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Starbucks Iced London Fog Tea Latte Copycat Recipe

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Make a copycat Starbucks Iced London Fog tea latte with Earl Grey tea bags, milk and vanilla syrup. This ice cold tea latte comes together in about 7 minutes and is made just like Starbucks.
A homemade Starbucks Iced London Fog tea latte in a Starbucks cup.

Starbucks Iced London Fog Tea Latte

The Iced London Fog Tea Latte at Starbucks is perhaps one of the best kept secrets. This delightful iced tea latte is earl grey tea combined with milk and vanilla, served over ice.

The base of the latte is double-strength, brewed tea made from Teavana Earl Grey tea bags. Teavana list the ingredients in this blend as black tea, bergamot essence and lavender flowers.

Here’s how Starbucks describes their Iced London Fog Latte:

Bright, citrusy spark of bergamot blends with subtle hints of lavender and mixes with vanilla syrup, milk and ice to create this delicious reinvention of a classic Earl Grey tea.

Starbucks
An iced London Fog tea latte made at home in a Starbucks cup.
A homemade iced London Fog latte made with Earl Grey tea.

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

  • Simple to make. If you can brew tea bags in hot water, then you can make an Iced London Fog tea latte. It’s just as easy to make this drink at home as it is to order it from Starbucks.
  • Makes a satisfying iced tea. This tea latte is nearly half milk so it’s more full-bodied and filling than regular iced tea.
  • It’s caffeinated. London Fog lattes are specifically made with earl grey tea which is mainly a blend of black tea and bergamot (a type of citrus). Since black tea is caffeinated, this iced latte gives you a little boost.
  • Make it iced or hot. Once you have the ingredients for an iced London Fog, you can also make a hot London Fog. Here’s how to make the hot version: Starbucks London Fog Latte copycat recipe.
A homemade iced London Fog in a Starbucks cup sitting in front of a tin of earl grey tea bags and bottle of Starbucks vanilla syrup.
London Fog lattes are caffeinated since the base drink is Earl Grey black tea.

RELATED: Starbucks London Fog Latte: What’s in It & How to Order

Ingredients

Starbucks makes the Iced London Fog Tea Latte with freshly-brewed Earl Grey tea, 2% milk, vanilla syrup and ice. The tea latte is shaken to cool it down and incorporate the flavors.

Harney and Sons Earl Grey tea tin, bottle of Starbucks vanilla syrup and jug of milk.
Skip Starbucks and make an iced London Fog at home with earl grey tea, vanilla syrup and milk.

Here are the 5 ingredients you need to make a copycat at home.

  • Earl Grey tea bags
  • Hot Water
  • Vanilla syrup
  • Milk
  • Ice
All the ingredients needed to make a homemade iced London Fog latte in small bowls, including milk, vanilla syrup, ice cubes and earl grey tea bags.
You only need 3 ingredients (plus ice and water) and about 7 minutes to make a copycat Starbucks London Fog at home.

Earl Grey Tea: Earl Grey tea is a must, otherwise it wouldn’t be a London Fog!

You can use tea bags or loose leaf tea.

Starbucks uses Teavana Earl Grey, but it’s not sold in stores so use your favorite brand. I use Harney and Sons.

Lattes are made with concentrated tea, so you need double the amount of tea than what you would normally use for a cup of hot tea.

Vanilla Syrup: The sweetener of choice for a London Fog is vanilla syrup. The flavor and sweetness balance the somewhat stringent black tea.

Either buy a bottle of real Starbucks vanilla syrup for a copycat as close to the original as possible, buy another brand, or make homemade vanilla syrup.

If you live near a Starbucks, try to buy a bottle from the barista. Most stores will sell you one if they have enough in stock and it costs about half as much as online.

I also use vanilla syrup for making this copycat Starbucks Vanilla Steamer and this absolutely delicious Iced Chai Tea Latte with Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Foam.

Milk: The standard milk in Starbucks tea lattes is 2% dairy milk. I like this option because it provides creaminess and body.

I suggest sticking with dairy milk for true London Fog latte flavor.

Water and Ice: The tea bags are steeped in water and the latte contains ice. For the best-tasting latte use filtered water for both.

If you need a way to filter water, I always recommend a Brita water filter pitcher.

Step-by-Step Instructions

The keys to making the best Iced London Fog are to use concentrated tea and put the ingredients into a drink shaker or or cup in the “correct” order. Here are the steps to make it.

