White Peony Tea
Brewing Directions
How to Brew (Hot)
Put 1 tsp of White Peony Tea into infuser, then place in tea cup. Add 8 oz of water slightly cooled from a boil (approximately 176-185 degrees), and steep for 1-3 minutes.
Tip #1: Here water "slightly cooled from a boil" is water that has been brought to 212 degrees, then allowed to cool down to 176-185 degrees. (I know. It's very specific. If this makes brewing your tea stressful, please ignore it. Make your tea the way that makes you happy and tastes good to you.)
Tip #2: Though not all white teas re-steep well, White Peony Tea can be re-steeped up to 5 times! (Re-Steeping is steeping tea leaves more than one time. It's like recycling!) Just increase the steep time by 30 seconds with each re-steep.
Cold Brew
White Peony Tea is great for cold brewing. Try it out and see if you like it.
You will need a glass jar or pitcher (size approximately 1.5 L/1.5 Qts). Use 1-2 teaspoons of leaves per 1.5 L/Qts of water.
- Choose a big glass jar or pitcher.
- Add 1-2 teaspoons of White Peony Tea.
- Add lukewarm or cold water.
- Cover to protect from odors.
- Put in a fridge for at 3-5 hours.
- Enjoy within 4 days.
Tip #3: Add berries, fruit or herbs--such as lemon verbena--to flavor your White Peony Tea. Be careful not to choose anything to strong, or it will overpower the tea.
Quick Iced Tea
Don't want to wait for your iced tea? Make it the old-fashioned way. Here's how--
- Boil water and let cool slightly (approximately 176-185 °F for White Peony Tea).
- Add 2-3 teaspoons White Peony Tea to heat-safe jar, pitcher or tea pot.
- Add around 5 oz (150 ml) of hot water and let it brew for 1-3 minutes.
- Strain and pour the tea into glasses filled with ice cubes.
Sun Tea
Let's be real. If you are in Houston or in Texas, one of easiest ways to brew for iced tea in the hot months is to use the sun. All that heat and those UV rays have to be good for something besides sweat. Am I right? Of course I am.
So here's how to do it, in case you aren't already rolling your eyes, because your grandmother taught you this on her knee.
- Grab a jar. The bigger the better. This can be a jar sold for making sun tea or a larger Mason jar you have laying around.
- Measure your tea. (This is the part where you need to use a bit of math. You need a 2 tsp of White Peony Tea per L/ Qt of water.)
- Assuming you grabbed a Gallon size jar: 8 teaspoons.
- Quart (or Liter) size jar: 2 teaspoons.
- Make a choice. Either dump the loose tea in the jar OR use an infuser or fill-able tea bag for your tea. Either way is fine.
- Put your tea in the jar.
- Add water to fill jar.
- Put your jar in a sunny spot for approximately 3 hours.
- After your sun tea is brewed, strain your sun tea or pull out your infuser/tea bag.
- If you would like to sweeten your sun tea, do so while it is still warm from the sun.
- Serve over ice and enjoy. (Or put it in the fridge for later.)
Ingredients
Organic Camellia sinensis L. (Tea)