Easy London Fog Drink (Earl Grey Tea Latte)

4.74 from 104 votes

Make London Fog at home with this easy and tasty recipe.

Prep Time3

Steep Time5

Total Time8

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American

Servings: serving

Author: Jee Choe

Boil water.
Boil water on the stovetop or use an electric kettle with a temperature setting (water set to 208°F). Use filtered water for a better tasting tea.
Combine tea, lavender buds, and hot water in a teapot. Cover teapot and steep for 5 minutes.
While tea is steeping, make the frothed milk.
Heat milk and pour into a French press. Pump French press plunger until milk doubles in volume.
Heat milk on the stovetop by simmering on low then turning off the heat. Keep careful watch to make sure the milk doesn't come to a boil. Stir occasionally.
Fill the French press halfway with milk. You want to leave room since the milk will double in volume.
Strain tea leaves and pour tea into a cup. Stir in sugar and vanilla extract.
Pour frothed milk from the French press into the cup.
Garnish with dried lavender buds.

You can take out the dried lavender if you wish since the drink is still delicious without it.
To froth milk like a pro at home, another option is to use an electric milk frother which heats milk and froths at the same time.
Be careful not to boil the milk since it can easily burn. Use low heat and let the milk come to a simmer then turn off the heat.
To microwave the milk, heat 30 seconds at a time in a microwave-safe cup.
You can use any milk you prefer. But know that not all milk will froth as well as whole or 2% milk.
Make sure to hold down the lid of the French press so that you don’t make a mess when pumping.
Always add vanilla extract last since you don’t want it to cook down and evaporate. The flavor will be weaker if it's hot for too long.
You can use white sugar if you don't have any brown sugar, but the brown sugar adds a richer sweetness due to the molasses.
Loose tea, tea sachets, or tea bags can be used to make this drink. I recommend using loose tea or tea sachets since the quality is a lot better. Tea bags contain the lowest quality tea.
Victoria Fog is a variation on London Fog where the Earl Grey tea is taken out and replaced with lavender tea. A Cape Town Fog is where the Earl Grey is substituted with rooibos. Tokyo Fog is a tea latte made with matcha instead of Earl Grey and a Dublin Fog is made with Irish breakfast tea instead of Earl Grey.