I have been reading the cold brewing method for a while and decided to give it a try. And what an enlightenment! It's easy to make, and the tea turned out smooth, tasted just right and without the bitterness often associated with over-brewing in hot water, and can keep for days in the refrigerator ready to drink at any time. Wish I have known this sooner so I wouldn't have to resort to bottled "flavored" ice tea all summer long.
I know, "cold-brewing" may sound a bit fancy, but in reality, it's nothing more than just fill a jug with regular water, put in the right amount of tea and leave the jug in the refrigerator for a few hours to up to half a day. What turned out is a refreshing drink good either on its own, or with slices of lemon, honey, syrup or whatever you feel like.
So far I have played with different teas in my cabinet - from the high street Lipton Darjeeling, to the Apple Tea bags from London's Fortnum & Mason (spiced with a cinnamon stick), to a fragrant Chinese "Luk On" green tea. So far, my favorite is the one using Mandarin Oriental's signature blend "Taste of the legend", which is a oolong tea with vanilla, cocoa-caramel, flowers and orange. I think the sweet-spice note worked well with sweet pastries, like the mini egg custard mooncakes we had at home.
You should definitely give it a shot!
This is part of the Easy Summer Recipe series where I shared a few recipes for summer parties that could be prepared in less than 30 minutes. Check out the rest of the series:
Part 1: Mediterranean-style Pasta Salad
Part 2: Southern-style Cornbread
Part 4: Pear and Walnut Salad
Extended reading: NY Times: Cold-brewing Coffee and Tea by Harold McGee
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