Muses

The Perfect Glass of Sweet Tea.

Dolly Parton called sweet tea ‘the house wine of the South” in the movie Steel Magnolias.

Just between you and me and a box of Tetley, when I came on the scene, my mother was a iced tea sweetened with Sweet-n-Low drinker. Therefore I became same.

It wasn’t till a couple of summers ago writing a piece for local magazine — that I began to question why had my South Georgia momma sweetened iced tea with Sweet-n-Low? For in researching my story, seemed like everyone else with a South, North, East or West Georgia momma had a pitcher of sweet tea in their refrigerator.

In talking to my mom when writing the earlier piece, I learned that my maternal grandmother did have a pitcher of sweet tea in their fridge, but that my mother — when pregnant with me in the 1960s — turned to Sweet-n-Low to save calories.

In the 60s, doctors told women to gain only 6 ounces during pregnancy. Thank you 1960s obstetrics. You are why I grew up deprived in the iced tea department.

I had to learn the ways of sweet tea from my friends.

* The brand of tea is important. (Though depending on who you talk to, the best kind changes like Falcons fans after a loss.)

* Color is important.

* Clarity is important.

Yes, it sounds like we are talking about diamonds.

Wanting to give up soft drinks, I started making sweet tea that summer and was baptized in beauty of steeped tea leaves.

I picked up a few things from my sources for that article that have grafted their way into my sweet tea mystique.

Heather — Tetley is king. Therefore I use Tetley. And this is the only reason I use Tetley, because Heather says it is smooth. Not sure what smooth means to tea but it seems to be an important factor.

Bob — Bob was big on clarity. Therefore I always look to see just how clear a batch is. Some people say a pinch of baking soda is the key to transparent tea.

Mom — Talked about the color of her mother’s, my grandmother’s, tea: Amber. I know. Sounds like a exotic dancer, but it’s a color you strive for in tea. Not sure exactly what Amber tea is but as Justice Stewart said about hard-core pornography in Jacobellis v. Ohio, “I know it when I see it.”

You just know if your tea is the right color.

Pam — I have Pam to thank for the half sweet/half unsweet rule. She grew up with sweet tea in the fridge as did all my sources, but now she cuts it in half.

That’s what I do. I order it way in restaurants. Fix it that way at convenience stores. And in my home.

It still tastes plenty sweet for me and saves a few calories.

Today was the day to make the first sweet tea of the season.

I dug out my two pitchers and fixed me a glass.

I use a recipe from Allrecipes. It’s pretty standard operating procedure from listening to all my sources and it works for me.

First, put the kettle on.