Ten grams of tea in a filter sachet, one to one and a half litres of pure water, one hour in the refrigerator: Sorbet Bleu is prepared without hot water, and that is how it expresses itself best. It is part of the French Summer Tea collection from Mariage Frères, which brings together iced teas designed for cold infusion.

The base is a blue tea, a semi-oxidised oolong, with low caffeine. The declared composition combines blue tea, blue flowers and flavouring, with possible traces of tree nuts. The glossy black bottle of hand-blown glass, 175 mm high and 85 mm in diameter, holds 160 g of tea and its 10 g measuring stopper, and comes with a pack of filter sachets, enough to prepare up to 24 litres of iced tea.

The house promises the sensations of a lemon sorbet with red berries, and the golden-yellow infusion is silky. The lemon brings a tart freshness, the red berries a sweetness, and the blue tea a roundness without bitterness that cold infusion preserves. The bottle itself, decorated with a checkerboard in watery shades, a blue flower on a rippling sea and two ice cones, sets a summery tone.

Serve it very chilled, in a large glass, with ice cubes and a lemon slice, at lunch, as an alcohol-free aperitif or at children’s teatime. It goes well with a red berry salad, a sorbet or a lemon cake.

For each preparation, place 10 g of tea in a filter sachet, close the flaps and leave to infuse in the refrigerator in 1 to 1.5 litres of water, for one hour at least. La Boutique du Thé, official stockist of Mariage Frères since 1999, offers Sorbet Bleu in its shops in Bordeaux and Nice; keep the bottle closed, away from light and heat.