How to Make Long Island Iced Tea (LIIT) – 9 Easy Steps

How to make Long Island Iced Tea (LIIT) – The Long Island Iced Tea is a really strong drink as it contains a good amount of many different liquors, but do not let the name make you think that one needs to put any tea into it. The name comes from the fact that its color makes it resemble your regular Iced Tea, but the color comes from the splash of cola that one needs to put into it, not tea.

Let’s move on and learn about the drink’s origin.

There are two stories of the drink’s origin, and we do not know if we can put a definite label on either, but both stories are quite believable. Two people have claimed to be the creator of the drink, both coming from different times, but considering the time and circumstances, either could be true.

• First, we have the story of a man called “Old Man Bishop” who created a drink similar to modern day’s Long Island Iced Tea back in the 1920s in the local community of Long Island, which is in Kingsport – Tennessee, during Prohibition in the United States.

But it is said that the original recipe uses Whiskey and Maple Syrup – two things the popular recipe does not use.

The recipe was then refined by his son, Ransom Bishop.

• The second story goes like this –

A man called Robert “Rosebud” Butt made a drink for a contest where he had to create a mixed drink with “Triple sec” in 1972 while he was in New York – in the Oak Beach Inn on Long Island.

Triple sec – originally called Curaçao triple sec – is a strong colorless drink that tastes sweet, like orange.

So, the drink has a pretty American History, especially the first story. It is closely related to what the Americans had to go through during sensitive times, which may have a lot to do with how popular the drink was. The drink has not only lived through the test of time, but it has also reached different parts of the world with similar heat.

Ingredients – How to Make Long Island Iced Tea (for one glass)

• ½ fluid ounce* of vodka
• ½ fluid ounce of white rum*
• ½ fluid ounce of gin
• ½ fluid ounce of tequila – white
• ½ fluid ounce of triple sec (orange-flavored liqueur)
• One fluid ounce of sweet and sour mix
• One fluid ounce cola, or to taste
• One lemon slice
• Ice cubes

* 1 fluid ounce is 29.57 in milliliters. **requires clear liquid, making cola the only liquid with a color

How to make the Long Island Ice Tea (LIIT)

One can either use a cocktail shaker or a long glass for putting and mixing in the drink. You can fill up the glass with ice cubes or put all the liquids in your shaker and then put in the ice cubes to shake after.

Step 1 – Put half a ½ fluid ounce of vodka in your cocktail shaker or glass.

Step 2- Your ½ fluid ounce of gin needs to be added to it next.

Step 3 – After which, add your ½ fluid ounce of white rum into it.

Step 4 – Put in your ½ fluid ounce of tequila.

Step 5 – Your ½ fluid ounce of triple sec needs to be added after that.

Step 6 – Now we move on to the non-alcoholic constituents. Let’s add one fluid ounce of our sweet and sour mix. You can either buy it or make your own sweet and sour mix with Lemon Juice and Simple Syrup. One may add lemon juice and Simple Syrup separately as well.

Step 7 – Shake well.

Step 8 – You will be adding your cola now for taste and color, which will make it resemble a regular iced tea. You can stir the drink a little.

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Step 9 – Add a lemon wedge as a topping and to make it look pretty.

Once you get the hang of making the drink, you can, of course, change the quantities of the individual liquids to add a personal touch and make it taste better according to your likes. Make sure you don’t go up a shot for the quantities of all the liquids, as that can be a little too much. The regular quantity is already a lot. Measure the quantities responsibly.

Recommended videos –

• Steve The Bartender’s Long Island Iced Tea
• Vlad SlickBartender’s Long Island Iced Tea
• How To Drink’s Long Island Iced Tea

Recent Variations of the Drink

Like all creations, people take the liberty of making them their own. The same happened to this drink as well.

There are 8 other variations to this strong, delicious cocktail.

1. The “Adios Motherfucker” or AMF
2. Tokyo Tea
3. The Long Beach Ice Tea
4. Black Widow
5. Texas Tea
6. Sex with Satan
7. Boston Tea Party
8. Georgia Peach

Ingredients of each

• The “Adios Motherfucker” or AMF is made with vodka, gin, rum, blue curacao, sweet & sour mix, and Sprite.
• “Tokyo Tea” is made with vodka, gin, rum, triple sec, Midori (a muskmelon-flavored, bright green liquor), sweet and sour mix, and Sprite.
• The “Long Beach Ice Tea” is made with vodka, gin, rum, triple sec, sweet and sour mix, and cranberry.
• “Black Widow” is made with vodka, gin, rum, triple sec, Chambord, sweet and sour mix, and Sprite.
• “Texas Tea” is made with vodka, gin, rum, triple sec, tequila, whiskey, sweet and sour mix, and Coke.
• The “Sex with Satan” is made with vodka, rum, triple sec, sloe gin (which is a drink made of sloe – a fruit – and gin), cherry brandy, and sweet and sour mix.
• The “Boston Tea Party” is made with vodka, gin, rum, triple sec, amaretto (Italian liquor with a sweet almond-like taste), sweet and sour mix, and Coke.
• The “Georgia Peach” is made with vodka, gin, rum, triple sec, peach schnapps, sweet and sour mix, and cranberry.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1 Does the drink contain tea in it?

No. The color of the drink is caused by cola; this makes it look like iced tea.

Q2 Is the Long Island Iced Tea strong?

The drink is quite strong due to the number of liquor one puts in it, and the strongness can be increased by increasing the quantity of the liquors, but at the same time, the other constituents make it sweet, so it is not the strongest.

Q3 Is Long Island Iced Tea Keto-friendly?

The drink has a total of 33.3 g of carbohydrates in a collins glass serving.

Q4 Is the Long Island Iced Tea vegan?

Yes, the drink is vegan.

Conclusion

The Long Island Iced Tea is an excellent drink. You can take occasional sips while you spend quality time with friends or alone. It is more than enough to make you a little tipsy, all the while being perfectly delicious.

Make yourself a glass today and treat yourself!

Though, please remember to be careful and drink responsibly.

Happy drinking!