Home · Recipes · Drinks · Coffee & Tea Cold Brew Hibiscus Tea (Agua de Jamaica) Author: Maryanne CabreraPublished: Aug 7, 2014Updated: Oct 9, 2024 View Recipe15 ReviewsThis post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy. Tart, slightly sweet, and super refreshing, iced hibiscus tea is an excellent warm weather beverage. Easily customize agua de jamaica with additional spices, herbs, or flavors. Table of Contents What is hibiscus?How to Cold Brew TeaFlavoring OptionsServing SuggestionsMore Refreshing BeveragesCold Brew Hibiscus Tea (Agua de Jamaica)View moreView less Like most kids growing up in Los Angeles, I tasted my first hibiscus tea (agua de jamaica) at a local taco spot. After one sip, I was hooked. What’s not to love about this sweet, tart, and refreshing beverage? Typically teas are associated with flowery, herbal, or earthy notes. Hibiscus tea is nothing like that. Although this tea comes from the hibiscus flower, it’s quite tart and tastes very similar to cranberry juice. Hibiscus is known in the Philippines as gumamela. Gumamela tea is a popular drink known to be rich in antioxidants and vitamin C. It has also long been used as a natural dye. What is hibiscus? According to Forbes Health, hibiscus tea is said to have health benefits like lowering blood pressure and cholesterol. Where to buy hibiscus tea? I buy my dried hibiscus flowers in bulk at my favorite local Latin supermarket. You can find it in the spice section of most supermarkets, right next to the Mexican spice pouches. Or, the coffee and tea aisle should have hibiscus sold in prepackaged tea bags. However, I highly recommended finding the large, whole flowers or loose leaf tea instead of the ground up tea. How to Cold Brew Tea Place a rounded half cup of dried hibiscus in a large pitcher. Add additional spices and herbs, as desired. Pour in 4 cups cold water. Cover pitcher and let chill in the fridge overnight or up to 24 hours. (I wouldn’t recommend more than 24 hours because it may get too bitter.) When the tea is ready it will turn a beautiful deep dark red. Strain tea. Discard dried hibiscus. Sweeten tea as desired with simples syrup (agave or any other sweetener you prefer) and transfer to a large pitcher. Store in the fridge until ready to serve. Flavoring Options While I love traditional hibiscus tea, I wanted to experiment with some spices and herbs. I made a batch infused with cinnamon and another with fresh mint leaves. You can also try steeping some fruits in the drink to make a non-alcoholic sangria like beverage. Cold brew coffee (here’s my go-to cold brew coffee recipe) and cold brew tea are all the rage. For good reason because the drink is less bitter and more flavorful. Cinnamon Variation Adding cinnamon to hibiscus tea makes it tastes more like tamarind juice, which I like very much. And if you want to intensify the cinnamon notes, cinnamon infused simple syrup will do the trick! This is perfect during the holiday season. The ruby red color is great for Halloween or Christmastime. Mint Variation And the winner of my tea experiments was the mint hibiscus tea! It was my hands down FAVORITE! It’s tropical, mojito-like, and goes down so smooth. There are so many other infusions to try: ginger, allspice, orange peel, lavender, etc. Serving Suggestions Hibiscus tea is tart when unsweetened. You can drink it plain to reap the benefits of the tea without any added calories. Many people like to add a squeeze of lime to make it a bit more refreshing. I like to sweeten my tea with a little simple syrup, but any sweetener works (honey, agave, etc). Store leftover tea in a covered container in the fridge for up to a week. It’s the perfect drink to cool my mouth after a big bite of chipotle braised pork taco covered in red sauce. More Refreshing Beverages Mint Hibiscus Lemonade Cucumber Agua Fresca Passion Fruit Juice Cold Brew Hibiscus Tea (Agua de Jamaica) No ratings yet Tart, slightly sweet, and super refreshing, iced hibiscus tea is an excellent warm weather beverage. Plus, its said to have health benefits like lowering blood pressure and cholesterol.Yield: about 1 quart Prep Time: 5 minutes minutesSteep Time: 12 hours hoursTotal Time: 12 hours hours 5 minutes minutes Servings: 4 Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate Recipe IngredientsHibiscus Tea:▢ ½ cup dried hibiscus▢ 4 cups cool water▢ ⅓ cup simple syrup or more to taste, recipe follows▢ cinnamon stick or handful fresh mint leaves to garnishSimple Syrup:▢ 1 cup water▢ 1 cup granulated sugar▢ optional flavor: cinnamon stick, or handful torn mint leaves Instructions Hibiscus Tea:Place dried hibiscus and optional spices/herbs in a large pitcher. Pour in 4 cups water. Cover with lid and place in the fridge overnight or up to 24 hours.Strain tea and discard dried hibiscus.Sweeten tea as desired with simple syrup. Start with 1/3 cup simple syrup for a lightly sweetened tea or up to 1 cup for a sweet tea. Store in the fridge until ready to serve. Serve over plenty of ice.Simple Syrup:Place water and sugar in a sauce pot. