Chai's history and culture

Drinking tea, in all different cultures, is a social event. It's meant to be consumed sitting down, and some eastern cultures have created elaborate ceremonies to signify its importance in their culture. 

 In India, the consumption of tea for medicinal and therapeutic purposes was documented as far back as 500 BC. However, it was the British who introduced the Indians to the culture of drinking black tea with milk and sugar. Indians adopted the recipe, boiled the tea with spices and milk to make chai in its current form. 

The British East India Company started the commercial production of tea in India in the 19th century. The foothills of the Himalayas in the northeast region proved to be the ideal climate for tea plantations. As a result, India has become one of the largest tea producers in the world. 

 Those who traveled to India are familiar with carts on sidewalks and street corners selling chai and other goodies. Like the Chinese, Indians drink chai multiple times a day. Like in Britain, the afternoon chai is often accompanied by snacks. As it is with eastern culture, chai is a sign of hospitality. If you prefer to have your chai the “British way” – black tea with a spot of milk - you are likely to be considered an elitist in India.

The origins of our Malt Chai

When I first started The Chai Cart in 2010, I offered two simple flavors: ginger and cardamom. 

Ginger chai was an obvious choice, as I grew up drinking it. It was the first thing I ever learned to make in the kitchen from my mom. Cardamom, another very common spice used for chai, was another obvious flavor option. It eventually evolved into, what is now, our signature Masala Chai, after customers frequently requested a spicier, “masala” chai, which led me to create my own masala blend. 

 Then I started experimenting to find more creative flavors. The Rose Chai was an accidental find; I was being creative in the kitchen and trying out many flavors. 

The Malt Chai, which began as an occasional off-menu item, but now a regular feature, was created out of nostalgia from my childhood days. Before the days when I was allowed to enjoy a real cup of chai, I was permitted to drink a glass of milk mixed with malt powder (remember Horlicks, anyone?). To appease my whining for chai, my mother would pour my milk into the pot with the used tea leaves from the chai she had prepared for my dad and herself. She would then strain this milk into my glass. It was a pretty convincing trick that made me think I was drinking chai, too. : ) 

 The Malt Chai we serve at the carts evolved from those childhood memories.