A question that often comes up for tea lovers is the question of how long brewed tea lasts in the fridge. The short answer is that it depends on several different factors.
Freshly brewed tea will last up to twenty-four hours and will keep for several days in an airtight container if no sugar is added to it. Cold brew tea concentrate can be stored for two to four weeks in the fridge.
No matter which type of brewed tea you make, you’ll need to know how to figure out whether it’s still good to drink or not. Keep reading to learn more about the factors that affect how long brewed tea lasts and how to tell when it needs to be thrown away.
Factors That Affect How Long Brewed Tea Lasts
Fresh brewed tea can last up to twenty-four hours in the refrigerator provided that it is chilled soon after brewing. Several other factors affect how long brewed tea will keep:
- Loose tea leaves vs. tea bags: Loose leaf tea varieties tend to be made from high-quality leaves, so good tea made from looseleaf will last longer than tea made from tea bags, which tend to be less fresh.
- Direct sunlight: Tea that is exposed to direct sunlight (when making sun tea) can be at risk of developing Alcaligenes viscolactis, a type of bacteria that presents as ropy strands in the tea.
- Sugar: Adding sugar to tea activates the fermentation process in tea, and this can cause the tea to spoil more quickly than black tea which does not contain sugar. So it’s a good idea to finish off any sweet tea promptly or wait until just before drinking to add any sugar.
- Length of time at room temperature: If tea is left out longer than six hours at room temperature, it increases the risk of spoiling and going sour.
- Expiration date: Tea doesn’t technically have an expiration date or a definitive shelf life. Does tea go bad? Not exactly. It will only be less fresh-tasting and doesn’t affect the length the brewed tea can last without spoiling.
- Tea types: Brewed herbal teas tend to go bad faster than teas like black tea, green tea, oolong tea, and white tea. This is because herbal teas don’t contain caffeine, a chemical compound that acts as a preservative in brewed tea.
The best way to ensure that brewed tea lasts as long as possible is to get it stored correctly. Different conditions in brewing and storage can drastically impact how long a batch of tea will last.
Storing Brewed Tea to Make It Last Longer
How long brewed tea lasts depends largely on how it is collected and stored after brewing.
The most important aspect of storing tea is keeping the tea in a tightly sealed airtight container. Plastic containers with a seal or Mason jars are good options for storing tea. So even though you may love the look of an open glass pitcher for serving your tea, it’s not the best way to store it.
Another factor that can help brewed tea last longer in storage is refrigeration. Storing tea the right way at the appropriate temperature can help keep it from spoiling.
Chilled tea can last for days if refrigerated within twenty-four hours of brewing.
Can Brewed Tea Sit Out Overnight?
Brewed tea that has sat out overnight should typically be thrown out. There is a chance that the tea will sour if it is left out at room temperature for too long. Getting tea into the fridge in the first twenty-four hours is crucial to extending the shelf life of brewed tea.
While some tea may be fine up to twelve hours after brewing without refrigeration, the quality of the tea will begin to degrade after around four hours depending on its exposure to bacteria and warmer temperatures.
How Long is Sweet Tea Good For?
If you love an icy glass of sweet tea on a hot summer day, you’re not alone! (If you’re looking for a great sweet iced tea recipe, check out my how to make sweet tea like you live in the deep South article.)
Sweet tea requires more care and doesn’t last as long as unsweetened tea. It’s usually best tasting in the first day or the next day. If you stretch it, your sweet tea can last for three to four days.
As we shared before, when you add sugar or fruit (like in peach iced tea) to your tea, it can start to ferment in a couple of days, even under refrigeration. So remember that the storage time for sweet tea is definitely shorter than that for unsweetened iced tea.
Types of Tea and How Long They Last After Brewing
The type of tea used has a large impact on how long tea can last after brewing. Here are some of the most popular types of brewed tea and how long they last:
- Hot brew tea: Tea brewed with hot water is one the shortest-lived teas you can make, and it’s important to chill hot tea quickly to prevent bacterial growth.
