Iced Uva Ceylon with Mint and Grapefruit
Cold-brewed Uva Ceylon over ice with fresh mint and grapefruit — leaning into the tea's natural menthol-eucalyptus brightness for a genuinely refreshing pour.
Most iced black teas need added mint to taste 'cooling.' Uva Ceylon already has that quality built in, thanks to the volatile aromatics that develop in the leaf during Sri Lanka's dry quality-season monsoon. This iced drink simply amplifies what's already there rather than inventing a flavor from scratch.
Fresh mint leaves muddled gently with grapefruit segments echo and extend Uva's natural menthol-eucalyptus note, while the grapefruit's bittersweet citrus plays well against the tea's brisk, wine-like tannins — closer to a sophisticated bitter aperitivo than a typical sweet iced tea.
Cold-brewing is essential here. Hot-brewed Uva chilled quickly over ice can turn cloudy and overly tannic; a slow 10–12 hour cold extraction pulls out the tea's pungent character while keeping astringency in check, producing a smoother, clearer glass.
Serve tall, over plenty of ice, with a light drizzle of honey if you want a touch of sweetness — but taste it unsweetened first. Uva's natural brightness means this is one of the few black teas that genuinely doesn't need sugar to feel refreshing.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp loose-leaf Uva Ceylon tea (or 4 tea bags)
- 4 cups cold water
- 1 grapefruit, segmented
- 10–12 fresh mint leaves, plus extra for garnish
- 2 tbsp honey or agave (optional)
- Ice cubes
How to make it
- 1Combine Uva tea and cold water in a large jar. Refrigerate 10–12 hours for a full cold-brew extraction.
- 2Strain through a fine sieve, discarding the leaves.
- 3Gently muddle the mint leaves with half the grapefruit segments in a pitcher, then pour in the cold-brewed tea.
- 4Stir in honey or agave if using. Fill glasses with ice, pour the tea over, and garnish with remaining grapefruit segments and fresh mint.
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