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Iced Tea for me. Southern Breeze pre-sweetened tea

Age 55. From the South. Drank sweet tea all my life, until 4-5 years ago.
A year ago, found Southern Breeze (https://southernbreezesweettea.com) and got hooked. I use a 32 oz chinese soup container, almost full of water and their large tea bag. Nuke it for 3.5 mins. Then pour that over ice & water (to dilute it a bit more) and I've got super fresh awesome artificially sweetened tea.

Jaymer...
 

ajkel64

Check Out Chick
Staff member
Thanks for sharing @Jaymer. I’m a coffee drinker and occasionally a hot tea drinker. Cold tea doesn’t seem right to me but it has a loyal following and we sell a lot of the bottled cold tea in the supermarket where I work. Nice to share how you brew your tea as well.
 
@ajkel64
Howdy 'stralia

If you said "South", it wouldn't mean anything to me cause I know nothing of Australia... so
When I say South, what I mean is I was born & raised in Texas (and us Texan's don't "really" call it the South) and then Georgia and now Florida - all southern states where Iced Tea, and especially Sweetened Iced Tea is king (I'm drinking some now, albeit fake sweetened).

In a restaurant, using a commercial tea brewer (that can also brew coffee), a 3-gallon tea batch is made with 3-5 cups (depending on the owner's recipe) of regular white sugar added at the beginning so it melts in the hot water. Us "tea snobs" can be pretty picky - esp. when it comes to nasty establishments not sanitizing their urns & tea faucets
and allowing bacteria to grow from the fermenting residue - which spoils a batch of tea very quickly. Once you're hooked on great sweat tea, its a hard habit to break. Was never really into coffee, and bottled tea of almost any kind and pre-made dispensed (not brewed) tea is not even close.

If I got into coffee I'd have to do the whole fresh grinding thing and I'm sure I'd go overboard. But when I do have a cup on a special occasion, its "black like a man" (another saying from the South my daddy used to say).

g'day
 
I'm typically a hot tea drinker. But my dad on the other hand drinks plenty of iced tea and typically it runs him $2 purchase and it lasts him around a single night. So for Christmas I got him a Hario "Mizudashi" Ice Tea Maker, it works very well for cold brewing tea (just leave it in a few hours, or overnight). When you use cold water to make tea, it is less harsh as bitterness in tea or coffee comes from temperature so it becomes more sweet. I rarely ever feel sugar is needed, but it wouldn't be hard to pitch a few scoops into the container. A 2lb pound of loose leaf tea will last us an entire year of brewing, usually run around $20 from Coffee Bean Direct so it's a very cost effective way to make tea!
 

doctordial

my brain goes "thonk"
I've been drinking Celestial Seasonings Half and Half cold brew tea. It's black tea with lemon. It tastes good
 
I used to experiment with making no-carb sweet(ish) iced tea (Type II diabetic), using too many ingredients, and eventually gave up.
Recently I was craving something to sip in the evenings, and came up with this:
Steep 8 bags of decaf Orange Pekoe in a teapot, then pour this double-strength brew into a pitcher and fill it to the top with cold water and ice.
Park it in the fridge overnight.
The next day, pour some into a glass tumbler with ice and about 30% Crystal Light Pink Lemonade (previously mixed and chilled).
 

The Count of Merkur Cristo

B&B's Emperor of Emojis
Jaymer:
Nothing says Spring & Summer more...than a glass of cold Ice Tea!
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Sometimes we make Sun Tea, but we usually buy Red Diamond Sweet Tea (sweetened only w/ Cane Sugar). :thumbsup:

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"Iced tea! Nothing is half so refreshing as a glass of tea piled high with ice! More than a quencher of thirst, it is a tamer of tempers, a lifter of lethargy, and a brightener of smiles...". Paul F. Kortepeter
 

doctordial

my brain goes "thonk"
@ John Rose, I do something similar with black tea. I just add drops of liquid stevia and put it in re-sealable glass bottles.
 
Jaymer:
Nothing says Spring & Summer more...than a glass of cold Ice Tea!
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Sometimes we make Sun Tea, but we usually buy Red Diamond Sweet Tea (sweetened only w/ Cane Sugar). :thumbsup:

I would avoid using the sun to produce tea. Sunlight is bad for the leaves and can promote bacteria growth. Put the tea in your fridge for a better experience!
 

The Count of Merkur Cristo

B&B's Emperor of Emojis
I would avoid using the sun to produce tea. Sunlight is bad for the leaves and can promote bacteria growth. Put the tea in your fridge for a better experience!
simsoy:
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...thanx for the info ('day-um'...and I've been doing it wrong all this time [frown]), and for sharing! :thumbsup:

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"Imagine a delicious glass of Iced Tea. Take a long cool sip. Listen to the ice crackle and clink. Is the glass part full or part empty..."? Vera Nazarian
 
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I'm one of the strange ones. I always drink unsweetened iced tea. Never liked it sweetened. But it works to my advantage since the dr said I need to cut out sugar anyway.
 
Age 55. From the South. Drank sweet tea all my life, until 4-5 years ago.
A year ago, found Southern Breeze (https://southernbreezesweettea.com) and got hooked. I use a 32 oz chinese soup container, almost full of water and their large tea bag. Nuke it for 3.5 mins. Then pour that over ice & water (to dilute it a bit more) and I've got super fresh awesome artificially sweetened tea.

Jaymer...

got a couple of boxes. These are really good. Have to heat the water to get it strong enough or let sit in cold water for a long time. Thanks for posting this.
 
Brew up a batch of Sun Tea about once a week when its sunny. Fill glass jar with water and throw in some tea (large tea ball for loose or several bags if going that route:(). Add honey for sweetness and pour over ice. Fantastic!
 
got a couple of boxes. These are really good. Have to heat the water to get it strong enough or let sit in cold water for a long time. Thanks for posting this.
Glad you like it.
I did something 2 months ago that changed my Tea habits... I brewed in my InstaPot.
That really "squeezes" the crap outta them tea leaves and I get more bang for my buck - I bet the tea companies wouldn't want you doing this because they'd sell less tea.

What I'm saying is that this method made it stronger - so I can cut it with water when drinking - or pouring over a FULL cup of ice when HOT so half of the ice melts & dilutes.

Yes, I still Nuke some for 3 mins if I need to take some with me and I didn't plan, but now my insta pot batch makes plenty.

My current formula is:
2 1/2 quarts water
1 Regular Southern Breeze bag
1 Peach Southern Breeze bag

Pressure cook for 3 mins (Keep Warm off) and natural release - maybe 20-30 mins. Delish!
 
hey N
well, its not like i'm TRYING to make concentrate - I'm just trying to drink more tea!

And with the IP I can see that its darker so that means more NET tea.
I enjoy putting it to da [tea] man !!!
 
I like iced tea, but Texas style sweet iced tea is its own thing. I remember my first exposure in a small diner somewhere outside Dallas, it was so sweet it set the teeth on edge. My girlfriend asked for a Coke and the waitress ooked at her funny and said "What kind of coke do ya want?". That's a Texas thing, too, I guess.

:biggrin1:
 
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