Anothere easy way is to put your tea bags in your coffee filter basket, run the water through, dump it in your container, add water to fill...ez pz

very ez pz lol i just didnt have a coffee pot at the time so i made do with hot tap water....but a coffe pot will get it hotter. now i need a frig big enough to keep a whole gallon pitcher in!!!

Problem with the coffee maker method is the tea takes on the taste of coffee no matter how well you clean before. Those of us who are purists when it comes to iced tea hate that. I can always tell in a restaurant when they've done that and let them know someone used the wrong basket.

The reason for using a tea maker is so the water is at the right temp for brewing. Also squeezing tea bags imparts bitterness to the brew. Fine for sweet tea drinkers mayber but not us purists. LOL

Wildchild--that's only true IF you use your coffee maker to actually make coffee--LOL. We don't drink coffee, so my iced tea--made in a coffee maker--is always fine. I'm with you about the restaurants--hate when the iced tea comes out tasting like iced coffee, or when you can tell it's days old. Yuck!

I'm with you Wildchild. I don't want any unwanted flavors in my iced tea. With an iced tea maker you can put your ice in the pitcher for the hot tea to drip down on and it is ready to go. I never squeeze the bags. I read not to do that a long time ago. I have had two glasses of tea today while I have been out and running around!

Sue

Has anyone tried Lipton Iced tea with a hint of peach? Gooooooood! Lipton's also has it with a hint of Rasberry too, but we like the Peach better!

I make a gallon of ice tea once or twice a week. Years ago I started using six tea bags for the gallon. Then I only had five tea bags so used that and it tasted fine. Last month I decided to see what four tea bags in a gallon would taste like and was amazed, I couldn't tell the difference.

I bring a pan of water to a boil, turn the heat off and toss in the tea bags. Let it set for 10 minutes or so. I fill my gallon pitcher half way high with ice cubes, add a little water to the pan to cool it off and pour the tea into the pitcher. While I'm doing that I take a big fork and press the tea bags a little to get all I can out of them, fill the pitcher to the top with more water and stick it all in the fridge. Takes 15 mins to make and is ready to drink in a half hour. And tastes fine using only four bags. I don't add sugar.

I get my tea directly from England or Australia which both offer a better grade tea and I don't detect any tannins in the flavor when I use this method.

Jodi-

LOL, I guess I'm an ice tea purists too. I've always referred to myself as a 'tea snob' I think I'll start going by tea purist now LOL. No sugar, sweeters or flavorings for me thank you. It has to be fresh brewed.
An older lady from my church used to serve me ice tea and I didn't like how it taste but I would be kind and accept it because she knew I like ice tea. I have since found out she was making it in her coffee maker and that's what was giving it that weird flavor I didn't like.

DH has it down to an art... for the week. The guy drinks gallons. He bought a special HUGE pot. Think boiling lobster size. Never uses it for anything but tea.

Fills it 1/2 way with water. brings to a boil. Then drops in I don't know how many tea bags... maybe 12 Family size bags. Turns off the heat and lets it set till it cools down. Then mixes in splenda (he drinks sweet tea) and fills with water to the top. I couldn't tell you how much water, cause I don't touch his tea pot and don't know how big it is. Then he takes 4 or 5 or 6 gallon water bottles, which he washes out very well. Fills them with the sweet tea mix and puts in garage fridge which is extra cold.... then he has tea made for the week. And each week he makes about 8 gallons. Takes them to work and drinks them at home. I will drink his tea, but have to cut it with water cause it is really strong tea and extra sweet.

I don't like it made in a coffee pot because it doesn't steep, the water just flows over the bags. (I had a coffee pot that had never been used to make coffee.)