Here on the West Coast, sweet tea is a rare–and, some may say, impossible–commodity. And if you’re like us, you really only have the foggiest notion as to what real sweet tea is and should be. Luckily, the nice folks at Slate have put together a nice lil’ article expounding upon the wonder that is sweet tea:
Drinking sweet tea is one of the oldest and most exceptional Southern traditions. As Dolly Parton’s character in Steel Magnolias puts it, it’s the “house wine of the South”—a clear, orange-to-red tinted tea brewed from six or seven Lipton or Luzianne tea bags, poured hot onto a cup or more of sugar or a pool of simple syrup, and then diluted into a gallon pitcher in the fridge. It’s served over a mound of ice in a huge glass—so cold that you can watch your napkin drown in a puddle of condensation.
The few times we’ve had sweet tea, we’ve been surprised at the (sometimes) overwhelming sweetness, though we’ve heard that the genuine version strikes a perfect note on the sweetness scale.
Here in the Bay, your Southern sweet tea pickin’s are generally slim (Memphis Minnie’s BBQ and farmerbrown are two options), so you might be best served trying to make your own.
Southerners, weigh in. We need help!
I Wish I Lived in a Land of Lipton … [Slate]
[Image courtesy: Clemson]
