Your Favourite Iced Drinks

39 posts / 0 new

Tue, 2011-06-21 11:38

MegB

It's largely hot in my part of the world right now, so I thought I'd share the recipe of one of my favourite summer iced drinks.

For fans of iced coffee:

16 oz glass ...

1 tbs. instant decaf coffee, or brewed decaf equivalent

1 tsp. cocoa

1 tbs very hot (or boiling) water

three ice cubes

skim milk

You can add other flavourings like vanilla extract, cinnamon, etc., and any sweetener you may use (I like mine sweet, but can't digest natural and refined sugars, so I use sucralose).

For fans of iced tea:

16 oz glass ...

1 bag rooibos tea (or your preferred tea) brewed in:

1/4 cup boiling water

add lemon juice to taste,

ice and cold water

preferred sweetener, if any

(unlike hot brewed tea, I prefer iced tea with little or no sugar or other sweetener).

Other simple faves:

iced tap water with a slice of lemon

iced tap water with a bit of honey and a slice of lemon (boil a bit of water to dilute the honey so that it mixes well with the cold)

a can of Strongbow, slightly above freezing (oh yeah, Strongbow, good company, a sidewalk patio)

Tue, 2011-06-21 11:41

laine lowe laine lowe's picture

Green tea, pomegranate, vodka martini.

Tue, 2011-06-21 11:47

Boom Boom

Too cold for iced drinks here so I'll take something hot, thanks.

Tue, 2011-06-21 11:49

Catchfire

Beer?

Tue, 2011-06-21 11:57

Papal Bull

I really do enjoy ice water. Mmmm, mmmm necessary for more survival.

Tue, 2011-06-21 11:59

MegB

Catchfire wrote:

Beer?

Don't be such a prole. It isn't a summer drink unless it has all kinds of fancy crap in it, and an umbrella.

Tue, 2011-06-21 12:09

Catchfire

Beer in a glass?

Tue, 2011-06-21 12:19

Boom Boom

Rebecca West wrote:

Don't be such a prole. It isn't a summer drink unless it has all kinds of fancy crap in it, and an umbrella.

That's hilarious!

Tue, 2011-06-21 12:22

Caissa

Beer in a dirty glass?

Tue, 2011-06-21 12:26

#10

Polunatic2

Daquiris

Tue, 2011-06-21 13:46

#11

bagkitty

Beer you need a church key to open (as opposed to a twist off). That just reeks of class.

Tue, 2011-06-21 13:48

#12

Fidel

A&W root beer. Full strength.

Tue, 2011-06-21 14:27

#13

Maysie

Some kind of light fruit juice such as lemonade or cranberry juice, with fizzy water and lots of ice. Vodka optional.

Tue, 2011-06-21 14:29

#14

MegB

bagkitty wrote:

Beer you need a church key to open (as opposed to a twist off). That just reeks of class.

Funny!

Tue, 2011-06-21 14:30

#15

6079_Smith_W

Tonic water and angostura bitters (lots) with a slice of lemon.

You can add gin if you want.

Tue, 2011-06-21 19:49

#16

abnormal

Grey Goose on the rocks.

Tue, 2011-06-21 20:01

#17

MegB

Okay, there can be no martini without gin, vermouth (a drive-by) and either olives or pickled white onions. Anything else is a cocktail in a martini glass.

Tue, 2011-06-21 23:30

#18

6079_Smith_W

Rebecca West wrote:

Okay, there can be no martini without gin, vermouth (a drive-by) and either olives or pickled white onions. Anything else is a cocktail in a martini glass.

I prefer mine quite wet with a dash of orange bitters.

Unfortunately I can't make them the way I really like them in the summertime, because I prefer my gin fresh out of a -30 back porch, and as thick as oil.

It goes without saying, no ice. no shaker.

Tue, 2011-06-21 23:42

#19

Catchfire

I think you and me might get along after all, Winston.

Cointreau, soda and citrus or a few rasberries is quite nice in the afternoon. As is Lillet, soda and a squeeze of lime.

Hard to beat a crisp Czech pilsner, though. Or a cold hefeweizen in a tall, shapely glass.

Wed, 2011-06-22 00:14

#20

6079_Smith_W

hahaha

Oh I'm sure.... at least until we throw a dash of politics in with all that booze.

That does sound delicious. I have never actually heard of Lillet.

