What Is a Loaded Tea? How to Choose Your Tea Base

A loaded tea is a homemade cold drink built on a tea base, mixed with fruit flavors and served over ice. The style grew out of nutrition clubs and is now widely made at home. The base is what determines the tea flavor and the caffeine in the drink, which is why most recipes start with an instant tea powder rather than brewed tea — powder dissolves in cold water and lets you set the strength by the spoonful.

Why instant tea powder is the standard base

• It dissolves in cold water. No brewing, steeping, or waiting for hot tea to chill. Tea bags cannot be made cold in any reasonable time — cold brewing takes hours.
• You control the strength. Caffeine and tea flavor both scale with the amount of powder, so every drink is adjustable and repeatable. Waka green and black instant teas carry approximately 35 mg of caffeine per 1/4 teaspoon.
• It is unsweetened. Waka teas contain no added sugar, so sweetness comes only from what you add. Pre-mixed concentrates fix that for you.
• One pouch goes a long way. A 4.5 oz pouch holds about 200 servings at the standard 1/4 teaspoon. Loaded tea recipes generally use more per drink, so adjust to the recipe.

Choosing your base

Unflavored green tea is the most flexible starting point because it carries no fruit flavor of its own and takes on whatever you add. Good if you build your own recipes. Try the Classic Green or the Original Blend Green.

Flavored green teas build a fruit note into the base, which means fewer add-ins per drink: peach, mango, watermelon, pineapple, strawberry, raspberry, pomegranate, lemon, and blueberry. See the full flavored range.

Testing combinations? Travel-size 0.45 oz sample packets make about 20 servings each — enough to try several recipes before committing to full pouches.

Recipes by flavor family

Berry: Strawberry Sunrise, Raspberry Beret, Dragon Berry Fusion, Purple Haze, Tainted Love.

Tropical: Mango Rush, Tropical Mango, Mango Margarita, Pineapple Wave, Pineapple TeaChata, Indian Ocean, Laguna Beach, Mexican Sunset.

Melon and stone fruit: Watermelon Fresca, Guava Melon Fresher, Peach Nectar, Peach Boballini.

Citrus and other: Ranch Water, Beach Sangria, CinnaPom Sangria, Napa Valley, Red Rock, Sippin' Pretty, Cabin Fever.

For equipment and add-ins, see Loaded Teas 101.

Common questions

What tea do you use for loaded teas?
Most recipes use an instant tea powder, usually green, because it dissolves in cold water and lets you control the strength. Tea bags require hot water and a steeping step, and pre-mixed concentrates fix the sweetness and strength for you.

How much caffeine is in a loaded tea?
It depends entirely on how much tea powder the recipe uses. Waka green and black instant teas contain approximately 35 mg per 1/4 teaspoon and scale proportionally. Because you measure the base yourself, you know what is in the cup.

Are Waka teas sweetened?
No. All Waka instant teas are unsweetened with no added sugar, no artificial colors, no carriers, and no fillers.

Can I make loaded teas at home without a nutrition club?
Yes. You need a tea base, your flavorings, ice, and a shaker or large cup.

These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. Waka products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.