Oolong Long Island Iced Tea

While the Long Island Iced Tea has been a popular summertime drink for years, it’s about time the beverage actually had some tea in it. Despite having tea in the name, Long Island Iced Tea has never been made with tea – it’s typically a mix of several different types of alcohol like vodka, rum, gin, and tequila, cocktail sweetener, lemon juice, and cola. It is delicious, but we figured there should be a recipe with tea and less alcohol for those that are still looking for a refreshing Summer drink but without as much of a buzz. Not only will our Oolong Long Island Iced Tea give you less of a buzz, but it comes with a variety of benefits as well!

Compared to most other iced teas, the Long Island recipe has quite the interesting history. The drink is thought to have originated in America during prohibition, an era that lasted 14 years from 1920 to 1933, with the iced tea color designed to hide the alcohol contents. The first time the recipe was noted in literature was in Betty Crocker's New Picture Cook Book in 1961 but it didn’t really become popular until the early 1970s. It was during the seventies that the drink got its Long Island moniker. There is no definitive answer to who created the drink, with several individuals claiming they invented it at different times, but regardless of its inception there’s no denying its popularity today.

Thirsty yet? Here’s the recipe to make our Oolong Long Island Iced Tea:

Ingredients

• 1 cup of a Revolution Tea Oolong Tea blend of your choice
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 2 orange slices
• 2 sprigs of fresh mint
• 24-50 milliliters of your preferred spiced rum
• Lemon juice to taste

Recipe

• Step 1: Brew a cup of oolong tea and leave it to chill when finished.
• Step 2: Pour the cooled tea over ice and stir in the honey, rum, and lemon juice.
• Step 3: Garnish with orange slices and mint sprigs and enjoy!

So, why oolong tea? Oolong tea has a wide range of antioxidants that have been shown to be more effective than those found in green and black tea. In fact, oolong tea contains many of the same antioxidants found in both green and black teas so you’re getting almost double the benefits! Oolong tea can help lower risk of diabetes, promote heart health, help with weight loss, improve brain function, relieve eczema, and promote tooth and bone strength. A cup of oolong tea also has about 10 more milligrams of caffeine than the average cup of green tea, but this is still less caffeine per cup than coffee. Currently, we offer two unique blends – Indulge and Endure. Endure offers an exotic fragrance with a burst of rhubarb and roseflower flavor so every sip starts and ends with the perfect amount of sweetness. Our Indulge Tea blends together peach, apricot, and safflower for a smooth and delicious taste. You can’t go wrong with either! So don't wait. Try out this delicious fun recipe today!