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Article: The Best Summertime Teas

The Best Summertime Teas - Tea with Tae
Recipes

The Best Summertime Teas

Imagine yourself laying by the pool in the middle of a hot summer day, sipping a refreshing glass of iced tea. Beads of sweat roll down your face as you grab the cool glass in your hand. You squeeze a little bit of lemon into the freshly-brewed iced tea and take a sip. Nothing quenches your thirst better than this.

Two girls in a park drinking iced tea

In this post, you’ll learn about which teas are best for summertime, as well as some recipes to spice up your brew. Enjoy!

What are the best teas for summer?

The most popular tea for summertime is traditional iced black tea. It’s tried and true and has been popular since 1904, when it was first introduced at the World’s Fair in St. Louis by Englishman Richard Blenchnyden. It was a scorcher that summer in 1904, and heat waves were rolling in. Nobody wanted to drink hot tea, so Blenchnyden bought blocks of ice, chipped off small chunks, and poured his brewed black tea over the ice chunks. The fairgoers immediately flocked to this thirst-quencher, and the rest is history. Iced tea has been quenching thirsts on steamy summer days ever since.

Two pictures of the St. Louis Fair in 1904 - St. Louis Public Library

Another popular tea for summertime is iced green tea. Although iced green tea isn’t as popular as iced black tea, iced green tea actually made its debut before iced black tea. In 1879 in a cookbook called Housekeeping in Old Virginia by Marion Cabell Tyree, the book had a recipe called “Iced Tea” that called for brewing the tea in the morning, straining the tea at dinnertime, and pouring the tea over “goblets with ice” with “two teaspoonfuls of granulated sugar in each.” “A squeeze of lemon will make this delicious and healthful.” And boy was Marion Tyree right about that! Since the late 1800s, several variations of iced green tea have hit the market. One of our favorites is a Peach & Apricot variation, which is comprised of loose green tea and all-natural dried peaches and apricots. It’s both fruity and refreshing—perfect for a hot summer day.

Another lesser-known, but absolutely delicious, iced tea is known as Caribbean Cooler. This refreshing iced tea blend is made with hibiscus flowers, dried ginger pieces, and spearmint and peppermint leaves. The tea is 100% herbal and contains no caffeine. Caribbean Cooler originated in the Caribbean Island of Jamaica and is known as “Agua de Jamaica.” This tea is full of robust flavors and loaded with Vitamin C, which makes it one of the healthiest iced teas you can drink in the summer. The deep red color also makes it stand out among other iced teas.

Caribbean cooler red iced tea being poured into a glass with ice

Last, but certainly not least, we have the American classic - the Arnold Palmer. The typical ratio for an Arnold Palmer is 3 parts iced tea, 1 part lemonade. But we've also included a couple variations below on how to take your Arnold Palmer to the next level, using our traditional black iced tea pillow bags.

Here are some different ways to make a delicious Arnold Palmer:

  1. Half and Half: Make it sweeter by changing the ratio to 1 part iced tea, 1 part lemonade.
  2. Fresh Lemon: Add in a fresh squeezed lemon.
  3. Pink Palmer: Swap out the traditional lemonade for pink lemonade, raspberry lemonade, or strawberry lemonade.
  4. Sparkling Palmer: Add in a half can of sparkling water (or better yet, sparkling lemonade). 
  5. John Daley: Spike it up by adding 2 oz. of vodka. 

Enjoy!

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