Tea isn’t for everyone. Until you add some spirits to it.

By Cari Jorgensen

Personally, I love tea. I could drink it all day. I have Chai tea every morning and whenever I write. I also know that tea isn’t for everyone. Others prefer to start or end their days with coffee, and if it’s hot outside, iced tea isn’t their first choice. Now non-tea drinkers have a reason to make tea the first drink they go for: spirits.

We gathered 12 tea cocktails that are sure to turn even the strongest anti-tea person into a tea drinker. And if you already like tea, these cocktails make it even better.

Amaretto Tea

What You Need: 6 oz hot tea, 2 oz amaretto almond liqueur, 1½ oz chilled whipped cream

What to Do: Using a spoon to prevent cracking, pour hot tea (I’d suggest going with a black tea) into a pousse cafe glass. Add the amaretto liqueur, but don’t stir it. Top it with the chilled whipped cream.

Voodoo Tea

What You Need: 1 shot white rum, ½ shot Blue Curaçao liqueur, tea

What to Do: Grab a highball glass and pour the white rum and curaçao inside. Fill the glass with a sweetened tea until black.

California Iced Tea

What You Need: ½ oz vodka, ½ oz gin, ½ oz rum, ½ oz tequila, ½ oz triple sec, 2 oz sweet and sour mix, fill with orange juice

What to Do: Put all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Shake or roll. Pour into a hurricane glass. Garnish with an orange slice.

Long Island Iced Tea

What You Need: 1 part vodka, 1 part tequila, 1 part rum, 1 part gin, 1 part triple sec, 1½ parts sweet and sour mix, 1 splash Coca-Cola

What to Do: Place all ingredients in a Collins glass with ice. Mix together. Pour the drink into a shaker and shake once, briskly. Pour the drink back into the Collins glass. There should be a little fizz at the top. Garnish with lemon.

Short Island Iced Tea

What You Need: 1½ oz Southern Comfort peach liqueur, 1½ oz Captain Morgan Original spiced rum, fill with Coca-Cola, ice

What to Do: Pour all the ingredients except the Coca-Cola in a highball glass with ice. Fill with the Coke. Stir.

Alaskan Iced Tea

What You Need: 2 oz sweet and sour mix, 2 oz Blue Curaçao liqueur, 1/2 oz vodka, 1/2 oz gin, 1/2 oz light rum, lemon-lime soda

What to Do: In mixing glass, mix together the rum, gin, vodka, curaçao and sweet and sour mix. Pour it into highball glass filled with ice. Top it off with the lemon-lime soda. Garnish with a lemon or lime twist and top it with a cherry.

Bootlegger Tea

What You Need: ¾ oz vodka, ¾ oz rum, ¾ oz triple sec, 1 splash grenadine syrup, sweet and sour mix, 7-Up

What to Do: Put ice in a pint glass. Pour in the vodka, rum and triple sec. Fill the glass with equal parts sweet and sour mix and 7-Up. Add the grenadine.

Georgia Peach Iced Tea

What You Need: ½ oz vodka, ½ oz gin, ½ oz rum, fill with sweet and sour mix, ½ oz peach schnapps

What to Do: Put ice in a Collins glass. Add the vodka, gin and rum. Fill with the sweet and sour mix, then pour the peach schnapps on top.

Buffalo Tea

What You Need: 1 oz Smirnoff Watermelon Twist vodka, 4 oz unsweetened iced tea, 1 oz peach juice concentrate

What to Do: Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice cubes. Pour in the vodka, then add the peach juice and iced tea. Shake well. Strain into an ice-filled highball glass. Garnish with a lime wedge.

Electric Iced Tea

What You Need: ¾ oz vodka, ¾ oz gin, ¾ oz light rum, ¾ oz tequila, ¾ oz Blue Curaçao liqueur, 1½ oz sweet and sour mix, 1 oz Sprite, fill with ice

What to Do: Combine all ingredients in a pint glass. Pour into a cocktail shaker and shake. Serve in the pint glass with a lemon wedge.

Nuclear Ice Tea

What You Need: ½ oz vodka, ½ oz gin, ½ oz rum, ½ oz triple sec, 1 oz melon liqueur, sweet and sour mix, 7-Up soda

What to Do: Fill a Collins glass with ice. Pour in all the ingredients except the sweet and sour mix. Then pour in the mix until it’s almost full. Top it with 7-Up.

Evil Tea

What You Need: 2 oz Captain Morgan Original spiced rum, 10 oz iced tea

What to Do: Mix the rum and tea well. Pour over ice in a Collins glass.

Recipes courtesy of Cocktails.eu