I'm not much of a beer connoisseur, but I am partial to hoppy pilsners myself. If you ever come through Saskatoon or Regina though, I have a few pubs I can recommend, and a friend down in Regina who an absolute fanatic, and partial to belgian brews.

He also introduced me to a couple of fine summertime drinks - campari and soda. and probably the most dangerous one I have run across - manhattans.

Wed, 2011-06-22 01:07

#21

al-Qa'bong

I don't like cold drinks - I pull ice cubes out of water and pop with a spoon when I go to restaurants, and I like my beer basement-cool.

Hmm, beer. My Slovakian friend, who grew up in the shadow of the brewery, introduced me to "Golden Pheasant" lager a few weeks ago. Boy, that's good beer.

My usual libation is still Garbage Pail Ale, though.

Wed, 2011-06-22 09:54

#22

Uncle John

V8 with tabasco sauce + pepper on ice. Add vodka if I am being bad...

Wed, 2011-06-22 10:39

#23

Lard Tunderin Jeezus Lard Tunderin Jeezus's picture

6079_Smith_W wrote:

He also introduced me to a couple of fine summertime drinks - campari and soda. and probably the most dangerous one I have run across - manhattans.

I associate manhattans with the xmas season. Maybe that says something about my family....

Wed, 2011-06-22 12:32

#24

Timebandit Timebandit's picture

Rebecca West wrote:

Okay, there can be no martini without gin, vermouth (a drive-by) and either olives or pickled white onions. Anything else is a cocktail in a martini glass.

Testify!!!!

Gin and tonic.

Thu, 2011-06-23 08:45

#25

Lard Tunderin Jeezus Lard Tunderin Jeezus's picture

I've been drinking a lot of minted iced tea, a great way to control the prolific mint in the herb garden.

Just take 7 or 8 stalks of mint, rinse them off and put them in a glass jug. Prepare a pot of hot tea and allow it to steep about twice as long as usual (it gets watered down by the ice later), mixing in sugar to taste when it's ready. Pour the sweetened tea onto the mint in the glass jug, stir, wait 5 min. and remove the mint stalks. Add a tray of ice and enjoy.

Thu, 2011-06-23 11:07

#26

bagkitty

Disclaimer: Bagkitty does not belong to ANY temperance league (Women's, Christian or otherwise).

Personally, I think tea is the ultimate seasonal drink... any season. It cools you when you are hot, and warms you when you are cold. The maltier the tea, and the more condensed milk and sugar you stir into it, the better.

I am, however, aware that some people think iced tea is the way to go during the summer. I have heard the urban legend about the origin of iced tea at the World's Fair in St. Louis in 1904 and it always strikes me as way of ruining what would otherwise be a perfectly good cup of tea. I do, though, try to be at least marginally open minded about this topic and have tried various iced teas -- I usually find them pretty disappointing. I am still not sold on the concept of iced tea -- at least not "real" tea... BUT, I have found a tisane that makes an absolutely wonderful chilled drink in the summer.

At the risk of opening myself to accusations of flogging a particular brand-name product (something I am not particularly keen to do because of the risk of being accused of being a lobbyist for "Big Tea"), I would draw the attention of hot and sweaty babblers to a bright yellow box they might be fortunate enough to find in their local deli:

The product used to be known as "fix frutti" and was produced by a German company called Pompadour. At some point the company name was changed to Teekanne, and the product name was translated to the much more pedestrian "mixed fruit". As a hot tisane, it is easily dismissed as yet another insipid "weed water" (i.e., not "real" tea). But brew a batch of this in in a large glass water jug (using about four bags in a two litre jug), refrigerate the brew overnight then serve in a tall glass (with or without ice) and you will have one of the most wonderful chilled drinks in existence. No need to add any sugar (although a few drops of lemon or lime juice are a great addition). It is deliciously tart and refreshing and nothing I have ever tried cuts my thirst on a hot day as well as this does. As opposed to a number of the suggestions that can be found in posts appearing in this thread, you can drink as much of this as you like and still laugh in the face of the local constabulary if they pull you over and ask you to blow in that little plastic tube.

Of course the only retail outlet I have ever found it in is La Vieille Europe on boul. St-Laurent in Montreal (and trust me, I have searched for someone else carrying it, especially since moving back to Calgary), but it can be ordered on-line if you search hard enough. BEST ICED DRINK EVER (and alcohol free).

