To brew one gallon of gourmet iced tea with loose tea leaves:

WATER: Use fresh, cold water from the tap or spring water. Do not reuse water you have already boiled since the oxygen will have evaporated and this affects the taste of the tea.

WARM THE TEAPOT: Warm the teapot with very hot water from the tap then discard that water.

AMOUNT OF LEAF: Measure 1/3 cup of tea leaves (to make one gallon) into your infuser. For teas or herbals that require a heaping teaspoon for one cup of tea, like Rooibos, use 2/3 cup of leaves. For this quantity of leaves, you will need a large infuser for the leaves to have room to expand and brew properly. You can also put the leaves directly in the pot and strain the tea as you put it in the gallon container. A 2 ounce bag of loose tea will yield approximately 1-2 gallons of iced tea.

WATER TEMPERATURE: Heat the water until it reaches the correct temperature: generally, 160-180 degrees for green and white tea, 190-200 degrees for oolong and a full boil for black teas, herbal infusions and fruit blends. Pour it over the leaves immediately and cover your teapot.

BREWING TIME: Brew the tea for the time instructed on the tea bag, generally 3-5 minutes for black teas, 3-5 minutes for oolongs, 1-3 minutes for green and white teas and 5-10 minutes for herbal infusions and fruit blends. Over brewing can also cause the tea to taste bitter.

REMOVE LEAF: After the brewing, remove the leaves immediately.

DILUTE AND SWEETEN, IF DESIRED: Transfer the tea to your pitcher and sweeten if desired. Then, add enough cold tap water to make one gallon.