Gallon Sweet Tea?

[jme829]

Walmart has their own version of sweet tea by the gallon. Made with tea , sugar and water (no HFCS , I checked, I buy it occasionally when I 'm too lazy to make my own..lol) that pretty cheap and tastes pretty good I think its about $2 for the gallon .

My mom used to run a Chick FIl A and I think even back then their gallon of tea was pretty pricey. BUT its GOOD!!!! lol

If you go to the Super Walmart , try looking there. I usually find it in the cooler section with the milk, OJ, etc..

 

[Toad_Passenger]

I'm a huge tea drinker. All different types, Iced and Hot. I'm a little curious, though, about this "sweet tea" fad. Is it not just tea with sugar added? Is it different from the highly sugared teas they've been selling at the convenience store level for years?

 

[jme829]

I'm afraid, if I got a gallon of McDonald's Sweet Tea... I'd drink it all myself! Ohh, I love that stuff, and haven't had any since I went on this "lifestyle change".

LOL...yup thats me! I swear they put crack or something in it. I really have to watch how often I get it. I get addicted to it really fast! Doesn't help that you can it for a buck either. Makes it all that more tempting.

I don't drink or smoke so thats my big vice! lol

 

[Robinrs]

No, I've taste plenty -- I love ice tea (the kind where you add your own sweetener, as well as some bottled brands that are sweetened but not "sweet") and when sweet tea first began to spread outside the south I often got served it before wait staff realized it's a love/hate thing and started to ask.

I included that one incident because I thought it was a pretty apt description of what ALL sweet tea tastes like.

Here in GA they call it sweet tea NO MATTER WHAT. I called it iced tea all my life and had to change the name when I got here. They looked at me like I had lost my mind when I asked for iced tea.

I could drink twelve glasses and never taste the same taste twice.

 

[kydisneyfans]

After stopping all carbonation about 3 months ago, sweet tea is now my go to drink. We usually get it at McDonalds or Sonic. Around KY, Thornton's and Speedway gas stations sell it. On occasion, we may get a bad batch.

Chick Fil A sells it by the gallon, it is not cheap. The only grocery store bought tea that comes close to the taste is the Gold Peak 1/2 gallon, but at nearly $3 a pop, I'll stick with the Sonic happy hour.

 

[luvsJack]

Sweet tea, non-sweet tea, coffee, coke, sprite, pepsi. . . its all just a matter of taste. Some say icky, some say good. I love sweet tea from certain places and I like my own--its what I grew up drinking.

BUT, I only like very fresh sweet tea. If it is too old it will get very syrupy. I wouldn't want to buy a gallon and then try to keep it for a week. I only buy tea by the gallon if we are having a cook out or some how that it will be used in one sitting.


Anyway, OP if you do get stuck drinking unsweetened tea at Disney (there are a couple of places that have sweet, I think), try sweetening it by using 2 packets of sugar and one packet of Equal or Splenda. Much better than trying to sweeten it with just sugar.

 

[perdidobay]

Sweet tea is really so different sometimes because of the huge amount of sugar some people put in it. I'm sure tooo much sugar is why some people do think it's icky. To me the best sweet tea is brewed with luzianne tea bags, and sugar added when the tea is hot. You use way less sugar this way. My friend orders "half and half" tea when he eats out - and most servers know just what that means - half sweet tea and half unsweet tea. It is just sweet enough without being oversweet.

 

[luvsJack]

Sweet tea is really so different sometimes because of the huge amount of sugar some people put in it. I'm sure tooo much sugar is why some people do think it's icky. To me the best sweet tea is brewed with luzianne tea bags, and sugar added when the tea is hot. You use way less sugar this way. My friend orders "half and half" tea when he eats out - and most servers know just what that means - half sweet tea and half unsweet tea. It is just sweet enough without being oversweet.

Yep! Thats the way I make it! One cup of sugar for 1/2 gallon of tea. And I have ordered the half/half at places where I know the tea is way too sweet.

 

[Uuaww]

Sweet Tea is a beverage/food item. Therefore, it is prone to personal preferences. There is no fact about whether or not Sweet Tea is good or not. It depends on the person.

My personal opinion is that it is too sweet. Also, it is not available everywhere in the country.

 

[Trish Bessette]

Now I'm craving Sweet Tea! Off to McD's I go on lunch to get one. Now if I can only get by without ordering a fry with it

 

[Toad_Passenger]

Seriously, though, my original question still stands. Is there something special about sweet tea, or is it just what we Northerners call "sweetened" Iced Tea? Our local dairy has been selling insanely sweet/sugared tea for years, but they just call it Iced Tea.

 

[kydisneyfans]

With sweet tea, the sugar is added while the tea is hot, making it dissolve better. With iced tea, sugar is added while the tea is cold, more or less a mix in.

