Tea of the Month for August- Milky Tea

In keeping with last month's cold tea, this month I present to you a long standing addiction for me: Milky Tea.

Made by Kirin, a Japanese company that also makes great beer, this is available in 500 ml bottles in all of the local convenience stores and train station counters, at least in the Shanghai area (I've had some trouble locating it in other cities). It is a fragrant tea, that is sweetened to perfection (read:lots). The added milk gives it a rich flavor. However, the drink is surprisingly refreshing as it is well balanced; I have tried other brands and have found that their milk component is too much like cream.


Due to a bout of heartburn that appears and disappears without much logic, I have scaled back on the consumption of this great drink (but I am having one right now in my orange freezer cup- I'm fixing the heartburn with baking soda!). I have also taken to trying to make my own version of this. I brew my Keemun tea in a container, chill it and add the milk to it, when I pour it all in my frozen cup. I don't add any sugar partly for health reasons (but maybe I will in the next batch). It is also for those reasons that I use skim milk in my version. With the addition of a couple of ice cubes, this drink is perfection for the hot days past, and those yet to come.

This is definitely a highlight of summer for me.