Fruit tea can do more.
In the supermarket it's called 'forest fruits' and tastes like coloured water with a sweetener. Rode Zon is a deep-red infusion of blood orange and hibiscus — the colour comes from flowers, not from a jar. Brewed cold, it is a glass that looks like a spritz. Brewed hot, with a cinnamon stick and a slice of orange, it tastes like mulled wine. Without the wine, without the sugar, without the hangover.
Why your terrace drink is cheating you — and your winter mug too
A spritz is 8 euros for one glass full of sugar and alcohol. A bottle of iced tea from the supermarket is sugar water with a tea-bag past. And the 'winter tea' on the shelf? Flavouring on a bag. Rode Zon turns that around: fruit, water, and nothing else.
Cold: a sunset in a glass
Let it steep cold for a few hours and something special happens: the hibiscus slowly releases its deep-red colour, the blood orange comes forward, and the sharpness you would get with hot water stays away. Soft, fresh, fruity — a glass that looks like a cocktail.
Hot: mulled wine without the wine
Water at ± 90 °C, steep 3 to 4 minutes — no longer, or the hibiscus turns sharp. Cinnamon stick in, slice of orange on the rim. The whole room smells of December. Caffeine-free, so also for the children at the table.
How to brew
Cold brew 2 tablespoons per litre of cold water. 4 to 8 hours in the fridge. Strain, add ice, slice of orange on the rim — done. Tip: set it up before bed, and fresh tea is waiting for you all the next day.
Hot 1 heaped teaspoon per cup, water at ± 90 °C, 3 to 4 minutes. Cinnamon and orange to taste.
Why you want it in the house
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The colour comes from flowers — hibiscus and safflower, no colouring.
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No added sugar — all the freshness of blood orange, without the sugar bomb of soft drinks or spritz.
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Caffeine-free — in the evening too, for the whole family.
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Two teas in one bag — cold a spritz without alcohol, hot a mulled wine without wine.
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One bag, litres — 100 g is good for about 8 litres of cold brew. A glass costs you cents, not euros.
Taste
Juicy and fresh from the blood orange, with the light tingle of hibiscus and a round apple base. Lemon peel keeps it sparkling. Not bitter, not sugary.
For whom, for when
For the terrace in July and the sofa in December. Put a jug in the fridge or a mug on the table — the same bag.
Ingredients
Apple, hibiscus, orange peel (6%), rosehip, natural orange flavouring, lemon peel, orange pieces (3%), safflower petals, natural flavouring. Caffeine-free.
Frequently asked questions
Does it contain caffeine? No, Rode Zon is completely caffeine-free. You can drink it all day — in the evening too.
Can I drink it hot too? Yes, especially in winter. ± 90 °C, steep 3 to 4 minutes, cinnamon stick and slice of orange.
Is there cinnamon in it? No — cinnamon and the orange slice are a serving tip, not an ingredient. So you decide how 'Christmas' you want it.
How much do I get out of one bag? At 2 tablespoons per litre, 100 g is good for about 8 litres of cold brew. Hot, with a teaspoon per cup, about 35 to 40 cups.
How long does the cold brew keep? Covered in the fridge, 2 to 3 days. Freshly brewed it is at its best.
Is there sugar in it? No added sugar, no syrup. The freshness comes from the fruit itself.
Want to taste first? Feel free to start with the 20 g sample — enough for a few jugs.
Blended with love in the Netherlands. Not entirely happy? Send me a message — we'll sort it out.
— Michael Van Dijk, Zachtethee