  1. Brew the tea. Bring water to a boil and pour it over the earl grey tea bags in a tea pot. Set a timer and steep the tea for 5 minutes. The Starbucks tea latte recipe card specifically instructs baristas to steep black tea for 5 minutes. Discard the tea bags when the tea has finished brewing.
  2. Assemble the latte. Add vanilla syrup to the bottom of a shaker. Pour the tea over the syrup, then pour in cold milk, followed by ice. Shake the latte about ten times and pour into a cup with a 16 fluid ounce capacity or larger. If you don’t want a shaken Iced London Fog, just put the ingredients into a cup in the same order.

Detailed recipe and instructions are in recipe card at bottom of post.

Brewing the Earl Grey Tea

Assembling the Iced London Fog

A copycat Starbucks Iced London Fog Tea Latte in a Starbucks cup and the drink shaker it was poured out of in the background.
You can shake the tea latte together like Starbucks or simply assemble the London Fog latte ingredients directly in a cup.

Recipe Notes

Brew the tea for no more than 5 minutes. Otherwise, it will taste bitter. I suggest using the amount of time recommended on the tea bag package.

You can also read this: How to Make Black Tea Delicious Every Time.

Always brew double-strength tea for a latte. A tea latte has a significant amount of milk in it.

In order for the tea’s flavor to stand up to all the milk, it needs to be concentrated.

This simply means using twice as much tea or half as much water as you would for a regular cup of hot-brewed tea.

Add the ice last. There are two reasons why I always add ice to an iced tea latte last.

First, if you don’t want to wait for the tea to cool down before assembling the latte, adding cold milk to the warm tea before the ice, cools down the tea. This means less melting ice.

The second reason is because it’s easier to stir the earl grey tea, vanilla syrup and milk together when I opt not to shake the latte.

A homemade Starbucks Iced London Fog sitting on a white coaster which is sitting on a Starbucks napkin.
Always add cold milk to the warm tea before adding ice so the ice doesn’t melt as quickly.

Number One Tip for Making an Iced London Fog

For best results, make iced London Fog tea lattes with cold tea.

This way you don’t have to worry about melting ice diluting the London Fog.

All you have to do is make a large batch of strong Earl Grey tea ahead of time and refrigerate it. It should stay fresh for about 3-4 days.

When you want to enjoy a copycat Starbucks Iced London Fog, then all you have to do is assemble the tea latte!

More Starbucks Tea Latte Recipes to Try

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A homemade Starbucks Iced London Fog tea latte in a Starbucks cup.

Starbucks Iced London Fog Tea Latte Copycat

Yield: 16 ounces
Prep Time: 7 minutes
Total Time: 7 minutes

Make an Iced London Fog tea latte at home just like Starbucks. This shaken iced tea latte is sweetened Earl Grey tea with vanilla and milk. If you can steep tea bags, then you can make this ridiculously easy and absolutely delicious latte.

Ingredients

  • 2 Earl Grey tea bags
  • 3/4 cup hot water
  • 3/4 cup 2% milk
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla syrup
  • 1 cup ice

Instructions

  1. Brew the tea. Bring water to a boil and pour it over the earl grey tea bags in a tea pot. Set a timer and steep the tea for 5 minutes. Discard the tea bags when the tea has finished brewing.
  2. Assemble the latte. Add vanilla syrup to the bottom of a drink shaker. Pour the tea over the syrup, then pour in cold milk, followed by the ice. Shake it ten times and pour into a cup that is 16 fluid ounces or larger. If you don't want to shake the tea latte, add the ingredients to a cup in this order: vanilla syrup, brewed tea, milk, ice.

Notes

  • Starbucks adds 4 pumps of vanilla syrup (about 2 tablespoons) to a 16 ounce grande Iced London Fog. Adjust the amount of sweetener according to your preference.
  • Brew the Earl Grey tea for no more than 5 minutes. Otherwise, it may taste bitter. I suggest using the amount of time recommended on the tea bag package.
  • Always brew double-strength tea for a latte. A tea latte has a significant amount of milk in it. In order for the tea's flavor to stand up to all the milk, it needs to be concentrated.
  • Add the ice to the latte last. I do this for two reasons: First, if you don't want to wait for the tea to cool down before assembling the latte, adding cold milk to the warm tea before the ice, cools it down. This means less melting ice. Secondly, adding the ice last make it easier to mix the earl grey tea, vanilla syrup and milk together without ice in the way.

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