WHAT IS SPICED TEA CALLED

Masala chai ('mixed-spice tea') is a tea beverage made by boiling black tea in milk and water with a mixture of aromatic herbs and spices. In English, this spiced tea is commonly referred to as masala chai, or simply chai, even though the term refers to tea in general in the original language.

Originating in India, the beverage has gained worldwide popularity, becoming a feature in many coffee and tea houses. Although traditionally prepared as a decoction of green cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, ground cloves, ground ginger, and black peppercorn together with black tea leaves, retail versions include tea bags for infusion, instant powdered mixtures, and concentrates.

The term "chai" originated from the Hindi word "chai", which was derived from the Chinese word for tea, cha (see: Etymology of tea).

History

Main article: Etymology of tea

Tea plants have grown wild in the Assam region since antiquity, but historically, Indians viewed tea as a herbal medicine rather than as a recreational beverage. Some of the chai masala spice mixtures, or karha and Kashayam (Kha-shā-yam) that are still in current use, are derived from ancient Ayurvedic texts.

In the 1830s, the British East India Company became concerned about the Chinese monopoly on tea, which constituted most of its trade and supported the enormous consumption of tea in Great Britain around one pound (by weight) per person per year. British colonists had recently noticed the existence of the Assamese tea plants, and began to cultivate tea plantations locally. In 1870, over 90% of the tea consumed in Great Britain was still of Chinese origin, but by 1900, this had dropped to 10%, largely replaced by tea grown in India (50%) and Ceylon (33%), present-day Sri Lanka.

However, consumption of black tea within India remained low until the promotional campaign by the Indian Tea Association in the early 20th century, which encouraged factories, mines, and textile mills to provide tea breaks for their workers. It also supported many independent chaiwalas throughout the growing railway system.

The official promotion of tea was as served in the Indian mode, with small added amounts of milk and sugar. The Indian Tea Association initially disapproved of independent vendors' tendency to add spices and greatly increase the proportions of milk and sugar, thus reducing their usage (and thus purchase) of tea leaves per liquid volume. However, masala chai in its present form has now firmly established itself as a popular beverage.

Components

Non-tea-based variants may be prepared with herbal teas or with the South American beverage yerba mate.

Some coffeehouses in the United States offer a version of masala chai augmented with espresso, but this beverage does not have any one universally recognized name. It was invented accidentally in Covent Garden, England, by a woman making a chai latte for an American in the late 1990s. She poured in a shot of espresso by mistake, and he decided to try it. The American thought it delicious and for years he ordered it wherever he traveled. Depending on the establishment, it is now called a "java chai," "red eye chai," "turbocharger," "chai charger," "tough guy chai," the American's preferred "dirty chai," among others. However, despite the common use in many localities to use the term "latte" as an abbreviation of "caffe latte" ("cafe latte"), the term "chai latte" does not generally imply the presence of coffee in the beverage; see the discussion of the terminology above (literally, latte is Italian for "milk").