A Perfect Alternative to Coffee: The Earl Grey Foglifter

Most mornings call for an early jolt of java to get me going. Black coffee warms me up, and I’ve grown to love the bitter-sweet taste. But on the slower days when I just don’t feel like a bitter cuppa joe I turn to something a bit smoother – The Foglifter.I was told to recipe a few years ago by a good friend of mine from Australia. I’ve heard it called a London fog, or an Earl Grey latte; but honestly Foglifter just sounds better rolling off my tongue.

Ingredients:

• Boiled Hot Water
• 1 Bag Earl Grey Tea
• 1 oz Vanilla Syrup or Homemade Vanilla Extract and Simple Syrup (50/50)
• 2 oz Cream or Whole Milk

Steps:

Boil 12oz of water

In a large mug, let hot water and earl grey tea steep for 5 minutes. Then combine vanilla and cream, mix well. For an added fall taste, dust with cinnamon or nutmeg.

A few notes:

First off, a bit about tea. The best type of tea is loose leaf, which is a loose variety that has to be contained in a small filter. The loose leaf teas are the first pick of a harvest, while the tea contained in most normal tea bags are the powdery leftovers. Loose teas requires more preparation, but they generally comes out as a cleaner taste with more body and less bitterness. If that’s just too much work, check out Mightyleaf teas, they have higher quality leaves in single use straining bags for the best of both methods.

Next, it’s important to use hot water, and let the tea steep for about 5 minutes. This gives enough time for the tannins in the tea to open up and transfer the flavor to the water. More steep time means more of a strong tea, but with that strength comes bitter flavor so keep that in mind. I used this Strainer from Teavana Teas.

Finally, don’t assume that tea has less caffeine than coffee. A strong blend black tea can have up to 80mg of caffeine which is just about as much as a standard cup of coffee. 

So go ahead and warm up to get that day in gear with a smooth change-up to your caffeinated routine.