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Ingredients
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Green Mint Tea Base
Assembly & Serving
Method
Green Mint Tea Base
- 1
Steep the tea
Bring the water to about 80°C (175°F). If you don't have a thermometer, remove from a full boil and let stand 1 minute. Place the green tea leaves and the 12 spearmint leaves in a heatproof pitcher or teapot.
- 2
Pour 400 ml of the hot water over the tea and mint leaves. Stir gently, cover, and steep for 2 to 3 minutes for sencha or 1 to 2 minutes for a stronger gunpowder green tea to avoid bitterness.
- 3
Strain the tea into a clean container, pressing lightly on the leaves to extract flavor. Discard leaves. While still warm, stir in the granulated sugar until fully dissolved. Taste and adjust sweetness as desired.
- 4
Allow the sweetened tea to cool to room temperature (about 20–30 minutes), then chill in the refrigerator until cold (about 30–45 minutes). You may speed this by placing the container in an ice bath.
Assembly & Serving
- 5
Fill two serving glasses with ice cubes (about 1 cup each).
- 6
Divide the chilled green mint tea between the two glasses (about 190–200 ml per glass). Reserve about 120 ml if you plan to top with sparkling water; otherwise pour the full amount to fill the glasses.
- 7
Add 15 ml (1/2 oz) fresh lemon juice to each glass and stir gently to combine.
- 8
If using sparkling water: top each glass with 60 ml sparkling water to add a light effervescence. Stir once gently.
- 9