Whether brewed hot or cold, the benefits of tea have many switching over to this healthier beverage every year, but cold brew tea offers even more benefits. If you haven’t tried cold brew tea, beyond iced tea, the tea masters at Art of Tea recommend trying the cold brew steeping method to enjoy its benefits.
HEALTH BENEFITS
There have been many reports on the health benefits of tea, and cold brew tea is no exception. While we can't make any claims, the data shows that Vitamin C is more active in cold brew tea and may help boost your immune system. It also contains Vitamin D which is good for strengthening bones, and vitamin B complex may help increase your metabolism. And, its antioxidants help protect you from the damage of pollution.
Some of the most significant findings on the health benefits of tea are its effect on heart disease and stroke. The New York Times reported on a study published in the European Journal of Epidemiology that stated that those who drink at least three cups of tea a day have a 21% lower risk of stroke than those who only consumed one cup of tea per day. And a more recent study conducted by the same group found that drinking an additional three cups of tea per day was associated with reducing coronary heart disease by 27%.
Herbal tea such as chamomile has been said to help soothe the digestive system for those with irritable bowel syndrome, while green tea may reduce the risk of some cancers. Drinking organic tea removes the potentially harmful effects of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
It doesn’t get much easier than dropping loose leaf tea or tea pouches into a pitcher or jar of cold water and letting it steep in the refrigerator. It’s really that simple. The only thing you need to know is how long to let the tea steep.
If you are trying to avoid sugar and calories, cold brew tea is a better option. The cold brew method produces a sweeter flavor, so it doesn’t require the addition of sweeteners.
Cold-brew tea is a great way to keep hydrated, especially on hot summer days. You can actually drink it as a replacement for cold water without having to worry about negative effects.
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cold brewing results in a smoother taste, this may seem like a subjective point, but cold brewing extracts the antioxidants more gently & this means the tannins do not come through nearly as much. Tannins are the chemical that cause the bitter after-taste in hot brewed Green Tea.
This is an amino acid that is naturally occurring in many plants, including Green tea. It has been studied to naturally promote anxiety relief. Lower stress levels contribute to better sleep, better focus and generally good mood. Some early studies have also shown that L-Theanine can promote immunity as well, although this benefit needs further investigation to verify.
While Green Tea has a wide range of vitamins & minerals, research has shown that cold brewing Green Tea substantially elevates the levels of Vitamin C as compared to hot brewing.
Brewing with water over 90 Celsius destroys levels of antioxidants in Green Tea, so brewing with cold water preserves the antioxidant integrity (because it prevents antioxidants from denaturing.)
Cold-water green tea extracts are more effective in scavenging free radicals — unstable atoms or molecules that contribute to age-related diseases — according to a study published in 2008 in the journal “LWT — Food Science and Technology.” The study researchers did find a drawback to cold-brewed tea. The cold-water green tea extracts had less antioxidant activity than the hot-water extracts. A tradeoff seems to exist because fewer antioxidants — specifically tannins — in cold-brewed tea give it a milder flavor but may also result in decreased health benefits associated with antioxidants.
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Cold-brewing draws fewer tannins into the tea compared to hot-brewing. Tannins are a type of polyphenol, an antioxidant compound in tea leaves that imparts an astringent taste to the tea. Fewer tannins result in a smoother, sweeter tea. And, fewer tannins may also have a health benefit. According to Dr. Andrew Weil, founder of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine, tannins can inhibit the amount of iron absorbed from foods. This effect is only seen with iron that comes from vegetables and grains, or nonheme iron, not iron from animal sources such as meat, poultry and fish.
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