This Earl Grey Tea Cocktail is a refreshing alcoholic drink made with gin, lavender, lemon, and earl grey tea. Easy to make and easy to drink, this libation will become your new favorite cocktail!
It must be the caffeine in the tea, or maybe it’s the combination of the gin, tea and honey… whatever it is, this Earl Grey tea cocktail is an energy booster!
I’ll sip on one when Zan comes home from work and I’m like an Energizer bunny until
It has a very mild flavor, like tea with a dash of lemon, a touch of lavender and then lightly sweetened with honey simple syrup.
If you’re looking for a “healthy” cocktail, this recipe is great! It’s incredibly refreshing and easy to make because you can do the prep work beforehand.
It also makes a great early evening cocktail… if you want to stay up! Sometimes I need the push to get me through my midnight work schedule!
Brief History of Earl Grey Tea
Table of Contents
Earl Grey tea is a black tea flavored with the oil of bergamot. It was named after the Earl of Grey, who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the 1830s.
Grey tea was said to have been his favorite, and he requested that a blend be created especially for him. Earl Grey tea is high in caffeine and has a light, citrusy flavor.
How to make an Earl Grey Cocktail
In just a few quick minutes, you can make this delicious cocktail!
First, brew the earl grey tea – make extra so you can keep some in the fridge ready to make more! Read our guide to brewing tea.
Make a batch of honey simple syrup, by heating honey in water until it has dissolved and cool in the fridge.
Pop all of the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice, shake and strain into a glass.
Garnish the drink with a sprig of lavender.
A Tea Cocktail with Gin
Tea is such a great ingredient to use in a cocktail due to it’s complex flavors, and I decided to mix it with gin to let the floral flavors of earl grey sing.
The lemon and lavender work wonderfully well with earl grey creating a refreshing libation.
What alcohol goes with tea?
For this recipe, I chose gin as the alcoholic element as the botanicals in it work really well with the bergamot in earl grey tea. Other types of tea work better with different types of alcohol.
If you are a keen mixologist, why not experiment and mix and match with the below teas and spirits!
Spirits that mix well with teas
- Rum
- Gin
- Whiskey
- Bourbon
- Vodka
Different teas to make cocktails with
- Earl Grey
- Black Tea
- Green Tea
- Rooibus
- Fruit herbal teas
Best Gin for Tea Cocktails
There are a lot of great gins you can get at your average store for a reasonable price. Some notable favorites include Tanqueray, Hendrick’s, and Indigo. Here’s a list of our favorites:
- Gray Whale
- Hendricks
- Tanqueray
- Monkey 4
- The Botanist
- St. George
A Cocktail For A Tea Party
If you are planning on hosting a tea party, this cocktail is a great option to serve. A little spiked tea at a tea party is a must! Especially for a bridal shower tea party!
Tips for making a tea cocktail
- Make sure the tea and the honey syrup is at room temperature, or cooler, before mixing it.
- Keep shaking the cocktail shaker until it has turned cold.
- Always use a good quality spirit.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Alcohol Goes Well With Tea?
There are many types of alcohol that go well with tea. Some popular choices are vodka, gin, and white wine. We have used vodka in this recipe, but feel free to experiment with different types of alcohol.
What Exactly is Earl Grey?
Earl Grey tea is a type of black tea flavored with oil from the rind of the citrus fruit Bergamot. Earl Grey tea is typically made from a blend of teas but can also be made using a single-origin black tea.
The most common type of Earl Grey tea is Assam tea, a black tea from India. Other types of Earl Grey tea include Ceylon, Darjeeling, and Keemun.
The Bergamot citrus fruit is a hybrid of the sour Seville orange and the lemon. Bergamot oil is used to flavor Earl Grey tea and other foods and beverages such as Earl Grey ice cream, Earl Grey martini, and even Earl Grey cupcakes.
What are the Benefits of Earl Grey Tea?
There are many benefits to drinking Earl Grey tea:
Rich in Antioxidants
Earl Grey tea is rich in antioxidants, which can help protect your cells from damage and reduce your risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer.
Detoxifies the Body
Regularly drinking Earl Grey tea may help your body detoxify from harmful chemicals and pollutants.
Boosts Energy Levels
Earl Grey tea contains caffeine, which can help increase your energy levels and improve your focus and cognitive function.
Reduces Stress Levels
The Bergamot in Earl Grey tea has stress-reducing properties, which can help lower your stress levels and improve your mood.
Improves Digestion
Earl Grey tea can help improve your digestion by stimulating the production of digestive juices and relieving stomach discomfort.
