Sweet tea is a style of iced tea commonly consumed in the United States, especially the Southern United States. Sweet tea is made by adding sugar to bags of black tea brewing in hot water while the mixture is still hot. Sweet tea can also be made with a simple syrup and is sometimes tempered with baking soda to reduce the acidity of the tea's tannins. The tea is served ice-cold and plain but may also be flavored, traditionally with raspberry, lemon or mint.
Sweet tea is typically brewed with a lower carbohydrate and calorie content than most fruit juices and sugary sodas, but it is not unusual to occasionally find sweet tea with a sugar level as high as 22 brix (percent weight sucrose in water), twice that of Coca Cola. An important part of the tradition of the South, it is often consumed daily as a staple drink.