Thu, 2011-06-23 11:16

#27

Catchfire

bagkitty the tea-totaller. Who knew?

Anyway, as Vancouver has returned to the sultry 9 degrees we knew all "Spring" long, I'm clearly being punished for my pride, wearing shorts and drinking iced coffee yesterday as I did. It was nice of the weather to heat up just long enough for my spinach to bolt before gettinc cool enough to stunt any hot weather plants kicking it off.

Thu, 2011-06-23 15:14

#28

lagatta

Like Al-Q, I hate ice, though I do like fridge-chilled bevvies on a very hot day. Some rosé or white wine mixed with fizzy water into a spritzer is a favourite.

I also chill tea and brewed mint leaves, but don't add ice. I leave them in the fridge. Though hot tea can also be very refreshing on a hot day.

In Italian cafés you also get chilled espresso served that way, though typically there was no ice.

Thu, 2011-06-23 15:22

#29

al-Qa'bong

I put some refrigerated tomato juice into my garbage pail ale yesterday to cool it down.

During the 2006 World Cup, I had a ritual before every French match where I'd pack my teapot with mint leaves, add a teabag and a bit of sugar, pour in boiling water and let it steep for a while. I'd add more water at half time. The ritual didn't quite work. I haven't tried mint tea since Zizou's last game.

Thu, 2011-06-23 16:48

#30

Timebandit Timebandit's picture

Oooh, mint! Mojito!

Thu, 2011-06-23 16:58

#31

6079_Smith_W

I'm not a big fan of garden mint; I find most of them have weird aftertastes.

The best stuff I have tasted is that wild mint with a viney, fibrous stem and pointed leaves. Tends to grow in low and swampy ground - in the river valleys around here (and I have found it south of Pilot Butte near Regina), and everywhere once you get up north into the shield. You don't even have to look for it. As soon as you walk through a patch you smell it.

I have had cups of tea made with that mint that were so strong it had oil beading on the top. It is also especially good chilled.

Thu, 2011-06-23 17:56

#32

MegB

Mint is SO invasive ... there aren't a whole lot of plants that I'm willing to maintain and herd as I do mint.

Here's a nice drink - fresh squeezed juice (or an affordable from-concentrate equivalent), club soda and a splash of quadruple-distilled vodka. Too much vodka kills the taste of the juice. Too much club soda overpowers both.

Excellent with a silly umbrella or other drink garnish.

Thu, 2011-06-23 18:34

#33

Maysie

What's that you say, Timebandit? Mojitos at LTJ's place?

Thu, 2011-06-23 18:48

#34

al-Qa'bong

Quote:

The best stuff I have tasted is that wild mint with a viney, fibrous stem and pointed leaves. Tends to grow in low and swampy ground - in the river valleys around here

I never used wild mint for anything, but I used to like the smell of it while out on the tractor cultivating and turning around in dry sloughs. The tractor wheels would crush the plants, causing the mint smell to waft through the cab.

Thu, 2011-06-23 19:39

#35

MegB

How is 'sloughs' pronounced? Weirdly enough, I've never known ... is it sluffs? Slowz?

Thu, 2011-06-23 20:38

#36

bagkitty

Rebecca... it is pronounced SLEW / SLU (if I knew how to get an umlaut, I would have put it on top of the U)

*waves to Maysie, hoping she will explain to Catchfire that I can drink him under the table*

Thu, 2011-06-23 20:42

#37

Maysie

I dunno bagkitty. Aren't we beyond all that macho crap?

.....and I'm still waiting for my invitation to come drink with you in Calgary. First round of girlie drinks are on me. By the way, I'm a two-drink drunk and I don't care who knows it. Sometimes even one and a half.

*waves to bagkitty

Thu, 2011-06-23 21:09

#38

bagkitty

Maysie wrote:

I dunno bagkitty. Aren't we beyond all that macho crap?

HELL NO. I get my guy points where I can. Since I can't skate, don't "do" power tools, have never been able to expel gas or belch at will and have zero reaction to what I refer to as "car porn", I am heavily dependent on my ability to consume alcohol to have any guy points at all!! Thanks for letting me know about the two-drink drunk thing, if I ever get the chance to show you that there is more to Irish whiskey than Jamieson, I will make sure I pull out the good stuff first.

Fri, 2011-06-24 01:04

#39

milo204

i like taking cola and letting it almost freeze. so good!