Some tea purists cringe at the idea of iced tea, but here in the U.S., we love it—especially in the South, where “sweet tea” has been around since the 1800s. It's simple: brewed tea, lots of sugar, maybe a splash of lemon, and served ice cold.
The first iced tea recipe showed up in an 1879 cookbook, Housekeeping in Old Virginia, but it didn’t really take off until the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis. That summer was brutally hot, and no one wanted hot tea—so British tea guy Richard Blechynden got clever. He ran his hot tea through chilled metal pipes, serving it cold. People loved it, and iced tea became a thing.
Now, here’s how we make smooth, refreshing iced tea with any teadaytea blend:
How to Make a Gallon of Iced Tea:
- Pre-chill a gallon (128 oz) of bottled water in the fridge.
- Measure 22 teaspoons of any teadaytea blend into two large
Finum tea filters. - Heat 2 cups of water to the right temp for your tea (check the
label!). - Steep the filters in a heatproof container for 3–5 minutes. Use a
spoon to keep them submerged. - Remove the filters right when the timer goes off to avoid
bitterness. Press out all the flavor. - Cool quickly by pouring the concentrate over ice.
- Mix your concentrate with the rest of your chilled water. Done!
Want it sweet? Add sugar while it’s hot so it melts right in.
