Cherry cola, but she has a garden now.

There is something deeply nostalgic about cherry cola. It's fizzy, sweet, a little tart, and tastes vaguely like being handed a fountain drink on a summer afternoon with absolutely nowhere important to be.

So naturally, we wanted to put tea in it.

The Cherry Blossom Cherry Cola Spritz takes that familiar cherry-cola flavor and gives it a decidedly more grown-up, botanical twist with our Cherry Cherry Blossom White Tea.

The tea is blended with white tea, cherries, cherry blossom powder, hibiscus, orange, and rose, giving us a light floral base with plenty of real cherry flavor. Add tart cherry juice, fresh lime, and a splash of cola, and suddenly you've got a ridiculously easy non-alcoholic tea mocktail that tastes nostalgic without being overly sweet.

And yes, we're mixing fancy loose leaf white tea with cola.

We contain multitudes.

Why tea works surprisingly well with cola

Cola is already much more botanical than we tend to give it credit for. Its characteristic flavor comes from a combination of citrus, spices, caramelized sweetness, and other aromatics.

Tea fits right in.

White tea gives this drink some structure while the cherry blossom, rose, hibiscus, and orange in our blend play off flavors already happening in the cola. Tart cherry juice doubles down on the fruit without resorting to artificial cherry syrup, and lime keeps everything bright.

The result isn't just "cola with tea in it."

It tastes like an actual composed drink.

Cold brew the tea for this one

We recommend cold brewing the Cherry Cherry Blossom White Tea for this recipe.

Cold brewing brings out the softer, sweeter side of white tea and lets those cherry and floral notes shine without pulling out as much bitterness or astringency.

It also makes this recipe ridiculously convenient.

Put your tea in the refrigerator the night before, strain it the next day, and you've got a chilled mocktail base ready whenever the mood strikes.

And in August, the mood strikes often.

Make it your own

One of the reasons we love tea mocktails is that they're extremely forgiving. You can take the basic idea and adjust it depending on what you've got in the refrigerator.

Want it less sweet? Use 2 ounces of cola and finish with sparkling water.

Want more cherry? Muddle two fresh cherries in the bottom of the glass before adding the ice.

Want more citrus? Add an orange wheel along with the lime. The orange is especially good here because Cherry Cherry Blossom already contains orange.

Want it extra fancy? Serve it in a coupe or wine glass with a few frozen cherries instead of regular ice.

And if you're making these for a party, set out the cold-brewed tea, tart cherry juice, lime wedges, cola, and sparkling water and let everyone build their own.

A very good argument for keeping cold-brew tea in your refrigerator

Recipes like this are exactly why we love keeping a pitcher of cold-brew tea ready during the summer.

Once the tea is made, you've essentially got a mocktail ingredient waiting for you.

Add bubbles.

Add citrus.

Add fruit.

Suddenly the "I want something fun to drink but don't necessarily want alcohol" problem has been solved.

And unlike a lot of elaborate zero-proof cocktail recipes, you don't need seven specialty syrups and something you ordered from a mixology website six months ago.

Tea already brings the complexity.

Perfect for late-summer everything

Make this one for backyard dinners, August cookouts, book club, girls' night, or just because you've reached the portion of summer where you've consumed approximately 700 sparkling waters and need something else.

It's also a great option for sober and sober-curious entertaining because it feels like a real drink rather than the obligatory alcohol-free option someone remembered to buy on the way to the party.

Final Sip

Cherry cola will always have a place in our hearts.

But cherry cola with delicate white tea, real tart cherry, cherry blossom, rose, hibiscus, orange, and fresh lime?

That's a whole different situation.

It's fizzy. It's floral. It's a little nostalgic. It's extremely easy to make.

And it's exactly the kind of weird little tea experiment we fully support around here.