The perfect iced tea recipe.

Over the past 5 years I have worked on a method of brewing my own iced tea that has seemed to work well over all, and wanted to share it as a healthy alternative to sodas and other sugar, carbonated beverages.

You need-
1 gallon glass jug- not necessary but it does make filling your bottles easier than ladle and funnel

6 Glass bottles- Sobe bottles work well as do Lipton bottles though with time there is a tendency to get some grime in the tops that is hard to clean out. I have worked with plastic bottles in the past but have found that they tend to stain, are harder to get really clean and also have the disadvantage of breaking down slowly with time and as such I try to avoid putting my tea in them.

10 Tea bags- Any variety will do just realize that you need 10 tea bags so you go through a lot of it to make several batches.

Small sauce pan

Water

Fill the sauce pan with water and heat to just under a boil. Traditionally tea is to be enjoyed at just under a boil as it is not as harsh on the tea itself. I usually wait for bubbles to form on the sides of the pan but not to begin a rolling boil.

Steep 10 tea bags in hot water for anywhere between 30 minutes to an hour.

Once the mix is cooled pour it into the glass jug removing the tea bags. It is important that you do not leave the bags in as they have a tendency to grow things on them if you leave them too long.

Fill remainder of the jug with fresh water.

You now have a perfectly simple way to enjoy your tea, either alone or with a little honey. (take the honey part how you want to ;))

If you want a good way to transport it fill the 20 ounce bottles with the tea and refrigerate.

Always consume quickly as this tea has no preservatives and will go bad within a few weeks of making and letting sit.

Benefits:
Making your own tea is a great way to get fluids for the day as well as being a VERY inexpensive, healthy alternative to Carbonated sodas. Depending on the tea that you brew it can be very refreshing. In my opinion nothing beats an iced mint tea in the middle of the summer or a good Green/white any time of the year. Depending on what your tastes and health benefits desired there is a tea out there for you. I use mine for all kinds of things from helping an upset stomach, to relaxing in the evenings, to simply having something to drink during the day.

Cost:
I once figured it out and once you take out the cost of the bottles it costs anywhere from 5 cents to 25ish a bottle to brew your own iced tea depending on the variety and what you are drinking. Many Orange Pekoe, Black teas can be bought in 100 tea bag boxes for less than 5 dollars. In that way if you brew and bring your own tea to work you can save upwards of a dollar to several a day depending on how much you drink. Before I brewed my own I was paying a $1.25 each bottle of soda, and it has been my general finding that besides being mostly sugars and being high in calories they are also high in sugars. Tea has next to no calories (2 per 8 oz serving http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-tea-i14355) so 5 per 20 oz bottle. As well as all of the health benefits each tea itself carries in easily consumed and prepared quantities as well.

Varying sugars:
I used to be a traditionalist and stuck to the idea that tea was to be enjoyed as it was without sweetener. As of late I have found that I enjoy some teas more with a little honey. A tablespoon of honey adds 64 calories but when put in context with the tea (5) it is all together 69 calories per 20 ounce bottle, non carbonated, and better for you than any other soda. For example 20 oz of Mt dew has 275 calories per 20 ounce serving and I have never heard a health benefit of it. http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-pepsico-mountain-dew-i82953 I also know people who sweeten with sugar or no calorie sweetener. but I am not sure there is much benefit to that. I am not a doctor and have not studied medicine or the subject but from what I have heard Aspertaine is just as bad for you as the extra calories you loose by consuming these sweeteners. Not to mention there are actually health benefits to honey such as antibacterial benefits as well as pollen allergy benefits.

Caution:
Most Iced tea that I have made is better enjoyed within a few days to maybe a week after making. Any longer than that and the tea begins to become more tart than normal as well as the occasional settling of a sort of film on the bottom of the bottle. Simple solution: Only brew a gallon or two at a time and drink it all within a day or 2. Last time I made tea in a large batch I added honey to the concentrate and that batch went bad much faster,(3 or 4 days instead of a week or more.) so it is my suggestion that you not sweeten the tea until you are ready to drink it as this keeps it from going bad longer.

Safety caution:
Do not put the water in the jug before you let it cool. I once made a very large batch and poured it into the jug hot and it cracked the glass do to the sudden heat difference it went through.

I prefer to make it in the concentrate method, though at times I have made it in a big pot and ladled it out into the bottles individually. Though this works it is more time consuming and much more messy, for no real difference in the end product.
However you like your tea is the way that works best for you. Hot or cold, I know that I feel a difference when I am drinking tea instead of the terribly sweet and terribly bad for me sodas.