It's that time of year where the mornings are bright, the evenings are warm and our weekends are packed with adventure! This may or may not be your favourite time of year but either way we will keep you cool, hydrated, nourished and supported all Summer long! Here’s all the details you need to know about the benefits of iced tea, how to make it, best ways to sip it all while breaking a few old myths while we are at it! Plus an easy to follow video!
If you consider yourself a “seasonal” tea drinker we are going to shake things up for you this summer, literally - with a few recipes, infusions and how to elevate your hydration game. If you are an all-year-round tea sipper like us, then here’s a few things you may not know; like how specific herbs can cool you from within and some fun things to experiment with!
The Benefits of Iced Tea
Iced Tea vs Hot Tea
The number one thing we always hear is that people think that iced tea lacks the natural benefits of hot tea, this couldn’t be more untrue unless you are sipping on Nestea or some other “iced tea” that consists of a bunch of fake ingredients and loads of sugar. When prepared properly cold tea carries just as many benefits as hot tea and can be incredibly nourishing and hydrating for the body depending on the types of herbs within the blend.
As we’ve mentioned before in our Types of Tea blog post where we dig deep into the energetics of herbs, some herbs carry warming properties and others cooling, as well as drying and dampening but we’ll save that for later. This means that no matter if you sip tea hot or cold the energetics of specific herbs may warm or cool you from within. Don’t worry, there’s also many neutral herbs as well!
This is a lot easier to navigate than it may sound, when you think of a refreshing glass of iced tea you most likely are drawn to more lighter, juicy, sour and sweet tea blends which can be more neutral or cooling (not all but many). Our bodies are drawn to specific herbs in different seasons for a reason, our cravings are communicating what our body needs during this time.
For example I've been craving oranges and vine ripe tomatoes all summer long!
A Few Great Herbs for Iced Tea
Here’s a list of my favourite herbs to make iced tea to create a refreshing summer beverage that also contains therapeutic benefits such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, detoxifying, stimulating, calming, hydrating and cooling properties.
- Lemon Verbena
- Krishna Tulsi
- Green Tea
- Ginger
- Peppermint
- Black Currant
- Citrus peel
- Calendula Flower
- Lemongrass
- Elderberries
- Hibiscus
- Rose
If you’d like to discover more about the individual natural benefits of each herb listed, click here to dig deep into our herbal glossary.
Photo by Cristina Gareau
Iced Tea Best Practices
When it comes to making, serving and sipping iced tea there’s a few things to keep in mind to ensure that you have extracted all of the natural benefits out of each ingredient, not watered it down and are sipping the right kind of iced tea.
We wanted to share with you a few tips on how to sip iced tea best:
- Always make it hot first! The only way the natural therapeutic benefits are extracted from each herb is through hot water extraction, therefore steeping in cold liquid does not work.
- Follow the hot steeping instructions for the best cup of tea for that specific blend of herbs
- Ideally let the hot tea cool before pouring it over ice to avoid watering it down
- If you don’t have time to let it cool, steep the tea in 3/4 the amount of hot water needed so the ice can make up the remainder of the water needed for a full cup
- If you want it stronger in flavour add a little extra loose-leaf tea when steeping
- Best and most efficient way to make a nice cup of cold tea is to make a craft of it ahead of time and store it in your fridge ready for sipping
- Avoid commercialized iced teas as it often contains “flavouring” of tea and loads of sugar which does not carry any benefits at all
- Experiment with different cocktails, elixirs and uses for iced tea (don’t worry we have some amazing recipes to share with you)
- Share it with your family and friends, iced tea is best enjoyed on a patio surrounded by good music and new memories! (Check out our WOASH Playlists on Spotify)
How To Make Iced Tea
iced tea can be more time consuming when making it depending on which method you are using because of the cool down period. It is worth the wait and will be your go-to during your next hiking adventure to keep you nourished and hydrated.
For either of these methods you can adjust the amount you make from cup to craft just by adding the additional loose-leaf tea to the ratio of water you desire to make.
What you’ll need:
- Kettle
- Hot water safe cup or craft
- Your desired loose-leaf tea blend (here's our favourite iced tea blends)
- Measuring teaspoon
- Tea steeper (check out our one cup Coastal Tea Steeper)
- Water
- Ice / fridge
Method One - Ready to serve
Directions:
- Heat kettle to specified temperature (each blend is different so have a look at the instructions on the bag)
- Scoop specified amount of tea into steeper depending on the desired amount you’d like to make
- 2 teaspoons / 12 oz mug
- 10 teaspoons / 1 L craft
- Pour hot water over tea leaves filling only ¾ of the mug / craft
- Cover and steep tea for specified time (depending on the blend)
- Remove tea strainer with tea leaves
- Fill the remainder of the mug / craft with ice and stir to cool.
- Serve and enjoy! Add a little citrus wheel, rosemary sprig or anything else you find in your garden
Watch our video on How to Make Iced Tea
Video by Jenelle Elle
Method Two - Save for later
Directions:
- Heat kettle to specified temperature (each blend is different so have a look at the instructions on the bag)
- Scoop specified amount of tea into steeper depending on the desired amount you’d like to make
- 2 teaspoons / 12 oz mug
- 10 teaspoons / 1 L craft
- Pour hot water over tea leaves filling to the top of the mug / craft
- Cover and steep tea for specified time (depending on the blend)
- Remove tea strainer with tea leaves
- Place in fridge for at least a few hours before serving
- Serve over ice and enjoy! Add a little citrus to make it extra refreshing on a hot summer day
Photo by Cristina Gareau
Different Ways To Sip Iced Tea
The fun part about iced tea is how you can experiment with it in so many different ways from cocktails, mocktails to tea infusions, food recipes and tea compresses all inspired to nourish you in whichever way best suits your lifestyle and needs.
An easy tip to get creative with your iced tea is to think of any recipe or practice you use that consists of water or a liquid and experiment with replacing it with your iced tea to enhance your everyday wellbeing!
Here’s a few ways we like to experiment with our iced tea:
- Hydrating elixirs (see recipe here)
- Cocktail / mocktail recipes and infusions
- Adding it to our morning smoothie (see recipe here)
- Adding it to your morning smoothie bowl recipe
- Soaking an organic compress in DIGEST to cool the skin and ease muscle tension
- Packing REVIVE along on our weekend adventures for extra nourishment
- Infuse fresh berries or citrus in a glass of cold tea
Now that you are all set on how to make iced tea check out our Summer Sippers where we gathered our best iced tea blends to keep you hydrated, nourished and going all summer long!
Here’s a list of links from above for easy access:
- Types of Tea blog post to learn more about the energetics of herbs and what your unique constitution is to ensure you are sipping the right herbs for your body
- Ingredient List to dig deep into our ingredients, where we source them from, their unique properties and which blend includes that ingredient
- Woash playlists on Spotify to tune in while you are adventuring, hosting or enjoying the sunset; we designed each playlist to elevate each tea blends experience
- Coastal Tea Steeper to make the perfect cup of tea
- Hydrating Tea Elixir recipe to nourish your body with an extra dose of minerals and vitamins
- Morning Tea Smoothie recipe to elevate your morning smoothie and increase its nourishment
To discover more tea recipe's click here!
