How to Make Cold Brew Tea

Welcome to our ultimate guide on brewing refreshing tea for those warm summer days! Learn how to make cold brew tea using either our organic loose-leaf tea or our pyramidal non-GMO tea bags, and our Iced Tea Maker. Cold brewing iced tea results in a smooth, perfectly chilled, and less bitter tea.

We also understand the importance of variety and convenience, so we have also included instructions on how to “hot brew” traditional iced tea and sun tea. Whether you prefer the smoothness of cold brew, the classic taste of traditional iced tea, or the unique flavors of sun tea, we've got you covered. Let's dive in and discover the secrets to brewing the perfect cup of summer tea!

Summertime Refreshment with Zero Calories

What’s your favorite summertime beverage? Hands down, there is nothing like having a crisp, icy cold tea to quench your thirst on a hot sunny day. Did you know that Fraser Tea blends have zero calories? You can enjoy this healthy delicious, iced tea beverage any time of the day to meet your health goals.

Cold Brew Tea Benefits

When you heat up tea the traditional way, it can bring out the tannins or bitter flavors of tea. In contrast, cold brewing tea is the process where you allow the tea to slowly infuse in the cool water while refrigerating it for several hours. The result of cold brew tea is a delicious smooth and refreshing tea without any bitterness, no matter how long it is brewed.

How to Make Cold Brew Tea?

Making iced tea at home is super easy. Check out our video to learn how to make cold brew tea in our ice maker.

The four items you will need are…

Your favorite Fraser Tea organic tea blend either in tea sachets (bags) or loose-leaf tea.
Room temperature or cool water
Iced Tea Maker is optional but makes the process easier and beautiful way to serve cold brew iced tea. This gorgeous, iced tea maker makes 6 delicious servings of iced tea. The iced tea maker holds 6 cups or 48 ounces up to the bottom of the metal ring. In addition, it comes with an integrated ice holder to keep your tea cool all day long without watering down your tea. The Assunta iced tea maker glass pitcher is heat-resistant and the plastic tea infuser and ice holder is BPA free. Therefore, if you prefer to make traditional iced tea or sun tea, you can make it in the iced tea maker too. (In addition, we have also included instructions on how to make cold brew iced tea without an iced tea maker below.)
Ice

Step by Step Process Using the Iced Tea Maker

How to Make Cold Brew Iced tea with Loose Leaf Tea?

The ratio of tea to cool water is approximately 2 perfect measuring spoons per cup of cool water. If you like your tea stronger, add more tea. On the other hand, if you like your iced tea weaker add less tea. In addition, please remember that light fluffy teas like our Chamomile Organic Herbal Tea might require more tea and dense teas like our Gunpowder Green Organic Tea may need less tea.
Place the filled tea dispenser in the glass iced tea maker with the water.
Chill in the refrigerator. Here are our recommended cold brew steep times. If you steep longer, it is A-okay as the tea will not get bitter. However, if you steep it for less time, the flavor may be weak.

Type of Tea	Cold Brew Steep Time
Green and White Tea	6 to 8 hours
Oolong Tea	8 to 10 hours
Pu-erh tea	10 to 12 hours
Black Tea	8 to 12 hours
Herbal Tea	12 to 14 hours

Figure 1 – Cold Brew Steep Times

Remove tea dispenser with loose leave tea. Remove metal lid. Sometimes, a few of the loose leaves settle to the bottom of the iced tea maker.
If using the ice dispenser, fill with ice and screw back on the metal lid. Place the ice dispenser with the lid into the iced cold brew tea. Make sure to point the lid with the pour spout over the lip of the glass iced tea maker.
Serve cold brew tea with or without ice as desired.

How to Make Cold Brew Iced Tea with Tea Bags?

Depending on how strong or weak you enjoy your tea, try using 2 Fraser Tea^® bags for every 12 to 14 ounces of water and adjust to your personal preference. Add more water if you like it weaker or less water if you like it stronger.
Place the filled tea dispenser in the glass iced tea maker with the water.
Chill in the refrigerator. Please use chart above for cold brew steep time recommendations.
Remove tea dispenser with the tea bags. Remove metal lid.
If using the ice dispenser, fill with ice and screw back on the metal lid. Place the ice dispenser with the lid into the iced cold brew tea. Make sure to point the lid with the pour spout over the lip of the glass iced tea maker.
Serve cold brew tea with or without ice as desired.

