I enjoy making chai from scratch. I can control the sweetness and my choices of flavors far better than the syrupy cups served up by the green mermaid coffee house or from the shelf-stable boxes of concentrate you can buy at the supermarket. No, I make mine at home.
Chai is not something I slap together in the morning. There is not enough time to do it right. In the morning, I pop a k-cup in the machine and pump out a cup of coffee rocket fuel. Chai-making is something I do slow and with great attention in the evenings or on the weekends.
My formula is comprised of cardamom pods, black peppercorns, whole cloves, fresh ginger and Ceylon cinnamon bark that I smash and crack with a stone mortar and pestle. The tea is a dark rich Assam. Strong black tea is essential. No timid Earl Grey or green tea will cut it. The spices and tea, along with a bit of coconut palm sugar, are added to a small pan of boiling water and then allowed to steep on a low flame for several minutes. The longer the steep, the more developed the flavors. Finally, I add whole milk until the concoction is an orangey tan, bring it back to a boil, then pour it through a fine mesh strainer into a serving cup.
The process is slow, slow, slow. And I sip it accordingly.
I came across a video this morning that exactly illustrates the process and the practice.
Miss Pelican's Perch 