How to Cold Brew Green Tea - A Step-by-Step Guide

It makes sense. You want to make your own ice tea at home, so you steep up some of your favorite loose tea and fill a glass full of ice cubes from the freezer. But wait. Pouring hot tea over ice cubes just results in a bitter cup of watered-down tea. The bitterness is cause by the tannins that steep out in hot water. Just as the bitterness you taste when you steep tea too long, letting hot tea chill over ice results in the same bitterness.

What is the secret to cold brewed green tea?

The secret to the best loose leaf iced tea is to cold brew it. In the cold brewing process, your loose leaf tea is steeped over a longer period of time creating a sweeter and smoother tasting tea because tannins don't steep out of the tea in cold water! But you do have to be patient as the cold brew process takes 12 hours to do it right.

Plus, cold brew tea contains about half the amount of caffeine than the hot version and provides the same amount of antioxidants (or more depending on the tea) than the hot version. Conclusion? You can make a healthy, delicious, and refreshing iced tea right at home.

How to cold brew green tea

Watch this iced tea video with step-by-step directions on how to cold brew green tea - or any loose leaf tea - simply and easily. Many people enjoy a cold brew green tea; we also suggest trying a cold brew of black ceylon, Yerba Mate, herbal, fruit-infused, or oolong tea to bring out the aroma and natural sweetness.

Try this delicious recipe for Sparkling Green Tea!