Traditional Iced Tea and Sun Tea

If you are short on time, then making “traditional iced tea” or “sun tea” may be a faster alternative. Both methods use heat and/or sun to expedite the brewing process. Making traditional iced tea with boiled water or rays from the sun are hot tea brewing methods and require different brewing methods. As our glass iced tea maker is heat safe, it can also be used to make traditional iced tea or sun tea.

Traditional Iced Tea

If you wish to brew traditional iced tea, please refer to How to Brew Organic Loose Leaf Tea and How to Brew Fraser Tea Bags for water temperature requirements, tea to water ratio suggestions and steep times.

The temperature of the water and steeping time are different for each type of tea. For example, when making black tea, the water temperature should be heated to 195 degrees F (90 degrees C) and steeped for 3 minutes. However, when making green tea the water should be heated up to 175 degrees F (79 degrees C) and steep for only 2.5 minutes for best results.

Place loose leaf tea or tea bag in iced tea maker or pitcher.
Pour heated water over the loose leaf or tea bags. Steep for designated time depending on type of tea.
Remove tea bags or loose-leaf tea from the container. If you want to add sweetener to the tea, add it now while it is hot so that it dissolves.
Cool tea to room temperature and then place in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 hours.
Serve over ice and enjoy.

Sun Tea

Unlike traditional iced tea that uses boiled water or cold brew that uses the refrigerator, sun tea uses the heat and rays of the sun to brew the tea. As the tea steeps slowly in the water, it generally makes a smooth and milder sip compared to hot brewed tea.

Place loose leaf tea or tea bags in a clean and sanitized glass container or iced tea maker.
Add room temperature or cool water to the container and cover.
Place container in sunny location and steep for 2 to 4 hours depending on how strong you prefer your tea and the sun’s strength.
Remove the tea bags or loose tea leaves and place in the refrigerator to chill.
Enjoy over ice.
Special precautions with sun tea. Do not leave tea in the sun for an extended period. This can increase the risk of bacterial growth. Sun tea does not use boiled water. Nor was it not kept in the refrigerator at a constant temperature, so please refrigerate promptly.

How to Make Cold Brew Without an Iced Tea Maker?

You can use any container or even a quart mason jar with a lid to make cold brew tea. A pitcher with a lid or even a glass pitcher with plastic wrap work well too.
The ratio of tea to cool water is 2 tea sachets (bags) for every 12-14 ounces of water or less or more depending on your taste preferences. Alternatively, the ratio of loose-leaf tea to water is approximately 2 perfect measuring spoons (3 teaspoons) of loose-leaf tea for every 8 ounces of cool water. Depending on the size of your container, you will have to measure accordingly.
Please reference the recommended cold brew steep times in the Figure 1 chart above for the type of tea and time to brew. If you end up leaving the tea steep longer, it will not get bitter.
If using tea bags, we like to hang them over the edge and use the lid to prevent the tag from falling in the water. For loose leaf tea, you can put the loose-leaf tea directly in the water.
After brewing in refrigerator, remove the tea bags or strain to remove loose leaf tea.
Serve over ice and enjoy!

How Long Does Iced Tea Last?

Iced Tea can last for 3-5 days in the refrigerator IF it is made WITHOUT Sugar and covered. According to the CDC, if you add sugar or sweetener, tea can only last for 8 hours in the refrigerator. If you add sugar, this can expedite the fermentation process and possibly cause bacteria to grow.

How to serve?

Plain Iced tea is a cool and refreshing beverage. Do you want to kick up a few notches and impress your family and guests? Add some fresh fruit slices, berries, mint leaves or even serve frozen as a Rainbow Berry Rooibos Ice Pops.

If you like sweet cold brew iced tea, add a little simple syrup or try one of our ideas on how to sweeten tea without sugar to suit your needs. As cold brew is already chilled, honey, granulated sugar and all alternative sweeteners will need to be dissolved first before adding to your tea.

Make the most out of this beautiful spring and summer weather! Learning how to make cold brew tea is an eye-opening experience. Once you try it, we bet you will be excited to try new iced tea blends.

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