If you’ve ever been lucky enough to have a Long island iced tea somewhere, you might be wondering what goes into making it. The great news is, you can whip it up easily with cola, lime or lemon, ice, vodka, gin, rum, tequila, and triple sec. Quite a few ingredients, but it’s worth the work.
In this article you'll find:
What Is Long Island Iced Tea?
It’s one of those cocktails that goes down pretty easily – not always a good thing lol! It has several types of alcohol mixed up with cola and served with a spiral of lemon or lime. Its name is a reflection of its color, which is mostly due to the cola, so it looks very much like a normal cup of iced tea.
Despite its name, it contains absolutely no iced tea, which can come as a bit of a surprise! It’s actually a pretty strong alcoholic drink, so make sure you know what you’re ordering (or making) before committing!
Warnings aside, it’s a favorite drink for summer, and it has a somewhat sweet flavor, tasting mostly of cola with lemon.
What Do You Need To Make A Long Island Iced Tea?
One of the great things about it is it’s pretty quick and easy to make, and you don’t need any amazing skills to recreate it yourself at home. You can whip up a batch for a summer barbecue or an evening relaxing in the garden with very little time or effort, though you do need a few different ingredients.
To make enough Long Island iced tea to serve four people (with 2 1/4 ozs of alcohol per drink), you’ll need:
2 lemons (or limes)
2oz of lemon juice
2oz of rum
2oz of gin
2oz of vodka
2oz of tequila
1oz of triple sec
2 cups of cola
Plenty of ice, both for making and serving
How To Make A Long Island Iced Tea
Pour the tequila, gin, vodka, rum, and triple sec into a large cup or shaker.
Add the juice of a lemon or lime.
Add some ice cubes or crushed ice (depending on your preference) to the shaker.
Keep shaking the shaker until it feels cold (that means your drink is cold too) .
- Add ice to 4 tall glasses and divide the mix from your shaker evenly between them.
- Top up the glasses with cola.
- Slice the remaining lemon or lime into wedges and either drop the wedges into the drink or place them on the rim of the glass.
- Enjoy!
Alternative Additions To Long Island Iced Tea
Some recipes call for you to add a sugar syrup, making it sweeter and further disguising the alcohol. To do this, you can heat two cups of water with 1 cup of sugar stirred into it. Warm until the sugar is dissolved. This should be allowed to cool fully before adding it to the iced tea.
You can also vary which kinds of alcohol you choose; some people like to bring a tropical twist to the drink by choosing things such as Malibu rum and swapping the cola for lemonade. If you do this, try swapping lemon or lime for a tropical fruit such as a mango, which would complement the color nicely. I’m not convince this would really still be a Long island iced tea though – but it WOULD be delicious lol!
A non-alcoholic version of this drink can also be made by combining English Breakfast tea, a splash of apple cider vinegar, lemon, ice, mint, and non-alcoholic ginger beer. If you’re a designated driver, teetotaler, reducing your alcohol intake, or pregnant, this is a great way to still enjoy the sweet, fruit flavor without the alcohol content.
Another twist on the traditional drink calls for sliced peaches, which should be smashed up, added to the drink, and then strained out at the end. These bring a beautifully fruity, subtle flavor to the cocktail, and are particularly lovely for long summer evenings in the garden. Definitely worth the little bit of extra preparation effort!
For another fruity twist, try swapping the standard cola for cherry cola. It won’t change the drink dramatically, but will lend it more fruity undertones, complementing the alcohol and sweetness beautifully.
Conclusion
To make a Long island iced tea you just need cola, lime or lemon, ice, vodka, gin, rum, tequila, and triple sec. And you can make different versions too – after all, variety is the spice of life! Whatever you choose, be sure to drink responsibly.
