How I Learned To Cold Brew For A Hot Day

I never really gave cold brewing the time of day. I always associated it with over-sweetened weak iced tea made from low-grade baggies. I was wrong.

While looking into alternative brewing techniques, I stumbled across a cold-brewing method that actually produces a burly high-quality tea without leeching tannins or other nasty bitter flavors. After a few tries, I realized that cold brewing is super easy and gives you a chance to create subtle variations in the teas you already love and drink regularly. It is handy for making large batches, is less caffeinated than regular brewing, has lower astringency (smoother taste), and makes your morning routine a bit faster so you can get tea into your body and get down to business. Yeah!!!

I’ve since fallen in love with cold brewing, and I’ve taken to brewing larger batches for myself once a week. Traditionally brewed tea will always be my go to, but you just can’t beat an ice cold Wendigo Green Tea on a hot summer afternoon. And this is a very easy may to make it. So get to it!

Cold Brew the Wendigo Way

Step 1: Add loose leaf tea to a jar or pitcher (I use 6 tsp. for a 32 oz. jar).

Step 2: Add water (and sweetener if you are into that kind of stuff).

Step 3: Cover or seal the container and place it in the refrigerator.

Step 4: Wait 8 hours or so (just wait for a while or go to bed—a few hours more or less isn’t a big deal).

Step 5: Strain the tea leaves out of the water.

Step 6: Pour over ice and drink ravenously!  

*Can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days* 

*Herbal teas should not be cold brewed since some contain bacteria that are normally killed during traditional brewing methods*

Variations

Try using half or twice as much tea as you normally use. Experiment to find the ratio that works well for you and the kind of tea you are brewing. Start with the above method and see if you would prefer it stronger or smoother.  

Be impatient. Start with warm water and you can cut a few hours off that brewing time

Get fancy. Throw a handful of fresh fruit or a small amount of mint in there. A drop of citrus helps keep all the healthy stuff fresher for longer.

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So whether you are fighting the heat by drinking a giant glass of iced tea or you need a whole bunch of tea at once, cold brewing could be worth a try for you. To be honest, nothing beats a tea brewed the traditional way, but it’s always worth trying new things every once in a while. Let me know if you find a cool trick or a tea that tastes awful being cold brewed. I have only tried a handful, but figured I would share this in case you guys wanted to try it out!

Sky

Hit me up any time by emailing me at Sky@WendigoTea.com