Boba, Chai and Matcha—the Charlie’s Angels of global tea—are the coolest drinks for the hottest season. Summertime is nearly upon us and that means it’s time for the ubiquitous iced tea to make its return. Tea is a popular drink the world around, second in consumption only to water. According to one survey, 85% of the tea consumed in America is iced. The beauty of tea lies in its simplicity and diversity. From red to green to white to black, tea is good for you, whether it is herbal or derived from a tea tree, it offers numerous proven and unproven health benefits, is full of antioxidants and often delivers relaxation and calming effects.

For an elegant way to start off your outdoor summer wedding, consider creating an International Iced Tea Bar, serving guests iced teas from around the world as they arrive. Presented in beautiful Collins glasses with long Iced Tea Spoons and spring-water ice cubes, iced teas in various shades of browns, greens and reds, create a beautiful organic color palette. Bartenders can serve your guests the international iced tea of their choice: from Thailand choose a Thai Iced Tea sweetened with cream and sugar cane; Tawain offers Boba, or “bubble tea,” a sweetened tea that is shaken like a cocktail; an Indian-inspired Iced Chai Latte is spiced with cardamom, allspice and cloves; from Japan comes an Iced Houjicha, a roasted green tea with fresh mint leaf; choose a refreshing Iced Lemon Tea from China using a ceylon tea infused with fresh slices of lemon. Herbal choices include the South American Yerba Mate and South African Red Tea or Roobios. For a good old-fashioned American tea, there’s the classic Sweet Tea, the oldest recipe dating back to 1870’s Virginia. Sweet Tea is traditionally brewed with loads of sugar, lemon juice, orange juice, and muddled mint. Other American classics include the Arnold Palmer, half iced tea/half lemonade, and believe it or not, the Chris Rock (yes, that Chris Rock!), as it is known in some parts of the Southeastern United States, which consists of half sweet tea and half unsweetened tea.

Another idea would be a do-it-yourself iced tea station, with pre-made decanters of sun-brewed black and white teas featuring mix-ins and garnishes like honey, ginger, fresh raspberry or chamomile simple syrups, and wedges of orange, lemon, lime and fresh sprigs of spearmint. To kick it up a notch pre or post ceremony, Tea-tinis are popular cocktails, made with infused spirits such as Earl Grey-infused vodka or gin. Now if Long Island Iced Teas are more your style, well that’s a different wedding entirely!

Photo credits in order of appearance: Xu Jian, Yoko Bates