The New Iced Tea

Iced Tea Liqueur?

Sweet Tea with a kick has become a mini-trend with the mixologist set.  Not only this Bols Sweet Tea Liqueur but some sweet tea vodkas made by familiar names like Burnett's, Seagrams, and Firefly.  For die hard southerners who must have their bourbon there's one of those too.  It's not too overpowering (which was my greatest fear as I first opened the bottle), rather it has a clean taste that isn't too syrupy.  It gives you a great sweet tea taste but adds an alcohol kick to it.  Makes it a fun ingredient to use making tea cocktails.  It lets you add a strong tea flavor without adding too much wateriness (is this a word? well you get the idea!) which is the reason to purchase an sweet tea liqueur instead of just adding some plain vodka to some sweet tea.  Suggestions for cocktails include a Lemon Tea Drop or an English Breakfast Cocktail.  Many other options are out there on the web.  So consider using some Bols Sweet Tea Liqueur to give your signature sweet tea a kick.  A nice change from some of the more boring signature cocktails out there.  Give your guests something new to try. 

English Breakfast Cocktail

Non-Alcoholic Gypsy Strawberry Kiwi Iced Tea

Iced tea is simple: make hot tea and serve it cold. But getting a good tasting batch is harder than it sounds. If you over-steep the tea it becomes bitter, and if you over-dilute it with melting ice it loses it's cooling zing.  To solve this problem brew extra strong tea by using a few extra tea bags (the number will depend on the size of the batch), then stir in the sugar or honey while the tea is hot and chill overnight.  Do NOT add ice.  Instead only add ice right before serving or use frozen strawberries as ice cubes.   
The tea pictured above is Zhena’s Gypsy Tea Strawberry Kiwi Green Tea which is iced with frozen strawberries, raspberries and cherries, and garnished with a bit of mint from my garden. 

This is a perfect brew for a picnic wedding or outdoor bash and can be served in pretty clear glass pitchers.