Is It Sweet Tea or Unsweetened Tea?
Last week I sat next to a girlfriend at a company luncheon and she ordered a sweet tea. The first thought in my mind was "this ain't the south, honey". In confirmation of my thought, the waitress replied "we only serve unsweetened tea". To you Southerners serving only unsweetened tea boarders on blasphemy, but up here, north of the sweet tea line, it's the norm. The expression on my girlfriend's face was priceless, she just couldn't believe they expected her to sweeten her tea herself at the table. She's lived in Michigan for years and years so I was really surprised that she thought you could get a sweet tea at a restaurant (it's just not done here, folks). She said that she'd gotten used to all the McDonald's carrying the sweet tea and thought all the restaurants had finally arrived. Too cute!
Just for the record, I really like tea in general and love icy cold unsweetened tea in the summer. I'm not to particular about brands, I usually make my hot and cold tea at home using Lipton or something similar that can be picked up a regular grocery store. Lately I've really been enjoying the new Lipton pyramid teas -- blueberry pomegranate is my favorite! As far as iced tea; in my neck of the woods; Gold Peak Tea is the gold standard for good tea; but I seldom buy it as it's so much cheaper to make it at home for as much as we drink.
So, how do you like your tea? Sweet or Unsweetened?
Where is this elusive Sweet Tea Line? Does it fall the same as the Mason-Dixon line?
Do you like hot tea as well as iced tea?
My husband and I just returned from a New England vacation and I was amazed that every time he ordered tea, they ask "sweet or unsweet." I really didn't expect that in the northeast. So...the Sweet Tea Line? I have no idea. In the past 10 years, sweet has started to be an option in most every restaurant in MO.
Sweet Tea here ALL the way---Southern Girl!!
Sunnie in NC
Sweet tea is just nasty! I remember growing up, we always had iced tea. My dad would literally pour the sugar in, and even after stirring the heck out of it, there would be a good 1/2 inch of sugar left at the bottom that wouldn't dissolve. There would be times I'd accidentally grab his cup of iced tea and gag.
So even now, when I go to StarBucks for my afternoon Venti Iced Black Tea, it's always unsweetened. Always.
I cannot even imagine a place without sweet tea. I can honestly say I have never drank unsweetened tea. Can't even fathom it. Trixie, come spend a weekend with me. I'll show you the real South with some real tea! :)
Great blog topic, I'll be interested to see everyone's answers.
Unsweetened sun tea ONLY!
Kathy in Illinois
DH loves unsweetened with Equal...*gag*
I love sweet tea - but not overly done - just a little...
Mcdonalds sweet tea is grossly overdone and obscene on the amount of sugar they use!!
Another southern gal that has to have her sweet tea. I can't do the unsweetened tea and add sugar, it never dissolves and you still have unsweet tea.
Sharon from NC
Another southern gal that has to have her sweet tea. I can't do the unsweetened tea and add sugar, it never dissolves and you still have unsweet tea.
Sharon from NC
I loved this post! We are a MAJOR tea drinking family. Buying teas has been my one indulgence this summer! I never liked it sweet before, but have started putting a tiny little bit of orange drink or lemonade in the bottom of my iced tea. I still like it unsweetened as well. In the 70's I traveled south and discovered that down there there's no such thing as "unsweetened." When I ordered that, it came with "no more sugar added!" Trying to "fix" a sweetened glass I had gotten, I added lemon and it tasted like lemonade! I love the south! While in England, I shocked our hosts by asking for tea and ice to make my daily iced tea. Blessings!
Southern girl here!!! And, yes ma'am, I LOOOOOOOOVE a big glass of cold sweet tea!!
I have to tell you, though, it's not just in the north where you can't find sweet tea. A friend and I were in Florida years ago and she ordered sweet tea at a restaurant and they had NO idea what she was talking about. It was funny, actually!!
I drink sweet tea every once in a while (and when I do, I want it SUPER Southern sweet), but daily I MUST have a cup or two of my delicious Adagio tea. Yum!! I don't care if it is 110 degrees outside, I love sitting down a cup each afternoon.
What a fun post! And fun comments, too!!
Now... what about grits? :)
His,
Mrs. U
I love tea! Both hot and cold, but unsweetened only.
I like my tea unsweet (and get that look when I'm in the south and ask for it unsweet), prefer ice cold. But, I'm the only one in my family all the rest like it sweet....hubby is from the south!!
Hi! New reader to your blog - and I must say first that I found you by looking for homemade TV dinner meals. I love your cooking/grocery/menu planning and freezing posts that I've seen so far!
As far as tea, I live in Northeastern Indiana, and I am sweet tea all the way. My husband, on the other hand, is an unsweetened. About half of the restaurants here in my area have sweet tea (and half don't), but I prefer to frequent the ones that do. Since my husband is equally happy with soda pop, I don't mind too much if they don't have unsweetened.
Ahhh. A subject near and dear to my heart.
I'm in New England where I, too, have gotten the "look" and the statement that essentially said I should do the sweetening myself. (Which, BTW, doesn't work. Granulated sugar sinks to the bottom of cold tea, and, well, just stays there.)
But, guess what? The SOUTH WILL RISE AGAIN! Well, at the least the invasion of Sweet Tea will LOL! We can now get S.T. at McD's, Moe's, Longhorns, and Texas Roadhouse.
Yes, there's a connection. Those are all SOUTHERN based restaurants.
Woo hoo!
Forgot to mention, for clarity sake, that I grew up in Florida.
Ah, the nostalgia...
Well, I grew up in Michigan and moved to Mobile. I DON'T DO sweet tea. It's way TOO sweet for me. Unsweet all the way, baby. There used to be a little hole in the wall restaurant in Benton Harbor that a lady from the South ran, and she had real honest to goodness Southern sweet tea. I heard it was the best. My DH (from TX) drinks sweet tea so I make it for him, and sweet tea drinkers say it's really good. Two family sized tea bags, in about 9-1/2 cups in the coffee maker, steep for about 5 minutes, heaping 1/3 cup sugar while still hot. Let cool on the counter and pour over ice. Refrigerate after cooled. He taught me this recipe. He says it's the best. You HAVE to add the sugar while the tea is still hot or it's just not right. You cannot add sugar to cold tea and get sweet tea.
I drink hot tea in the mornings, and in the afternoons when the weather turns cooler. Hot tea with honey and milk, not cream. Funny eh, as I don't like hot unsweetened tea.
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