Tea has been touted to be steeped in healthful ingredients, and we Magnolias certainly know that iced tea is the true Southern elixir. And since it’s summer, and it’s hot, why not add tea to the cocktail hour mix with some of these fun concoctions.

A couple of years ago when British actress Helen Mirren made her Oscar-winning turn as Elizabeth II in “The Queen,” Beefeater gin conjured up a special drink in honor of the movie. You know how the Brits love their tea and their royalty. So here’s a fun summer drink that’s fit for all us queens ...

Royal-Tea

2 parts Beefeater gin

2 parts brewed and chilled Earl Gray Tea

Squeeze of lemon juice

Spoonful of sugar

Lime wheels for garnish

Pour the ingredients into an old-fashioned glass filled with ice.

Garnish with lime wheels.

This one is a dandy make-ahead option and the recipe is for a whole batch (12 servings). Ginger ale adds the fizz. Perfect for a summer cookout or pool party.

Sparkling Cranberry Tea Cocktail

4 cups water

1/2 cup sugar

2 family-sized tea bags

21/2 cups no-sugar-added cranberry juice

1 cup vodka

1/4 cup Grand Marnier (orange-flavored liqueur)

4 cups ginger ale, chilled

Orange rind strips (optional)

Combine 4 cups water and sugar in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook until sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Pour over tea bags. Cover and let stand 5 minutes; discard tea bags. Cool. Stir in juice, vodka and Grand Marnier; chill. Gently stir in ginger ale. Serve over ice; garnish with rind, if desired.

Now only real women can handle a Long Island Iced Tea. They’re extra “spirited” so be careful. They can make you lean after just one or make you send your salad back to the chef because it’s cold. ... Perhaps we should give it a more Georgian name like Sea Island Iced Tea or Jekyll Island Iced Tea and let it be a special vacation treat when the only thing you’re going to do is lounge on the beach or by the pool.

Sea Island Iced Tea

3/4 ounce dark rum

3/4 ounce brandy

3/4 ounce triple sec

3/4 ounce orange juice

1/2 ounce lime juice

3/4 - 11/4 ounce cola

1 cup cold tea

Mix all of the spirits in a tall glass with ice.

You know how we love having our own signature cocktails. The Magnolia from our inaugural edition (a yummy cosmopolitan made with white cranberry juice) is still a hit at weddings and girls night out, we hear. So here’s another namesake sipper.

Magnolia Mar-Tea-ni

Ice

1 ounce green tea, chilled

2 ounces citron vodka

1 teaspoon Cointreau

1 teaspoon simple syrup

Orange twist

Fill a shaker with ice. Add green tea, vodka, Cointreau and simple syrup. Shake well and strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

Sometimes sweet tea — which has its own meaning in the South — is the perfect mixer. While this drink goes by a couple of different names including Carolina Iced Tea, it packs as much punch as the Long Island mixture. It’s sweet and powerful like some of you gals who are sure to love it.

Drunken Peach

11/2 ounces peach liqueur

1 ounce spiced rum

1 ounce peach schnapps

1/2 ounce vodka

5 ounces sweet tea

Lemon wedge

Combine all of the spirits in a large glass with ice. Stir iced tea into glass and garnish with a lemon wedge.

Here’s something fun for you whiskey women. It’s cold and slushy, but it’s not your mama’s whiskey sour!

Bourbon Slush

7 cups water

3 cups bourbon whiskey

12 ounces frozen lemonade

6 ounces frozen orange juice

11/2 cups sugar

2 cups strong tea

Mix all ingredients a day ahead and place in freezer. When ready to serve, take out of freezer and put desired amount in blender for a second or put in a bowl and mix until it’s semi-liquified. Serve in old-fashioned glasses.

See even more Tea Party drinks in the community section at RN-T.com and at magnoliawoman.com.

Don’t we all want to feel like a goddess sometimes? There’s a Zen Green Tea Liqueur on the market that’s good for conjuring up all kinds of summer refreshment. This recipe recommends Iron Goddess of Mercy oolong tea, but your favorite brand of oolong will work fine. Oolong is a traditional Chinese tea that falls somewhere between green and black and is one of the most popular teas served in Chinese restaurants.

Zen Goddess Iced Tea

3 parts prepared oolong tea

11/2 parts Zen Green Tea Liqueur

1 part passion fruit juice

1 part tequila

Grapefruit slices, for garnish

Prepare oolong tea, according to directions. Pour tea and remaining ingredients into a shaker with ice. Shake and strain into glass. Garnish with a large, thin grapefruit slice.

For ‘Teatotallers’

Now tea is refreshing in its own right and sometimes a teetotaller approach — or shall we say “tea”totaller — is preferred. So here are a couple of refreshing options minus the alcohol.

This real basic mixture has a variety of names. Some people just ask for “half and half.” Others call it an Arnold Palmer because It’s a refreshing drink for the golf course or outside in general.

Arnold Palmer

6 ounces lemonade

6 ounces iced tea

How about a pitcher of minty good-for-you tea that you can easily whip up for a whole group.

Mint Green Iced Tea

Makes 8 cups

8 cups green tea

25 fresh mint sprigs (about 11/2 ounces)

1/2 cup sugar

Brew tea. Add mint; steep 5 minutes. Add sugar; stir until sugar dissolves. Cool completely. Serve over ice.