Chai II: Events and Notes

I have made chai for one of the woman saints from India that tour North America every summer. The chai was for her crew, actually. This was the Ma's first visit to Woodstock, and the organizers wanted everything to be perfect. So, out of some personal delusion regarding perfection, I decided to make Woodstock tea. This I took to be caffeine-free, mellow, gently but interestingly spiced. I thought the chai came out pretty well; it was rich, creamy -- probably I used a milk substitute -- and soothing. Local volunteers drank it and thanked me.

At the end of the day, one of the crew came up to me, smiling but holding some great distress in his eyes. "Thank you for your tea," he began. "But --" he surged ahead -- "but we're on the road all the time. We really need the caffeine and sugar. I hate to impose, but could you make regular chai for tomorrow?"

I assured him I could. I have stuck to regular chai ever since.



When Celestial Seasonings first came out in the 1970s, the tea was loose. I remember trying to stir up red zinger from the bottom, where all the rosehips had settled. But inevitably, the tea I made grew increasingly astringent as the box emptied.

Tea bags became the standard. Flavor mixes began to change. Mandarin Orange Spice, which sustained me, disappeared completely. I wrote Celestial Seasonings an outraged, desperate letter. They responded with coupons. Mandarin Orange Spice has since returned, less tart. Bengal Spice is sweeter, with added dates. Not all changes are for the worse.

Chai Black is Yogi Tea's souped-up version of their first yogi tea, which sprang from Yogi Bhajan's original five-spice recipe: cardamom seed, cinnamon bark, clove bud, ginger root and black pepper with black tea. The original version, as I recall, was meant to be steeped for some time, and was too peppery for me. The company's new Chai Black, bitter to some, has a different mix of spices and extra added flavor oils. I picked up a packet recently and found it to be perfectly spiced, if the teabag is brewed only briefly and the tea is drunk with milk and honey. Not too peppery. A soupcon too long in brewing and that peppery overbite comes back, and perhaps the bitterness others lament.
Tell us your favorite readymade chai combo! Please post in the comments below.



“I provide two or three 40-gallon batches for Ecstatic Chant,” says Alison Lopez of her chai. Ali, who is the executive chef at the Omega Institute, stopped by at our table at Omega during lunch recently. The dining hall was very busy, and she was very busy, but I managed, through repeated questions and succinct responses, to get her recipe.

Ali boils the water with the spices. Remembering how long it used to take me to bring 12 quarts to a boil on top of a conventional stove, I asked her the timing on 40 gallons.

“Oh, it takes no time at all. We use a steam ring. It’s very fast -- and costs thousands of dollars.” So there you go, chai wallahs: don’t necessarily try this at home.

Add the tea, let it steep. Pour the tea out and add milk. As I recall from under the tent at Ecstatic Chant’s all-night kirtan, it’s served in stadium-sized vacuum urns, such as you might rent at a party store.

Last question. Spices, Ali?

“Cinnamon for sure -- I use sticks. Cardamom -- yes, I throw in the pods. That’s it -- no, and ginger.” And off she strode, briskly.

Ali's Ecstatic Chai: black tea, milk, evaporated cane juice, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and love