Looking to expand your beverage palate? Why not try a glass of naturally brewed, oak infused iced tea? That’s right, the process normally reserved for fine liquors and wine is now available in a ready to drink tea.
Inspired from a family trip to Napa valley, Arizona Iced Tea was drawn to the oak aging process used to develop a bottle of wine. Curious, they wondered, could this process be brought to tea? What would happen when the flavor of oak was infused in a beverage? They brought their ideas back to the laboratory.
Arizona’s Ready to Drink Oak Brewed Tea Line is the result of two months of experimenting with how the flavor of oak could enhance a simple glass of iced tea.To create this innovative brew, the prepared tea is steeped with 100% American oak chips for 24 to 48 hours. The chips are placed directly in the tank when the tea is super hot, so the tea absorbs the natural flavors and complexities of oak. “We’re able to achieve a really subtly complex flavor …it’s kind of like drinking an old cognac or a whiskey, but it’s actually a tea. It’s really delicious.” said Wesley Vultaggio, Creative Director/Co-owner, Arizona Iced Tea. The tea comes in three flavors: unsweetened, slightly sweet black tea and lemon black tea.
The final flavor is extremely subtle, a flavor that Vultaggio describes as an oaky sweetness that almost drinks like a fully sugared and sweetened beverage but with fewer calories. The oak brewed tea line marks Arizona’s entry into a more sophisticated, gourmet line of iced teas. Sweetened with a combination of cane sugar, honey and maple sugar, the products are geared towards the discerning consumer looking for more in their ready to drink beverages.
The product line is currently available in the New York tri-state region with plans to expand the entire line nationally in the next few months.
Want to experiment by infusing oak into your own iced tea recipe but you don’t have the oak barrels to soak it in? Try adding White Oak Tea to your hot, brewed tea and remove before cooling. There are several brands that offer White Oak Tea including Celebration Herbals and Buddha Teas.
