WHO COOKED THAT UP?

  J. J. Schnebel wonders..

 Like most Americans, I have thought of iced tea as a "given,"  because it has been taken for granted in my family that there will be plenty of iced tea to drink in the summer. Some freshly brewed and cooled strong black tea poured over ice in a tall glass with a slice of lemon perched on the edge, perhaps a sprig of mint at the top and a long slender spoon ready for stirring in sugar to taste, seems to have always meant refreshment between late May and early September.

Well, no.  Culinary afficionados are apt to point out that iced tea and the paraphernalia that go with it are mainly a 20th century phenomenon, and a strictly American one at that, having been introduced to the public at large at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis.

Well no.  The latest word from the culinary historians is that iced tea was served long before that -- not only at the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago but also at a Missouri Convention of Civil War Veterans in 1890 when 880 gallons of iced tea were consumed (as well as 2,220 gallons of coffee).

In Linda Stradley's comprehensive study of American eating and drinking habits (see Link below) it has also been pointed out that there's a difference between "sweet tea" served in the south with the sugar added to the pitcher and "iced tea" served in the north with sugar passed at the table, if at all.  So far no one  has suggested any significant difference between what is called Iced Tea and Ice Tea.
 
Everyone seems to agree, however, that tea has been added to a cold fruit punch (spiked or not) at many a social gathering for a few hundred years past.   However, two facts emerge on the tea front regarding the generally accepted legend that most Americans began drinking iced (or ice) tea as we know it in 1904.  First, before that date the tea -- both iced and hot -- was usually from China and green (non-fermented).  Second, although an Englishman named Richard Blechynden was promoting black tea from India at the St. Louis Fair, his method was to cool it by passing brewed tea through ice cold lead pipes. He may have had a hit during the heat wave at the Fair, but apparently he did not "invent" iced tea as we know it.

But hold on, here. There is another element introduced in 1904 which significantly influenced our national penchant for tea, iced or not.  That's the year the tea bag was invented by a New York tea merchant named Thomas Sullivan.  It may have taken a century but every tea drinker I know uses a bag at least occasionally, if not usually, and it is certainly easier to remove the bags than to drain the leaves from a pitcher of iced tea.

The way to make it is simple -- and adequately described in the first paragraph on this page.  However, there are a few general caveats.  Use boiling water to make black iced tea.  Steep it for 4 to 5 minutes, no more, -- and less for loose tea.  Green iced tea produces a milder, less bitter drink and can be made without boiling the water, and needs to steep for only a minute or two.  It also can be used to make a good "sun" tea.  With both black and green tea, strain the tea or remove the bags and be sure it is cool before pouring over ice in a glass (i.e. don't break the glass).  Store tea, covered, in the refrigerator for no more than two days.

 SOME RECIPES FOR ICED TEA

 CLASSIC ICED TEA

Brew a non-smokey variety of black tea, using 3-4 tea bags per pint of boiling water.  Allow to steep 5 minutes.  Remove tea bags and bring to room temperature.  Pour over ice cubes and serve with slices of lemon and sprigs of mint and sugar to taste. Or refrigerate for up two days and serve later.

SUN TEA FROM THE FIFTIES

Add 8-10 bags of orange pekoe or English breakfast tea to 1 gallon filtered or spring water in a glass jar or pitcher with a cover.  Place, covered, in direct sunlight for three to five hours.  Remove teabags.
Chill in refrigerator to serve without ice later, or pour over ice cubes and serve immediately.

GREEN ICED TEA FROM JAPAN

Place 2-4 green tea bags into glass jar or pitcher with a cover and add 1 quart cool water.  Refrigerate for 2 to 6 hours.  Remove tea bags and serve with or without ice.

MULTI-FLAVORED ICED TEA
(adapted from Martha Stewart's TV Kitchen)

6-8 bags of assorted fruit or herb teas (e.g. citrus, currant, apple, cherry, hibiscus)
1-2 bags of orange pekoe or English breakfast tea
8 cups water (filtered or spring water preferred)

Bring the water to the boiling point and pour over tea bags in a 2 quart heatproof pitcher or pyrex measuring bowl. Brew the tea for ten minutes, then remove the bags and allow the tea to cool to room temperature.  Serve immediately over ice in glasses or refrigerate for up to two days. Add lemon slices, sprigs of mint and sugar to taste.
 
 

INTERESTING LINKS TO FOLLOW

Linda Stradley's History of Iced Tea in America
Iced Tea and the 1904 World's Fair
History and Legends of Tea Worldwide
 

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