This is one of the samples sent to me by Russel Allyn of Harney and Sons.
This is actually a tea I already had in my cupboard, so I am going to gift this sample out to someone wanting to try it!
I have served it at tea time and my guest and I both Ike it a lot. We have been drinking it hot and sans additions. Smelling the cherry aroma enticed me to make it as an iced tea. Last night, I put five teaspoons of dry leaf in my 22 ounce pot. I boiled a kettle of water and put two tablespoons of raw sugar in a pitcher. Part of the boiling water went over the sugar to dissolve it while I steeped the tea. After five minutes steeping, I added the strong tea to the very hot water in the pitcher. I added a wee bit of ice and let it sit out on the counter for a while, then popped it in the refrigerator. The tea stayed a lovely color and did not cloud.
I drank it with lunch on the patio. This is very refreshing! I guess I got the proportions just right because the sweetness and flavor levels all match the bottled Harney iced tea that I tried on Sunday. (Keep in mind that a normal Carolina lady would have added at least 3/4 cup of sugar to that little pitcher! My mother used three cups of sugar for a gallon of iced tea, and balked when I cut it back to two!)
The fruity taste is light and refreshing, really delightful and good. I think this would even be good with no sugar at all, but one step at a time, friends, one step at a time!
Thank you for the inspiration, Russel!