- Cold-brew tea: Cold-brewed tea can last longer than hot brew tea, lasting in the fridge in an airtight container for up to two weeks. Because the cold brewing method uses cold water in the refrigerator, it has a longer life than plain brewed tea in hot water. This slows the growth of bacteria.
- Herbal tea/decaffeinated black tea: Herbal tea spoils faster than black tea, green tea, and white tea because it contains no caffeine. Decaffeinated black tea will spoil more quickly for the same reason.
- Unopened bottles of iced tea: Commercially packaged bottles of iced tea can last for several weeks longer than tea brewed at home. This is because packaged iced tea is brewed in sanitary conditions and hermetically sealed to keep out bacteria.
A good rule of thumb is to always chill tea after brewing and store it in an airtight container out of direct sunlight.
This will help you preserve your brewed tea for as long as possible and makes it possible to store a big batch of tea ahead of time.
How Long Does Bottled Tea Last?
Commercially prepared bottled teas can last a long time, whether refrigerated or not. If you’ve purchased bottled tea, check the expiration date marked on each bottle.
Whether you like plain ice tea or fruit juice tea mixtures, you’ll get the freshest taste if you store unopened iced tea away from direct light in a cool place, or even better, in the refrigerator.
How to Tell if Brewed Tea Is Spoiled
If you’re not sure whether or not the tea you brewed is still good to drink, there are several ways to tell. Here are some of the signs to look for to see if your brewed tea has gone bad :
- Appearance: Tea that has gone bad will sometimes take on a murky, cloudy appearance or will appear to have ropy strands suspended in it. This is a symptom of coliform bacteria growth in the tea.
- Smell: Tea that is spoiled will have a sour, rank smell that smells very different from unspoiled tea. When in doubt about a tea’s quality, using your nose is always a smart move.
- Taste: The flavor of the tea can tell you whether or not tea is spoiled. Tea that has taken on a sour flavor should be thrown out and replaced. Since it is unlikely you’ll get food poisoning from a sip of spoiled tea, a taste test is often the easiest way to tell if tea has gone bad.
- Age: If you can’t tell whether or not tea is spoiled, look at the day that the tea was brewed. If the tea is more than a few days old and has sugar in it, chances are it isn’t good to drink. Mark the date on any large batch of tea you make to get a firm idea of how old it is.
The good news is that spoiled tea isn’t going to hurt you even if you accidentally get a swallow of old tea out of the back of the fridge. Keeping your tea brewing equipment sanitary and storing brewed tea properly can keep the tea from spoiling for as long as possible.
Health Benefits of Properly Stored Tea
Thankfully, storing tea properly will also maintain all the health benefits tea drinkers have grown to love and expect.
Tea is a great source of:
- Caffeine
- Polyphenols like flavonols, theaflavins, and catechins.
While tea doesn’t have a significant amount of nutrients, tea is rich in polyphenols, which are the source of so many health benefits. Research has shown that consuming 2-3 cups of tea daily is associated with reduced risk of the following ailments:
- heart disease
- stroke
- type 2 diabetes
- premature death
Japanese green teas in particular are very high in flavonoids, so adding them to your daily diet can help boost your health.
Herbal Tea Benefits
As long as you refrigerate brewed herbal tea, you’ll still reap all those health benefits as well. Just remember, because herbal tea doesn’t contain caffeine which helps to preserve tea, you’ll need to drink it quicker than true teas.
These herbal teas are especially beneficial:
- Ginger tea: helps with stomach upset and indigestion.
- Chamomile tea: helps with stress and relaxation
- Mint teas: can help with headaches, and stomach upset
How Long Does Brewed Tea Last? Storage Conditions Are Important
While it’s unlikely for tea that has gone sour to make you sick, observing proper storage conditions and using the freshest tea available can help you keep your brewed tea preserved for as long as possible.
If you have a large tea stash and are looking for cool ideas for storage, check out this post on ideas to make the tea storage station of your dreams. From frugal and simple, to tea stations you’d be proud to have on your counter every day, there are tons of ideas here to get you up and running to keep both your loose-leaf tea and tea bags stored properly for the freshest taste.
