Heat 1 litre of water to 75–80°C. Add 8 or 9 green tea bags — 8 for a balanced green tea presence, or 7 if your tea is very grassy or strong. Steep for exactly 2–2½ minutes. Remove all bags without squeezing. Green tea needs gentle heat and a short steep because over-extraction brings bitterness. That bitterness is more noticeable here than in citrus-heavy tea pitchers because cucumber does not hide or soften it. The tea should taste grassy, fresh, and clean, not harsh.

Stir 70g of sweetener into the warm green tea immediately after removing the bags. This lower amount keeps the pitcher light and refreshing instead of sweet. White sugar gives the clearest flavor and lets the green tea and cucumber stay at the center. Mild honey, such as acacia, adds a soft floral note. Light brown sugar is less ideal for this drink because its molasses flavor works against the cool cucumber profile, but it can still be used if you want a warmer finish. Let the sweetened tea cool for 5 minutes.

Add the lime zest to the warm green tea. Cover and steep for 4–6 minutes only. Lime zest releases aroma quickly, but it can also bring bitterness if it sits too long in warm liquid. Since green tea already has a gentle bitter edge, the short infusion window keeps the citrus bright without making the drink sharp. At 4–6 minutes, the lime zest adds a fresh, tropical lift. Past that point, the peel can start to weigh down the pitcher. Strain out the lime zest completely. Let the tea extract cool fully.

Add the 750g skin-on cucumber chunks, 90ml lime juice, and 120ml water to a blender. Blend on high speed until completely smooth, about 45–60 seconds. The mixture should look pale green and fully liquified. Strain the cucumber mixture through a fine-mesh sieve or nut milk bag. Press gently on the solids to extract the cucumber liquid without forcing too much pulp through. This step keeps the finished pitcher clean. Unstrained cucumber blend turns cloudy, thick, and slightly foamy, and it can taste flat after resting in the fridge. Strained cucumber liquid stays pale, fresh, and easy to pour. Leaving the cucumber skin on gives the drink more aroma, since much of cucumber’s fresh green character sits near the skin. Straining removes the fibrous pieces while keeping that flavor in the liquid.

Pour the completely cooled lime green tea extract into the large pitcher. Add the strained cucumber base and 1 litre of ice-cold water. Stir gently. The total combined liquid at starting quantities: approximately 1 litre tea extract, plus approximately 700–750ml strained cucumber liquid (from 750g cucumber, 120ml water, and 90ml lime juice after straining losses), plus 1 litre cold water — approximately 2.8 litres total. The lower water quantity (1–1.4L starting) compared to most other crowd preparations reflects the substantial volume the cucumber base contributes. Taste with the clean-cool-green-tea assessment: the drink should be pale, cool in aromatic register, and clean in flavour — green tea's grassy-fresh depth and cucumber's cool freshness sharing the same aromatic space and amplifying each other. The lime provides the acid brightness that prevents the cool-and-green combination from tasting flat. If the lime is insufficiently present, additional lime juice (up to 120ml total in the cucumber base, or a separate 30ml directly to the pitcher) sharpens the balance. If the green tea is too assertively grassy despite the correct steep time, the cucumber's cool character is being overwhelmed — more cold water (up to 1.4L) dilutes the tea's grassy fraction.

Cover and refrigerate for 1–2 hours. Stir before the first pour — the strained cucumber liquid, despite being clear and clean post-straining, still has slightly denser components that settle. Prepare cucumber garnish slices immediately before service. Serve cold.