Liptons Iced Tea

something weird is going on with lipton's tea. i've been using lipton's tea bags forever to make iced tea. i prefer a good quality loose leaf tea for hot tea, but love the strong flavor of lipton's when cold. and for at least a decade, i've been cold brewing it overnight in the refrigerator with a couple of tablespoons of sugar and filtered water. starting a couple of months ago, after a couple of days in the fridge, the tea would become thick and syrupy- completely disgusting and unlike anything i've seen before-it's undrinkable. so i called customer service at liptons (unilever). the cs woman told me they don't recommend cold brew for their tea, but she couldnt tell me why. i asked her to pass on my contact info to someone there who knew why cold brew produces a syrupy liquid. but i only received a standard useless email. i'm almost positive that liptons used to give instructions for cold brew on their tea bag boxes. does anyone know why this could be happening?

Conspiracy, man

Have you tried it without the sugar? Seems to be something happening with the sugar added in the "brewing."

On second thought - and after some Googling - there is naturally-occuring bacteria that may be present in the tea or water you're using that can create a syrupy appearance. Try steeping the tea bags in 180+ water and then adding cold water

Hi Joan,

I cold brew iced tea in the fridge overnight with filtered tap water as you are doing, and don't live too far from you, so my water is probably similar.

Don't use Lipton's and I don't add sugar, but don't have problem you do. Have you tried brewing without the sugar and just add sugar to your glass prior to drinking?

Al