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While it's nice and hot we're having a couple of iced tea pitchers on the go in the fridge most of the time; I brew up the more elderly leaf tea we have on the shelf (Republic of Tea Mango Ceylon that's probably five years old, some first flush darjeeling that got pushed out of sight)... we don't usually have lemon around so I often punch it up with a drizzle of pink ginger cordial or just plain cheat with a splash of Republic of Tea chai concentrate and fruit juice. The most successful has been using the lychee green oolong from the little tea shop on Castro in Mountain View; you want to brew two or three pots from that, according to the nice lady in the store (we got to taste about 10 teas while we chose the lychee, including puers), and it's flavourfull and refreshing.
Recently I've been trying to make something like the refreshing Jasmine Lime Cooler by brewing a big pot of jasmine tea, steeping for an hour or two and keeping that in the fridge to add a splash of lime cordial to (Bottle Green rather than Roses, as it has a lot more lime and a lot less sugar). I'm not sure if it needs fresh lime or a bigger slug of cordial to approximate US limeade - or margarita mix ;-) - as it's not quite as tangy and limy as Peet's.
Usually I wouldn't brew jasmine more than a couple of minutes; for drinking hot, long brewing brings out far too much tannin that overwhelms the jasmine. For drinking cold I think it needs the longer brewing to get strong enough to retain flavour in a cold drink; I often brew a second pot with the leaves after I've put the first pot in a jug and it's too light in flavour to stand up to the lime as much, but very refreshing.
Obligatory nugget of incorrect common knowledge ;-) Brits should be called lemonies rather than limeys as Cook used lemons to avoid scurvy in his crew; limes don't have enough vitamin C to help.
Recently I've been trying to make something like the refreshing Jasmine Lime Cooler by brewing a big pot of jasmine tea, steeping for an hour or two and keeping that in the fridge to add a splash of lime cordial to (Bottle Green rather than Roses, as it has a lot more lime and a lot less sugar). I'm not sure if it needs fresh lime or a bigger slug of cordial to approximate US limeade - or margarita mix ;-) - as it's not quite as tangy and limy as Peet's.
Usually I wouldn't brew jasmine more than a couple of minutes; for drinking hot, long brewing brings out far too much tannin that overwhelms the jasmine. For drinking cold I think it needs the longer brewing to get strong enough to retain flavour in a cold drink; I often brew a second pot with the leaves after I've put the first pot in a jug and it's too light in flavour to stand up to the lime as much, but very refreshing.
Obligatory nugget of incorrect common knowledge ;-) Brits should be called lemonies rather than limeys as Cook used lemons to avoid scurvy in his crew; limes don't have enough vitamin C to help.
