Simple Pleasures: Homemade Loaded Teas

I’m not one to jump on trends right away—I tend to be a bit behind the curve, as they say. So, it’s safe to say I’m fashionably late to the loaded tea craze. But now that I’ve found a way to make homemade loaded teas, consider me officially hooked!

Loaded Teas

I grew up in the South and still live there. We all grew up on iced tea. So, when I first started hearing about “loaded teas” I couldn’t figure how why in the world they were calling it “loaded tea.” It didn’t look like tea, nor did it taste like tea. Tea is brown, sweetened with sugar, served over, ice, and topped off with a lemon slice.

My husband and I have gotten away from tea with real sugar and now only drink the artificially sweetened version. He is diabetic and we cut out some sugar here and there. Using artificial sweeteners is another whole can of worms, but we are in our “retirement” years, so I’m not worried about it))

My first experience with flavored tea was in Boston or someplace where they obviously didn’t know what sweet tea was. What I received with my dinner was a raspberry-flavored tea. Yuck! I never tried flavored tea again, but I did grow to like the plain and peach-flavored green tea.

Pricey Drinks

As I say, I was late to ever try my first loaded tea. Several years ago, our granddaughter Maggie, was drinking loaded teas sometimes after school and when on vacation or out shopping. I was appalled at the thought of a non-alcoholic drink that cost close to $10! I wouldn’t buy them. Paying a few dollars for a frosted drink or milkshake was fine…..but $8-9 I wasn’t doing it so I wouldn’t even try it!

Fast forward to a few months ago. I started spending an hour or so a day at the local wellness center. My efforts have finally started paying off and I’m pleased with the few pounds and inches that have come off. The wellness center sells loaded teas right by the door as you leave of course.

One day, I thought to myself, why not? After putting in some hard work, I decided I deserved a treat, so I gave it a try. Oh my gosh! It was wonderful!

The baby boomer in me left me with the nagging guilt about spending that much money on a beverage. But, I’ve still been buying two or three a week, not every day even though I wanted one every day. It was still just too much money so I thought there had to be a better way.

Silver Lining Lessons

An internet search led me to Silver Lining Lessons. Most all my questions about homemade loaded teas were answered and I finally found out why they are called “loaded teas.” They have real tea in them! You can’t see it or taste it, but it is in there and is one of the sources of caffeine.

Silver Lining Lessons has a TON of information about loaded teas. Everything from basic beginnings for a newbie, like me, to recipes for almost any kind of loaded tea you might have a taste for.

I’m currently testing out various recipes to find my favorites. Instead of sharing the recipes I’ve tried, please check out the Silver Linings Lessons website and explore them for yourself. I’m sure they have worked hard on gathering the information they have available…..because it’s a ton of it!

Let me warn you, the website is covered in ads and popups. It’s a little frustrating, but you will get to the info you are looking for, you just have to be patient. And there is an app! It has ads on it too, but there is a purchase option that will get rid of the ads. I haven’t purchased it myself yet, since I wanted to explore more recipes before deciding. Plus, there were a couple of products I had to order online and they should be here this weekend.

The Basics

Almost everything you need to make a homemade loaded tea can be found at places like Walmart, grocery stores, CVS, or Dollar General. Almost…I did have to buy some black powder tea and guarana powder from Amazon. Until those products come in, my loaded teas are pretty much just energy drinks or flavored water. The black power tea and guarana will add more caffeine.

I’m all for anything that will help me get in my daily quota of water! Drinking plain water out of a bottle….is just a chore for me.

If you are concerned about caffeine drinks, please do some research on your own. Some people can’t tolerate a lot of caffeine, but most of the recipes from Silver Lining Lessons have less than 200 mg of caffeine. A cup of coffee has around 95 mg so that gives you an idea.

The Technique for Making Homemade Loaded Teas

Most of the recipes I saw start with 4C Energy Rush flavored packet dissolved in hot water along with the extra black tea powder and guarana powder. The tea powder and guarana are optional if you don’t want the extra caffeine.

The 4C Energy Rush packets are carbonated, so be sure to mix it in a deep enough container that it doesn’t spew over. I keep forgetting about that! Put that first liquid in the bottom of a 32 oz cup.

Next, you fill the cup with ice. The next step is to pour some cold aloe vera water over the top of the ice. Then lastly, comes another flavor that has been dissolved in water. The amount of water and flavorings will vary depending on the recipe. None of the recipes I have tried so far call for a full packet of drink mix, it’s all anywhere from 1/8 tsp to one tsp.

Most flavor packets have about 1 1/2 tsp of powder. So don’t make the mistake that I did by going ahead and putting a whole packet if the recipe called for only 1 tsp…..it does make a difference)))

You just have to make homemade loaded teas in clear cups! The drinks are so pretty with their layers. I’m still working on the process, but so far so good)))

Brand Names

If you are interested in making homemade loaded teas, be on the lookout for flavor packets wherever you go))) Walmart has a lot, but you find other little gems at places like Dollar General, Dollar Tree, etc.

That’s a Wrap!

Let me know if you’ve been making homemade loaded teas…..I would love to hear from you))) As I continue to experiment, I’ll come back with my favorites a little later)))

More…..

Loaded Tea: Happy Camper

Old Fashioned Tea Cakes

Making Sweet Tea

Kitchen Spring Cleaning Checklist