How to brew the perfect Iced Tea this summer

The upside of not quite knowing what season we're in is that we've still got plenty of time to reacquaint ourselves with our favourite iced tea recipes before we're in desperate need of something to help us cool down. Not much hydrates and refreshes us better on a hot summers day than iced tea, and learning to make your own at home really is easy, rewarding and so much better for you. We've pulled together below our 5 part series for How to Make Proper Iced Tea to make sure you know exactly how to brew, build and serve the perfect Iced Tea this summer. Check it out, and don't forget to tag us in your own creations @goodandpropertea!

Before jumping into our step by step guide, it goes without saying that you'll need good quality, whole leaf tea - after all, your iced tea can only be as delicious as the tea you use as the base.  

1. HOW TO MAKE PROPER ICED TEA - HOT BREW METHOD

How you choose to brew your tea - that is whether you use hot or cold water to infuse the tea - plays an important role in the flavour of the final product. 

Hot brewing is a great option for your iced tea when you want to make something quickly, for immediate consumption. It also tends to create a stronger tea base for your iced tea so is best suited to recipes where other ingredients, such as sugar or citrus, are added to the drink or when you want a fuller, richer flavour in your iced tea. 

2. HOW TO MAKE PROPER ICED TEA - COLD BREW METHOD

Here we’ll be focusing on the benefits of preparing your tea using the Cold Brew method. Getting the tea right is an essential starting point for delicious iced tea and while hot-brewing is no doubt the fastest way to make an iced tea of any leaf, cold-brewing results in a smoother, more delicate infusion, bringing out more of the floral notes and natural sweetness.  

3. HOW TO MAKE PROPER ICED TEA - INTRODUCING SWEETNESS

In Part 3 of our How to Make Proper Iced Tea series we turn our attention to the question of sweetness. For many, just saying the words ‘iced tea’ immediately conjures up memories of sticky sweet, canned drinks with little or no real tea flavour at all. Indeed, the so-called ‘sweet tea’ is a southern staple in the US, where very strong, very sweet black tea is served with lemon and ice. 

4. HOW TO MAKE PROPER ICED TEA - BUILDING A DRINK

In part 4 of our How to Make Proper Iced Tea series we are now ready to take our iced tea to the next level. You may well already be satisfied with simply enjoying your hot or cold-brewed tea over ice, with or without a little sweetness added. However, if you want to turn your iced tea into something even more delicious - into an exciting summer creation to proudly serve at your next BBQ - you’ll need to know the basics of building a drink. 

5. HOW TO MAKE PROPER ICED TEA - WHAT YOU'LL NEED

In the final edition of our 5 part How to Make Proper Iced Tea series you are soon all set to make delicious iced tea all summer long. You’ve mastered how to prepare the tea, whether hot or cold brewing. You know how to control the level of sweetness. You even know how to build a killer drink, turning a simple iced tea into a summer recipe to impress. All that remains is to gather everything you need to get started. Head over to our Checklist.

Now you're an expert, it's time to browse our recipes and try for yourself! Enjoy.