TeaChat

I'm a big fan of suntea and have been trying to make it with whole leaves but can't seem to get a good ratio of tea to water, or steep time. We use one gallon of water. Any recommendations on how much tea to use and for how long? (I read the posting about bacteria and suntea, but I'm willing to take the risk and let my tea steep in the sun!)

breanne

Breanne--

Thanks for the post.

Here is a great recipe:

Use 10 to 12 teaspoons loose tea in a 100-percent-cotton cheesecloth; tie cheesecloth with string. Place cheesecloth tea "ball" in a gallon-size clear glass container. Add 1 gallon cold water; cover. Let stand in sunlight for an hour or at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours or until tea reaches the desired strength. (Keep the container away from combustible materials. Sunlight shining through glass and liquid can concentrate a beam of light that may start a fire.) Remove tea ball. Wait until it is cool, and then add ice with sugar, mint and lemon. Otherwise, it will be cloudy.

Enjoy!

Chris
Adagio Maestro

I don't use loose leaf, but I do like to add a bit of herbal blend to my sun tea.

If you are using small tea bags (would usually require 10 bags), I'll use 9 bags of tea, and 2 bags of 'rasberry tea'. I will also make a 'green tea' blend. 9 bags of regular tea, with 2 bags of green...

great!

Yankeerugger

Thank you both for your recommendations. I have tried both cheesecloth and the paper filters that adagio sells. I like using 12 teaspoons of a combination of teas and I think that I prefer the paper filters because they are easy to clean up after.
Thanks again - many days of great sun tea are in my future!

Breanne

When on vacation in Florida and Georgia, I notice people drinking what they call sweet tea. What is sweet tea? And, how do you make it? Thank you

Rosemary

Rosemary--

Thanks for the post.

Here is a link for an article about Sweet tea:

http://www.teamuse.com/article_040201.html

Bring your toothbrush-- it's sugary!

Dentally,

Chris
Adagio Maestro

As a born southerner, turned yankee through no choice of my own ...I can say that if you've never been to the south then you almost can't understand the pervasiveness of Sweet Tea. My mother still makes it, despite being as North as it gets. I'll drink it, but these days it's just not for me