Cold Brewing Tea

Since it seems to be warming here in Chicago, my mind turns to Iced-Teas. My favorite base teas for Iced are from the fine folks at Rishi who make excellent bagged teas specifically for Iced. Their "Pure" is awesome. The teas are steeped in the normal way, 16oz of appropriate temp water for 4-5 min, to form a strong tea, then add 16oz water. (I brew 28oz of water and top off to make a qt.) Add ice and sweetener and enjoy!

I also highly recommend trying "Cold Brewing"with loose tea. This method works very well with greens and oolongs, but just about anything would work. I use a quart mason jar with a lid. Measure 2-3 tablespoons tea into the bottom of the jar, fill jar with cool (room temp) freshly filtered water to top. Close with lid and shake well. Leave on counter overnight (at least 8 hours, but no more than 18 hours.) Shaking occasionally if you remember to. Strain into a quart bottle or another jar, being careful to remove as much of the leaf as possible. Stick in fridge to chill or serve immediately over ice. I find oolongs to be awesome this way, and very refreshing on a warm day. Japanese greens too.