Step 1

Gather roses from a trusted garden (you can absolutely use roses that are on their way out -- they tend to be sweeter/more fragrant anyway);

Step 2

Snip the roses, discarding the stems and placing the flower portions in a bowl;

Step 3

As you lift the roses out of the bowl, turn them upside down (I do this over the sink) and give them a gentle shake (you can also tap/flick them with your finger) to remove any debris (dust/soil) or little garden friends (there are always hitchhikers in a natural garden :). I don't over-sanitize but if you prefer, you can gently rinse the petals with water - keep in mind though that this may remove some of the fragranced oils -- they'll go down the drain instead of into your tea.

Step 4

Place the blooms on a work surface, remove the petals and gather enough for 2 cups gently packed.

Step 5

Pre-warm a tea pot by filling with hot or boiling water and letting it sit for 5 minutes.

Step 6

Drain the tea pot and then place the 2 cups of petals inside.

Step 7

Pour 3 cups of boiling water (near boiling ideally) over the petals in the pot.

Step 8

Place the lid on the pot and let the petals steep for 20-30 minutes.

Step 9

Sample a taste of the tea (using a tea strainer as required) at 20 minutes - be sure to smell the tea before sipping, so beautiful! - and then decide whether to let it sit for another 10 minutes or so.

Step 10

Add a splash of honey if you like (or other preferred sweetener) -- I find the taste of the rose so unique and lovely, I like it just as it is.

Step 11

For iced version - I recommend first cooling the tea in the fridge (more on this below) - when ready to enjoy, simply pour over a couple cubes of ice in individual glass/cup and enjoy straight away (I don't recommend letting this particular tea sit on ice in fridge or at room temp - the ice will melt and dilute the rose flavor/aroma - best to pour over ice when you're ready for sipping).

Step 12

Your rose tea will last up to 4 days in the fridge -- once steeped and cooled, pour the tea into a jar and cover with lid (I use a mason jar) and store in fridge. In the depth of summer heat/humidity, I don't recommend leaving the tea out at room temp for more than a few hours; it's best to store in the fridge. If you like, you can always reheat it to enjoy warm.