National Iced Tea Day

National Iced Tea Day, observed on June 10th, celebrates chilled tea as a refreshing warm-weather beverage, with the timing deliberately positioned at the start of the summer season in the Northern Hemisphere. While iced tea recipes appeared in American cookbooks as early as the mid-19th century, the drink is often said to have gained major national popularity following its prominent promotion at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis, where an English tea plantation representative reportedly began serving tea over ice during an unusually hot summer when visitors showed little interest in hot tea, though historians note iced tea recipes and consumption predate this often-repeated origin story. Sweet tea, iced tea prepared with sugar dissolved into the hot brewed tea before chilling, became particularly associated with Southern American cuisine and hospitality, developing into such a strong regional identity marker that it is sometimes informally called the "house wine of the South." Iced tea's popularity has expanded globally with countless variations, including Thai iced tea made with condensed milk and spices, Southern sweet tea, unsweetened versions popular for their lower calorie content, and bottled and canned commercial iced teas that have become a major segment of the beverage industry. On this day, iced tea enthusiasts celebrate by enjoying a refreshing glass, whether homemade or store-bought.