Black Tea Leaves and collection of tasty spices for Chai, including Cloves, Cardamom, Ginger, Cinnamon, and Black Pepper...

DID YOU KNOW: Chai is the word for “Tea” in South Asia and much of the world… In western culture, we often use the term chai to refer to the spiced tea that is common in India, called Masala Chai. Our Chai can be made in many variations, but is often Black Tea mixed with spices such as cloves, cardamon, cinnamon, star anise, peppercorn, and ginger.

Chai can be made with other teas, though the common tea for Chai is strong Black Tea. Masala Chai is usually served with milk and sugar, and in American coffehouses, is often prepared as a Chai Latte, with steamed milk added to the spiced tea mixture. This produces a creamy, yet spicy delicious hot drink with a smaller amount of caffeine than coffee.

If the Chai Tea is not mixed fresh each day, it will not be as potent. Also, as the tea is brewed in southern Asia and India, whole spices are used. For hundreds of years in those cultures a variety of spices have been used to treat or relieve medical symptoms.

Chai Tea General Brewing Guidelines
Brewing Temperature: 212° (rolling boil)
Brewing Time: 4-6 minutes
1 tsp loose tea per 8oz cup
Brewing instructions may vary depending on the tea base of the Chai blend

Here at Hottest Tea we present you one of our favorite Tea Companies, Teavana™. They are doing a brilliant job, their Chai Teas are out of this world in terms of taste and quality. And if you have ever had the luxury of going into one of their shops – you know what a classy company they are. From first flush teas to handmade Japanese Cast Iron they believe in selling only the best, with over 110 different teas on offer… Luckily for us, they are based here in our hometown of Atlanta, Ga. They have stores all over the U.S. from California to Florida.

Below are a few Chai Tea Blends from one of our favorites, Teavana™.  You are getting an OFFICIAL Hottest Tea stamp of approval here! – we have tried and decided these Chai Teas are definitely worth taking for a spin around the teacup…

Dance the Cha Cha…Drink the Chai Chai

Maybe some of you are reading about chai tea for the first time. We’ll approach the subject as if you were learning the steps to a Latin dance, the cha cha. The first thing an instructor might do is explain how the dance got its name. In the following paragraph, we will do the same with this increasingly popular drink called Chai Tea.

Interestingly, Chai Tea is actually a tautological expression. Simply put, both tea and Chai are exactly the same word, only spelled as written in different languages. To differentiate from other types of teas, we will use the term, chai tea, to mean a tea made with four ingredients. Essentially, those are tea, milk, and spices sweetened with either sugar or honey. What we in the West call Chai Tea, those in the East call Masala Chai. This beverage is extremely popular in southern Asia. In India it is sold in cafés and by street vendors called chai wallahs. These merchants even take their hot tea pots to businesses daily in late morning or mid-afternoon. Along with selling their beverage, chai wallahs also pass along the latest news and gossip.

Now that we know how the “dance” got its name, let’s learn some of the steps. Strong black tea is most commonly used in India to make Masala Chai. It is customarily brewed with tea leaves boiled rather than steeped. Westerners have changed some of the “dance” steps. More typically, here Chai Tea is made from a spice mix.

In India this spice mix is called Chai Masala, as opposed to the drink, Masala Chai. In learning to cha cha, some of the dance steps may be confusing to learn. In a similar way, the different names and components used to create a chai tea beverage have caused confusion to some. Okay, now you know how this “dance” got its name and have learned the steps. Now it’s time to dance the cha cha and drink the chai. We’re guessing no one has seen a chai wallah selling tea in this country, at least not yet. Instead of stopping by a chai stall for news and gossip, we meet friends at coffee shops to visit and chat.

You may be wondering about the health benefits of dancing, or as we use the term in this case, of drinking the Chai. Masala chai as prepared with strong black tea in the East may have an amount of caffeine equivalent to that in coffee. Perhaps for that reason green chai tea has been marketed as a healthier alternative to drinking coffee. Chai Latte, or Chai Tea Latte, sold in coffee houses is a steamed milk beverage made using a spiced tea mix or concentrated liquid rather than espresso. This allows you to have that second cup of chai without the guilt or the crash that goes with having that extra caffeine in coffee. On the flip side, chai tea drinks sold in many of these establishments may not have the health benefits that come with Marsala chai.

Americans purchase Chai Teas in places like Barnie’s Coffee & Tea Company, Seattle’s Best Coffee, or Caribou Coffee Company. At your neighbourhood Starbucks, you may even purchase an iced chai- based drink. This version of their popular Frappuccino drink is made with a coffee-free cream and Chai Tea concentrate.

Well, dance class is over for today. The instructor has a final note about the drinking of chai tea. Studies about all the possible benefits of chai tea are still open to debate. Most agree, however, that the choice to drink tea is by and large a beneficial one. As is true with dancing the cha cha, one is more likely to reap those benefits by preparing the drink oneself as from watching it from the sidelines. Now, go enjoy life as you dance the cha cha and drink the chai chai!!!