About

This website is devoted to one thing that I find to be an essential part of a good life. That one thing is good iced tea (or “ice tea” to some), more specifically black unsweetened iced tea. This site started as my way of keeping track of the quality of iced tea that was being…

Top Ranked Fast Food Iced Tea for 2020

The last time I did this ranking was in 2017 (see that list here).  Since then there has been a number of changes in my rankings of iced tea from national fast food chains. First Place Chipotle was previously my second ranked iced tea, behind the iced tea from In-N-Out.  In 2017 my reasoning behind…

Ike’s Love & Sandwiches

Ike’s Love and Sandwiches is a funky joint that got its start in The Castro district of San Francisco in 2007.  Ike’s is known for it’s unique sandwich offerings that have equally unique names like “Menage a Trois” and [Name of the Girl I’m Dating].  I first reviewed Ike’s iced tea in 2016.  At this…

Iced Tea Rating Revisions

A colleague of mine recently brought to my attention an issue she had with one of my restaurant iced tea ratings, and I think she has a valid point. The review she had issue with is my four tea bag rating for Habit Burger Grill‘s iced tea, but the same critique can be applied to…

Iced Tea at The Crack Shack

The Crack Shack is a fast casual restaurant chain with a “trendy” vibe, that prides itself on it’s quality ingredients. The restaurant was started by celebrity chef Richard Blias whose has appeared on the television show Top Chef. The Crack Shack currently has a handful of locations in Southern California and Las Vegas. I was…

Raising Cane’s – Raising the bar on iced tea

Raisin Canes had been on my iced tea radar for some time now, but being that there are only a handful of locations in my home state of California and none within 100 miles of my home, I had not gotten the chance to visit one.  I had a recent visitor to my website say…

Starbucks iced tea . . . hold the water?

I have posted on the topic of Starbucks iced tea many times over the years.  You can view my original review of their iced tea here.  To summarize, I really enjoy the taste of Starbucks iced tea and because it seems like there is a Starbucks on every corner, it is usually a safe and…

Improved Iced Tea at Pieology

Prior to 2018 I was very down on the iced tea served at Pieology. The tea was Gold Peak brand pre-made tea which I describe in detail here.  However since then Pieology has switched to what I am 90% sure is Gold Peak brand fresh brewed iced tea (the brand of tea will be verified…

Caffeine and Iced Tea

Whether good or bad, the effects of caffeine on the human body is something you hear about a lot lately. This is mainly because of people’s love affair with the highly caffeinated drink which gave Starbucks its notoriety.  For comparison a tall (12 ounce) cup of Starbucks Pike Place Roast has approximately 235mg of caffeine…

“My” Home Brewing Technique

After a long period of mainly consuming either fresh brewed tea from restaurants or bottled Tejava iced tea, I have started to really enjoy brewing tea at home for my daily consumption.  You can read the reviews of a number of traditionally home brewed teas by clicking here, and instant teas here.  After tasting a…

Tea and Genetics

Epigenetics, which is the study of how gene expression can be modified by our environment, is a hot topic these days.  A new study published in The Human Molecular Genetics Journal has shown that tea may have a positive effect on the expression of certain genes in females.  The study found that for females, drinking…

My Top Home Brewed Iced Teas

After reviewing a number of really good home brewed iced teas (click here to see them) I thought I would give awards for my top three based on the two basic criteria of taste and value.  Drumroll please. . . Scorecard: Taste-8 Value-8 Coming in at a respectable 3rd place is Tazo “Iced True Black”…

Iced Tea vs. Ice Tea

Which is the correct term “iced tea” or “ice tea”? The original drink which was popularized in the early 1900’s was called “iced tea”, but today the way many English speakers pronounce it more closely resembles “ice tea”. The term “ice tea” has even began to shows up regularly in writings and edited publications. Other…