A jug of iced Rooibos for a warm afternoon, brewed strong and chilled down fast. Rooibos has to be made with properly boiling water before it goes cold, or it never gives up its honey-malt body, so this starts as a hot concentrate. The clever part is dropping the sliced naartjie and a sprig of rosemary in while it is still hot, so the citrus and herb infuse into the tea before everything cools.
Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for the Iced Vanilla Rooibos with Naartjie and Rosemary recipe. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/recipes/iced-tea/iced-vanilla-rooibos-with-naartjie-and-rosemary/
Naartjie is the loose-skinned Cape clementine, and rosemary grows on the same hillsides, so the two belong together; an ordinary clementine and a sprig from the garden do the job just as well. A couple of spoons of honey, stirred in while the brew is hot so it dissolves cleanly, round it off.
You'll need
- 4 Dragonfly Organic Vanilla Rooibos pyramid bags
- 500ml freshly drawn water, brought to a true rolling boil
- 1 small naartjie or clementine, peeled and sliced into thin rounds
- 1 small sprig of fresh rosemary, about 10cm long
- 2 tbsp acacia honey or raw blossom honey
- 250ml well-chilled still water
- Plenty of cubed ice for the serving glasses
- 100ml well-chilled sparkling water for an optional long-drink finish (optional)
Method
- Put the four rooibos bags in a 1-litre heatproof jug with the naartjie slices and the rosemary. Pour over the 500ml of rolling water and cover with a saucer to keep the heat in.
- Steep for a full eight minutes. Brewing the fruit and herb in at this hot stage, rather than adding them to a cold jug later, is what lets their aromatics work into the rooibos.
- Lift out the bags with a teaspoon, pressing each against the side, and discard them. Leave the fruit and rosemary in the jug.
- Stir the honey into the hot concentrate until it dissolves; do it now, as honey only leaves stringy threads in a cold jug.
- Pour in the chilled still water and add a good handful of ice, stirring to bring the temperature down quickly. Some of the ice will melt, which is part of getting the strength right.
- Fill four tall glasses with ice and strain the rooibos over, dropping a slice or two of naartjie and a little rosemary tip into each.
- For a longer, livelier drink, top each glass with a splash of chilled sparkling water and stir once. Leave it out for the cleaner, straight version.
- Serve with long straws. The jug keeps in the fridge for up to half a day, but fish out the fruit and herb after the first hour so the rosemary does not turn sharp.
Want the background, not just the brew?
Brewed with: Dragonfly Organic Vanilla Rooibos, 40 Tea Bags 100g
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