Minnesota N'ice Is your new summer classic

Tea :      Minnesota N’ice

Producer:  Teasource

Website: Minnesota N’ice

Website description:  It’s the perfect fishing buddy: sweet and silent. Tastes like oranges with a floral touch and pairs nicely with a cabin at the lake.

Ingredients: black tea, green tea, natural flavors, lemongrass, rose petals, cornflower, jasmine blossoms

Brewing Specs

  • Water: 32 oz
  • Temperature: 80 F outside in direct sunlight (Sun Tea technique)
  • Steep Time: 4 hours for 3 gm

My Review System: https://artofthepair.com/tea-overview/

Iced Tea Technique

  1. All iced teas are brewed using direct sunlight for a minimum of 4 hours.
  2. Only 3 gm of tea is used per 32 oz / 1 Quart of water .
  3. Once tea is brewed, it’s strained and placed into refrigerator to cool to under 40F (typically overnight).
  4. Samples are evaluated without ice, fruit additions (such as lemon) or additional sweetener.
  5. Iced tea is consumed within 24 hours of brewing.

My Overall Impression (Score of 83.0%)

Since Michigan summers are so hot (low 80’s this year), I’m highlighting Iced teas as a great option for the summer months.  I drink iced tea year-round but something about a frosty glass in your hand enjoying the outdoors makes it special.  This tea helps add to that image in your mind. 

From opening the bag, I was attracted by the intense diverse aromas.  After brewing, I have to say this is a winner.   I very rarely carry iced tea around with me.  However, this is one I’d love to pack up and carry to a drive -in movie, hiking or taking pictures of sunset by the lake.

The price on 7/18/23 is $7.20 for 2 oz (w) or 56 grams.

Broken down:

  • 56 gm / 3 gm for steeping = 18 brews
  • 18 brews from package = 40 cents per brew (4 – 8 oz servings)

After dividing out for 4 servings at 8 oz, the cost per cup is 10 cents per 8 oz serving.  This is a fantastic value for this flavor profile.

One suggestion – you may want to double the amount of tea (3 gm to 6) if you like strong iced tea.  This will change the price structure but if you like it, then it’s worth it.  At 3 gm and my brewing process, there was plenty of flavor and pairing with foods was easy.

Aromas

  • Opening the package, very inviting, intense aromas of rich citrus, rose and floral collections greet you.
  • It reminded me of an Asian market with hints of spices that I was not able to distinguish up front.
  • Once brewed, the aromas were muted (see my impression notes) but still there. Lovely notes of orange, tangerine, along with the floral.  More malt aromas are evident in the glass. 
  • As the brew warms up, there are subtle hints of cloves and cinnamon.

Flavors

  • From the aroma in the bag, I was expecting the brew to be heavy citrus based. I was wrong as the brew showed a great balance between the citrus (primarily orange), malt and floral flavors with rose being the strongest. 
  • This is followed by stone fruit (peaches/nectarines) and hints of cinnamon and cloves. Almost similar to a liquid peach cake.
  • I love its structure with off dry sweetness, good acid, and weight to the brew. It presents a dusty mouthfeel for texture, but I feel that adds to its character.

Scores

  • Aromas (4.4/5)
  • Flavors (8.3/10)
  • Overall impression (4.5/5)
    • Total score = 86.0 percent (17.2/20)

Foods to Pair and Why

  • I’m biased here but drinking this alone with a hint of ice and maybe an apple mint leaf in the bottom of the glass might be one of the best things I’ve had. This is one that I will brew again and take to the lake to watch sunset.
  • This week, I tried Bacon Candy Chicken Bites and these were fantastic on the smoker. This paired amazing with the tea for the off dry sweetness, acidity, some smoky flavor, and texture.
  • It would not be summer without having peaches in some fashion. Peach ice cream would be great with the tea but grilled peaches that are diced and tossed into a fresh salad with floral petals would be even better.  This would naturally match the sweetness, acidity, aromas, and flavors (plus you get to enjoy fresh produce).
  • I found some blood oranges that I’m sectioning out to toss with watermelon and feta to make a refreshing side dish. This tea would be a lovely complement to this.  While the flavors would contrast, it would bring another dimension to pairing.
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