 

[Christine]

Seriously, though, my original question still stands. Is there something special about sweet tea, or is it just what we Northerners call "sweetened" Iced Tea? Our local dairy has been selling insanely sweet/sugared tea for years, but they just call it Iced Tea.

Okay, here's my take on the whole issue.

I grew up making "iced tea" or "ice tea"--sweetened or unsweetened. This involved boiling water, adding in the teabags, letting it steep. I then pour the VERY HOT mixture over 3/4 c. sugar, let the sugar dissolve, and then add water to dilute as my base tea mixture is very strong. If I am making tea for people coming over, I will do one sweet and one unsweetened.

Then, a few years ago, "Sweet Ice Tea" just like in South came to our area. The only notable difference in that tea and the tea I have always made at home is that it is MUCH, MUCH sweeter. Whew--it's REALLY sweet and apparently well-loved in the South.

 

[Toad_Passenger]

With sweet tea, the sugar is added while the tea is hot, making it dissolve better. With iced tea, sugar is added while the tea is cold, more or less a mix in.

Okay, here's my take on the whole issue.

I grew up making "iced tea" or "ice tea"--sweetened or unsweetened. This involved boiling water, adding in the teabags, letting it steep. I then pour the VERY HOT mixture over 3/4 c. sugar, let the sugar dissolve, and then add water to dilute as my base tea mixture is very strong. If I am making tea for people coming over, I will do one sweet and one unsweetened.

Then, a few years ago, "Sweet Ice Tea" just like in South came to our area. The only notable difference in that tea and the tea I have always made at home is that it is MUCH, MUCH sweeter. Whew--it's REALLY sweet and apparently well-loved in the South.

Thanks for both of your answers. I really like the taste of various teas. It sounds like I would probably not like "true" sweet tea as it seems like the amount of sweetness will overpower the various flavors of the tea. Again, though, thanks for the clarifications. It does sound similar to what our dairy has been selling for a long time.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Sweet Tea is a beverage/food item. Therefore, it is prone to personal preferences. There is no fact about whether or not Sweet Tea is good or not. It depends on the person.

My personal opinion is that it is too sweet. Also, it is not available everywhere in the country.

Just to be clear, as the person who posted that it was fact not opinion, I was joking. I do find sweet tea to be revoltingly sweet, but I also recognize that that is my opinion, and that other people are entitled to different opinions.

However, I don't think it's an opinion that too much sugar in a beverage makes it harder for the body to use it for hydration, and if it's a 100 degree day at WDW one should consider supplementing that sweet tea with water, or gatorade, or something very diluted.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

I LOVE sweet tea but haven't had it in years (I love to drink everything in huge quantities[not alcohol ] so I know I couldn't just have one glass). I was a waitress at Cracker Barrel when I was a teenager and one of my responsibilities was making the sweet tea. The brewer held probably 10 gallons of tea to which an entire pitcher of sugar is added. But soda isn't any better (in fact, at least tea isn't full of chemicals and HFCS if you make it fresh). I've spent the last few months trying to tolerate unsweetened tea but I can't. Just water for me .

 

[karibritt01]

Seriously, though, my original question still stands. Is there something special about sweet tea, or is it just what we Northerners call "sweetened" Iced Tea? Our local dairy has been selling insanely sweet/sugared tea for years, but they just call it Iced Tea.

The tea tastes differently when the sugar is added while the tea is still hot. True sweet tea you add the sugar right after (or during) the steeping process. Iced tea with the sugar stirred in is NOT the same.

Everyone's tea recipe is different. I boil a coffee pot of water, add 4 family size Luzianne Decaf tea bags, remove from heat and let sit about 30 min. Then pour into a gallon pitcher with 1 1/3 cups sugar, dissolve, fill with water, and chill.

For the PP who said they only make a gallon when having a party or it goes to waste... LOL we use a gallon a day in my house!

 

[Mrs. Charming]

OMG, I'd die if I didn't have Chick Fil A sweet tea. It's my only vice. It's my caffeine allowance during pregnancy.. lol.

That said, we're definitely going to have to get a gallon during our trip in Dec. If we didn't I'd probably go through withdrawal! I also agree about their cups-- for some reason they keep the beverage cold longer than any other styrofoam cup I'd ever had!

 

[Jennasis]

MY DH loves sweet tea....I'd rather die of dehydration than drink the swill. I do enjoy Iced tea.

Different stokes.

 

[december]

I'm still trying to get over sweet tea being called a fad! Here, it is just what we drink-no matter how hot it is! And we don't go around saying "sweet" tea. There is tea, and there is (sometimes) unsweetened tea. But if someone asked for tea the sugar is implied!

I make it the same way as the other MS lady on this thread. Boil water, add tea bags (I use 2), steep for a little while, pour over a cup of sugar while hot, and add water to make 1/2 gallon. IF there is any left on the 2nd day, it goes down the drain. I can't imagine drinking tea that is a week old!