Summer cool offs can be polarizing, whether it be a crisp yet classic lemonade or a stronger punch of sangria guzzled by the glass on the porch. But for us, sweet tea is the perfect medium in spicing up your refreshments. A Southern staple, sweet tea is more of a cultural icon than a choice of beverage, with most recipes professing that the stronger, and the sweeter, the better. It sounds like a pretty easy way to explain that Southern Hospitality– for how else might you be so sweet when you’re swigging glasses of this delicious, cheery concoction?

Our take on sweet tea blends its southern roots with our California sunshine, adding in fresh peach and oranges for a new classic to enjoy on these sweltering summer days. The first thing to know about sweet tea is that it’s not sweetened tea– tea that you simply add sugar into at the table to stir with your straw, with not much of a difference to the taste (just the texture at grainy clumps of sugar underneath the ice). You’ll learn the right way to brew up your own sweet tea here, and you’ll do it just peachy!

Pun intended.

To Brew

Boil on high 3/4 gallon of water in a 4 quart saucepan. Once near to a boil add in tea bags. Seep and stir for 15 minutes. Turn heat off and let sit while making simple syrup.

To Make Simple Syrup

Mix 3/4 cup of water with 2 cups of sugar in a 2 quart saucepan. Heat to a boil and stir.

Final Mix

Add in syrup to the tea mix and stir in well. Slice up peach and orange. Add 5 slices of peach and 2 slices orange. Churn fruit slices over for 5 minutes then let tea cool on stove until room temperature.

Keep tea in freezer for 2 hours then move to fridge. Leave overnight. The next afternoon, pour into chilled cups with ice. Add an orange slice on the rim. Enjoy!