London Fog Tea Drink – comforting winter drink to brighten your mood on a rainy day, consisting of Earl Grey tea, lavender flowers and foamy steamed milk.
There are two kinds of London Fog drinks: alcoholic cocktail and a non-alcoholic tea drink. The latter one is a combination of Earl Grey tea with lavender, vanilla and milk. It seems to be created in Vancouver, Canada, about 10 years ago. Later on Starbucks put it on its latte menu and so it became popular. The idea behind it was to create a comforting beverage to brighten your mood on cold, foggy or rainy days. Funny enough, in Scotland it is known as a “Vancouver Fog”.
Starbucks says the list of ingredients for London Fog drink is:
- milk
- an infusion of black tea, bergamot essence, lavender flowers and water
- classic syrup consisting of water, sugar, natural flavors, potassium sorbate and citric acid.
So, it is not too complicate to replicate the recipe.
You can use dairy or non-dairy milk of your choice. Whole milk is creamier, but low fat milk will create more foam. At Starbucks they’ve chosen to use 2% milk which is somewhere in the middle.
The bergamot essence, which is a kind of Italian citrus, is not so easy to find. Instead of purchasing black tea and bergamot essence separately, it is much easier to buy a box of Earl Gray Tea which is a blend of both of them. Add a little bit of lavender flowers to it and your tea base is done.
Instead of sugar syrup, you can use white or brown sugar (I use brown sugar which gives a slight caramel taste) or another sweetener of choice which does not have too strong taste. The only ingredient that is not so clear on Starbucks’ list is “natural flavors”. I guess it could be vanilla extract. Some say they use both vanilla syrup and caramel syrup in this recipe.
London Fog drink is a perfect choice when you need a little energy boost in the morning or midday. If you can find decaffeinated version of the tea, you can even enjoy it later in the evening. Tea lovers will certainly appreciate this simple yet rich and fragrant creamy delight.
Health Benefits of Earl Grey Tea
- energy booster
- immunity booster
- eases stress – calms down and lifts up your mood
- detox – eliminates free radicals
- improves digestion
- fights teeth decay and fights oral infections
- brings down cholesterol
- improves your metabolism – aids weight loss
- cold relief
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 teabag Earl Gray Tea (you can also use loose leaf tea)
- a pinch of lavender flowers
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- sweetener, to taste
- 1/4 cup milk (2% dairy or non-dairy)
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Put Earl Gray Tea and lavender flowers in a cup. Pour boiling water over it and let steep for 5 minutes.
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Strain the tea and pour into a serving mug. Add sweetener and vanilla.
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In the meantime, heat the milk, but do not let it boil. Whisk it with a milk frother, an immersion blender or a hand whisk until frothy.
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Pour milk over tea. Serve London Fog Tea Drink immediately.
Other winter drink recipe you might like:
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the tea sounds really nice.I have theChai Tea Latte a lot,
I love tea as well 🙂