tea temples are the mintiest around and the liquorice gives you lots of natural sweetness.
the fruity one - teapigs super fruit tea temples, two handfuls of fresh berries, the fruit of 2 passion fruits. You’ll never need to buy cordial again!
the lemony one – teapigs lemon and ginger tea temples, some lemon zest (fancy!) and if you’re big on ginger, you can grate a little and add that too.
the 'taste of christmas all year round' one - teapigs apple and cinnamon tea temples, absolutely divine straight up, with a touch of honey!
the summer daze one - teapigs rhubarb and ginger tea temples straight up, complete with a dash of honey,and some extra berries - perfect for a summer evening!
*psssst - add a splash of gin or vodka to any of the above, to make it a tad more sophisticated!*
Matcha
If you're a lifelong matcha fan, then you'll be pleased to hear that matcha also works wonders iced!
With just a few switches to the above method, you'll be drinking matcha iced tea in no time:
- Take 1 tsp matcha
- Add a little of the water and whisk to make a paste
- Add agave, mint leaves and squeeze of lime
- Stir
- Top with rest of water and ice
All throughout summer we'll be cooling down with our iced tea and we'd LOVE to see you all embrace #summertimetea as much as we have! Have a rummage in your tea cupboard, or head on over to our dedicated iced tea shop to pick up some perfect summer blends!
Be sure to show off your iced tea creations via twitter, facebook and instagram - we can't wait to see you guys trying out our favorite recipes at home!
Our humble tea temples can be fashioned into lots of amazing summer drinks, so keep an eye on our blog over the new few weeks as we'll be releasing recipes for all our summer favourites! (teashakes are a MUST SEE!)
