[1] Infuse tea to make a “marTEAni” (photo © Hershey Resorts.

Earl Grey Tea Leaves[/caption]
[2] America’s favorite flavored tea is Earl Grey (photo © Tay Tea).

Combine your passions for martinis and tea with a tea martini. Green tea, Earl Grey and chai are three of the more popular teas to infuse.

You can substitute another tea variety in this recipe for an Earl Grey MarTEAni, from Tavalon Tea.

The key to any good recipe is to use the best ingredients. So use fine loose tea, not a supermarket brand which typically requires milk and sugar to compensate for the blandness.

(We buy the best tea, and rarely add milk or sugar to it. When properly steeped•, the plain tea is delicious on its own.)
 
 
RECIPE: EARL GREY TEA MARTINI

Ingredients Per Cocktail

 
Preparation

1. INFUSE the tea by combining tea leaves and vodka in a large bottle‡. Replace bottle top and shake vigorously to distribute evenly. Allow to “steep” for just 30 minutes (no longer, or else the bitter tannins start to infuse). Strain into the vodka bottle.

2. COMBINE the vodka, lemon juice and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake for 15 seconds to fully incorporate.

3. STRAIN into a chilled martini glass. Top with a splash of ginger ale and garnish with lemon wheel.
 
 
> THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF TEA
 
 
> THE HISTORY OF TEA

*Black tea is generally brewed by pouring boiling water over the loose tea and allowing the leaves to steep for three to five minutes. The boiling water releases the volatile oils in the leaf, which provide the flavor.

†See our Lemon Glossary for the different types of lemon. The “supermarket lemon” is the Lisbon lemon.

‡If you don’t have an extra bottle, you can infuse the tea in the vodka bottle. Then, strain into a pitcher or other container and pour back into the vodka bottle.