How to Make Sparkling Tea at Home

Sparkling tea is one of my favorite discoveries of late. Imagine the elegance of drinking champagne, meets the aroma and depth of tea, meets the refreshing qualities of bubbles. And it's non alcoholic. If you want to bring your tea drinking to the next level, this is traditional tea with a twist of modernity and sophistication. It's surprisingly easy to make at home. 

You can make any tea sparkling, but I'm currently really enjoying the contrast of a warming, roasty profile with the cooling, tangy sensations of carbonation. That's why I've selected a roasted tieguanyin for this recipe. The result is hydrating and energizing. Great for the transition between winter and spring when the days start to get warmer.

Tasting Notes

Sparkling Tieguanyin brews a light amber liquor, with a sweet fruity and floral aroma, refreshing zing, and incredibly smooth and foamy body. This is followed by a deep aftertaste of roasted oolong, and tingling sensations on the tongue. It drinks like a light beer or a sparkling wine. A wonderful experience for the senses.

Brewing Considerations

There are two methods for making sparkling tea: Hot brewed tea concentrate topped with soda water, or cold brewed directly in soda water. While the hot brew is faster to produce, the cold brew is more sparkly. I've chosen the latter for this recipe.

Tea cold brews slower in soda water than it does in still water, requiring 1-2 days. I've chosen 1 day and a higher ratio of tea leaves to water, but if you have more time you can brew for 2 days using fewer tea leaves.

The brand of soda water (also referred to as seltzer, or carbonated water) will impact the resulting taste. I'm using Singha soda water - I like the taste and it's easily accessible where I live, but Perrier carbonated water works well too.

The bottle you use for making sparkling tea must be airtight to maintain the bubbles. You can use a mason jar if you don't have a bottle.

Now that we've gone through everything, let's make some sparkling tea!

Sparkling Tieguanyin

*Serves 2

Ingredients

• 5g (2 tbsp) Dark Roast Tieguanyin tea
• 325ml Singha soda water (substitute with Perrier carbonated water)
  

Instructions

1. Add tea leaves into airtight bottle (substitute with mason jar).
2. Pour soda water into bottle.
3. Secure lid immediately.
4. Cold brew in fridge for 20 hours.
5. Strain and serve into champagne flutes, and enjoy!

Post and photos by Mona Jhunjhnuwala ♥

Thoughts

Have you ever tasted sparkling tea before? How did you like it?