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and transfer to another container. Let cool to room temperature then store in the fridge.To make flavored simple syrup, add spices/herbs to water and sugar in sauce pot. Bring to boil until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and cover with lid. Let spices/herbs steep for 15-20 minutes. Taste, if you want flavor to be stronger let steep longer. Transfer to airtight container and store in the fridge. Notes Hibiscus tea lasts up to a week in the fridge. Simple syrup lasts up to 1 month in the fridge. All images and text ©The Little Epicurean NutritionCalories: 76kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Sodium: 29mg | Potassium: 24mg | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 88IU | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg Author: Maryanne Cabrera Course: DrinksCuisine: Mexican Did you make this recipe?Show us on Instagram! Tag @littleepicurean and hashtag #littleepicurean.
Ines Oliveira says: August 7, 2014 Very beautiful glasses and very interesting drinks, I shall try it :) Reply
Maryanne Cabrera says: August 7, 2014 Thanks Ines! It’s one of my favorite summer drinks. I hope you like it :)
Rochelle @ Oh So Sweet Baker says: August 7, 2014 These sound amazing. I love hibiscus but I must try it with the mint. Yum! Reply
Maryanne Cabrera says: August 7, 2014 Thanks Rochelle! There is just something so refreshing about the mint hibiscus tea :)
Linda@There and Back Again says: August 7, 2014 I never thought I would ever seek dried hibiscus at the grocery store, but now I’ll be on the hunt. Your drink looks delicious and refreshing. Reply
Maryanne Cabrera says: August 7, 2014 Thanks Linda! Happy hunting! I hope you are able to find it :) If not, there’s always the internet
Xander says: August 7, 2014 I love Jamaica tea! I’ve never tried it with mint or cinnamon; I definitely have to try this out. Thanks for the post Little Epicurean! Reply
Sarah @ SnixyKitchen says: August 7, 2014 Gorgeous, Maryanne! I’m in love with that cup you have your cinnamon hibiscus tea in. I’ve been reading about cold brew v. sun tea v. hot brew, and people are saying cold brew is actually the best way to go – all the flavor without the bitter. We’re obsessed with tea, so I’m going to have to pick up some dried hibiscus now. Reply
Maryanne Cabrera says: August 7, 2014 Thanks Sarah! I think that cup is from Crate & Barrel. I’m loving cold brew because its so easy. It may be a little more time consuming, but I’ve learned to just make large batches :)
Lori says: August 8, 2014 What a striking drink! I have never tried hibiscus tea before but I thin this weekend will be a good time to start. Reply
Maryanne Cabrera says: August 12, 2014 Thanks Lori! It’s refreshing and slightly tart. I hope you enjoy it :)
Joshua says: September 26, 2019 Thanks for the awesome drink ideas Maryanne! I’ve always loved hibiscus tea but have never tried flavoring it with mint or cinnamon, now I know I must! Question for you: what if I only have hibiscus tea bags and not hibiscus in bulk? I do plan on buying the dried flowers in bulk next time, but first I would like to finish off these tea bags, I believe I have 4 left? Thanks I’m advance! Joshua Reply
Maryanne Cabrera says: September 26, 2019 Hi Joshua! I’ve never tried hibiscus tea bags. I definitely suggest buying the dried flowers because it’s much higher in quality. Sometimes, the grounds in the tea bags are mixed with fillers. However, you can certainly cold-brew with the tea bags you have. Simply follow the liquid amounts listed in your tea’s packaging.
Mushroom mama says: April 19, 2021 I definitely am going to make this today! Looks so yummy! Quick question. Where did you get the jars or cups with lids? I just love those kind of things! Reply