Is Earl Grey Tea High in Caffeine?
Yes, Earl Grey tea contains caffeine. A cup of Earl Grey tea typically contains about 40-50 mg of caffeine, which is about half the amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee. Caffeine is a stimulant that can help increase your energy levels, focus, and cognitive function.
When you start drinking Earl Grey tea, be sure to adjust your caffeine intake accordingly. If you’re used to drinking coffee or other caffeinated beverages, start with one cup of Earl Grey tea and see how you feel.
More Tea Cocktail Recipes
The Perfect Peach Bellini Tea Cocktail
The Green Goblin – A Green Tea and Cucumber Cocktail
If you have tried this earl grey cocktail recipe, then please rate it and let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
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Earl Grey Tea Cocktail
Ingredients
- 6 ounces Cold Earl Grey tea
- 1¼ ounces good quality gin
- 1¼ ounces honey simple syrup , (5 cups water, 1 cup honey in saucepan. Simmer until honey is dissolved)
- 1/4 ounce fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- 2 sprigs lavender
Instructions
- Brew 4 cups Earl Grey tea. This will give you enough to make a few cocktails. Store in the refrigerator to keep cold.
- Make a batch of honey simple syrup to store in the fridge as well. 5 cups water, 1 cup honey.
- Bring to a simmer until honey has dissolved.
- Then cool in the fridge.
- Add all of the above ingredients into a cocktail shaker, with 2 sprigs lavender and ice.
- Shake several times. Then strain the cocktail into a glass over one large ice cube.
- Garnish with lavender.
Would be nice if the “print” function worked. The cocktail is amazing. I used a lavender honey (not lavender-infused) that really made it special!
Hi! Thank you for letting me know about the print feature! we will work on getting that fixed!
For transport reasons, could you store the tea premixed with the syrup?
Yes!
I drink earl grey weekly and i have never heard of this before, now that I know I am behind. i need to catch up 😉
Well, this looks like a classy glass of deliciousness! Wishing I could dive into this right now! YUM!!!
I’m intrigued, that’s for sure! I can honestly say I have never had tea with alcohol, but wow, it’s sounds amazing! I love the use of the honey simple syrup. What a great idea! Plus I can use all the help I can get when it comes to keeping me up a little later!
OMG, I love what you turned a cup of earl grey into! Sounds like a fantastic drink for hot days. And the lavender, I bet it adds that little something, doesn’t it? Thanks for sharing!
I love Earl Grey tea so I’m positive I would love this gorgeous cocktail! I love the bit of lemon and lavender you’ve added to make it even more special.
Earl Grey is one of my favorite teas. This cocktail is fun and refreshing. Loved it.
I have everything to make this cocktail. I will be making it tonight after work and I can already tell it will be perfect on this warm evening on the patio.
Awesome!! Thank you Jacque!
Amazing combinations to making this Tea. I just want to make some for sure. Flavorful.
This looks and sounds absolutely like a fun beverage. I will make it as per your recipe exactly for my guest. For myself, I am nursing and cannot consume alcohol so what would you recommend as a substitute to gin.
Never had a tea cocktail and I would be so curious to try! It looks pretty and I’m sure it tastes great with the gin!
Thank you Nicoletta!
Any recommendations for brand of gin to use for this EXTREMELY AMAZING cocktail? My hubbie and I have made this about 10 times now. We’ve now made it our mission to perfect it via type of honey and gin. ????
Ah!! We love this!! For this cocktail Hendricks would be great because it’s botanical, but our all time favorite is Gray Whale Gin, which can be harder to come by (https://www.totalwine.com/spirits/gin//gray-whale-gin/p/191003750) I also like St. George Gin too! As for honey, local is best! Now you have me wanting to make this again!
Another delicious cocktail? Ohh yeah! It’s another reason to bring out a bar cart.
Your recipe says 6 ounces of earl grey tea, thats almost 180ml? is that correct? its that too much?
Yes, 6 ounces, less than 1 cup. The cocktail is mostly tea 🙂
I suggest putting the lavender into the honey as you make the syrup – you will have a deeper, richer taste of both. The lavender looks great as a garnish.
I added your drink to a roundup, I hope that you enjoy!
http://jessiinthekitchen.blogspot.mx/2014/12/thirtyand-thirsty.html
what does “enough to makea few cocktails” mean? 2 glasses, more? I’m thinking about making this tomorrow, for a party of about 6 people and I’m trying to figure out how much to make. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. 🙂
Oh yes I will. Yum!