Iced tea is a drink that most people associate with summer, so it makes perfect sense that June would be National Iced Tea Month. Over the next 30 days, everyone should take the time to make their favorite type of iced tea. A quick search of the internet will reveal about a million different recipes for this tasty beverage, so people should choose the ones they like the best.

Some of our favorite iced tea recipes are Peach Tea, Blackberry Mint Tea, Raspberry Lemon Tea, and of course, good old-fashioned Sweet Tea. We associate these recipes most with the start of summer, and we think that they’re good recipes to whip up for this refreshing month.

The History Of National Iced Tea Month

People have been brewing tea for a very long time. According to historians, tea was first brewed in China over 5,000 years ago. Although no one really knows who invented it, according to a popular legend, Emperor Shen Nung discovered this beverage when leaves from a wild tree blew into his pot of boiling water.

Supposedly, he was so taken aback by the scent of the newly created tea that he just had to take a taste. He did so and found out he liked it, and the rest is history—once again, according to legend.

While hot tea has been around for thousands of years, iced tea hasn’t been around quite that long. Now, we can’t rule out someone making iced tea using natural snow at some point in history, but widespread iced tea wasn’t really available until the early 19th century.

During this time, it was common in America and England to make green tea punches that had lots (and we do mean lots) of liquor in them. The love of iced tea began to become more popular during this time, but it wouldn’t be until the beginning of the 20th century that iced tea would really take off as a popular drink.

What happened during the 20th century to make iced tea super popular? Well, it was the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, Missouri, that really caused the popularity of iced tea to go through the roof.

It was during this time that iced tea was popularized and ultimately commercialized. It basically changed the way that Americans viewed tea. Now, as far as National Iced Tea Month, we’re unsure of exactly when it was invented. More than likely, this month was created by some tea company as a way to sell more tea to the public.

Observing National Iced Tea Month

Everyone everywhere should take the time to enjoy some iced tea. Maybe make a new recipe and then share it with friends and family. People should also take the time to share their favorite iced tea recipes with the internet by using the hashtag #NationalIcedTeaMonth.