Chai Pilgrimage

There is a long, complicated list of abbreviated jargon to describe the grades of orthodox teas.  The grade describes the size of the dried tealeaf and whether it is primarily broken leaf, whole leaf, bud or very young bud.  Although the grade does not designate the quality or flavor of the tea, it is assumed that the larger the leaf, the better the tea.  When orthodox tea is harvested, generally two leaves and a bud are handpicked from the end of the shoot.  A sizable ratio of buds to leaf is also considered desirable.

The first thing to know is that Orange Pekoe (OP) has nothing to do with oranges.  It is not a kind of tea, but again, simply describes size.  OP refers to long, pointed leaves that have been harvested after the bud is fully open, thus contain no buds, or tips.  Pekoe (P), without the orange, refers to shorter leaves than OP.  Flowery Orange Pekoe (FOP) is young, tender leaf with some buds.  Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (GFOP) is FOP with golden tips, the yellow ends that characterize the favorable immature young buds harvested early in the growing season.  Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (TGFOP) means it is abundant with golden tips. This is considered some pretty good tea.  The joke we heard is that it stands for Too Good For Ordinary People.  But it gets better.  There’s Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Onange Pekoe (FTGFOP) that is considered by the estate to be of exceptional quality.   Super Finest Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (SFTGFOP) is regarded as the best of the best.  But wait, if they put the number 1 after it (SFTGFOP1), they are putting their reputation on the line to by saying this is the absolute best of the best of the best.

We then get into Broken grade tea. These are smaller pieces than the full leaf descriptions above. There is nothing wrong with the flavor of a broken leaf, it’s just broken.  It therefore, produces a stronger, darker cup of tea.  Many broken leaves will end up in teabags.  If the leaves are broken, they add a B.  This scale goes from Broken Pekoe (BP) to Tippy Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe (TGFBOP).  The terminology goes on to describe Fannings (F) and Dust (D), which is also referred to as “sweepings,” a term that accurately describes its low stature.  These are the tiniest bits of tea that are destined for teabags.

If you have only drunk tea from a tea bag, you don’t know what you’re missing.   You can bring your taste experience to the next level with a loose orthodox, leaf grade, tea.  For the pure, connoisseur’s experience, try it without the milk, sugar and spices so your tongue can capture the divine subtle flavors. For a superior masala chai without a budget, an organic Assam second flush STGFOP1 tea would be an excellent choice. If you want a taste reminiscent of an authentic Indian street chai, CTC tea or a broken grade orthodox tea will work just fine.

The journey of a tealeaf from the bush to your chai pot requires both human and technical precision.  In Darjeeling and Sikkim, we traversed the steep slopes of several tea estates, mingling with the tealeaf pluckers as they worked.  Their careful eyes determine the maturity of each leaf while they quickly and nimbly pluck the first two leaves and a bud from each tea bush stem.  They toss the leaves over their shoulders into a doko, a woven bamboo basket supported by a forehead strap called a namlo.  It bewilders the mind to consider each of the many leaves of tea that we consume daily has been touched by human hands.  In the hill regions we visited, handpicking is the only viable method of harvesting.

At huge tea estates in the plains of Assam and other flatter tea growing regions in India, sometimes machines are used to harvest.  Unlike the handpicking method, harvesting machines cannot determine the quality and ripeness of each leaf and the leaves are usually damaged in the process.  This is fine for lesser quality teas, but does not meet the standards of an Orthodox tea, where an in tact, whole leaf is perfection.

After harvest, the leaves are taken to the factory where they undergo one of two methods of processing, Orthodox or CTC.  First we look at the orthodox method and the 4-step process of withering, rolling, oxidizing and firing.

Withering – After being harvested and weighed, the tealeaves are spread out on long metal troughs in a shaded area to wither. As the moisture evaporates, the leaves become limp and pliable so they can be rolled with the least amount of damage. This can take about 14-20 hours depending on humidity and other conditions. The trained senses of the tea producer know precisely when the leaves are ready for rolling.

Rolling -Traditionally this was done by hand, but the process has been mechanized for large-scale tea production. Some of the rolling machines we saw at the Makaibari factory are still being used after 100 years. The rolling machine applies pressure to the wilted leaves while rotating them around each other in order to release the chemicals stored in the cells of the leaf. This initiates the oxidizing process that gives the tea its characteristic color and flavor.

Oxidation –The leaves are then laid out so the natural chemicals in the tealeaf can react with the air. Again, timing is essential. The leaves must oxidize long enough to bring out the complexity of flavors, but if oxidized too long, the tea becomes too strong and loses the more subtle tastes. This step takes about 2-4 hours. The oxidation process is the main distinction between black tea and green tea, which is not oxidized.

Firing – To halt the oxidizing process and dry the tea completely, the leaves are then put through a drying machine. They pass by conveyor belt through a charcoal fired heater at a temperature of 220-250 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20-40 minutes.

After the tea is thoroughly dried it is ready to be sorted by leaf grade. This is done with a machine that shakes the dried leaves over varying gauges of mesh to sift out the tea according to size. The largest, superior leaves may also be hand-sorted again.  It is critical to keep the same size leaves together because when it is time to steep the tea, the smaller pieces will steep quickly and the larger, full-sized leaves will infuse more slowly. If they are mixed, the smaller leaves will over-steep and throw off the refined flavor of a fine tea. Leaf grade does not necessarily indicate quality, but a young, whole leaf generally demands a higher price than broken leaf grade.

The Orthodox method of tea processing creates a more sophisticated tea with the multi-layered taste preferred by tea connoisseurs.  A good quality orthodox tea will go a long way to improve the flavor of your masala chai. However, because the character of a full leaf tea is more delicate, you may want to use less milk, sugar and spices so you can appreciate the tea flavor.

The CTC (crush, tear, curl or cut, tear, curl) method is a little different.  It is a quicker, more brutal process, as the name implies, and is generally used for less expensive production of inferior quality leaves. Tealeaves destined for CTC processing may be picked by machine or hand-harvested. After the leaves wither, they are put into a machine that compresses the leaves, tears them apart, and curls them into little balls. They then go through the oxidizing and firing process.

CTC tea possesses a robust flavor because the greater surface area of the grain allows it to steep quickly. For brewing masala chai, CTC tea works well because its intense character can push its way through the spices and milk. Throughout India, most households and street-side chai wallahs use cheap CTC tea, boiling it thoroughly and reusing the tea.

With the success of the movie Slumdog Millionaire, we have received many visitors to our what is a chai wallah? post, from those unfamiliar with the term.  To clarify the term chai wallah as it is used in the movie, and to offer a poignant example of this site’s intent, we thought it appropriate to offer an addendum to that post.

From the opening torture scene, to young Jamal jumping into a pit of feces porridge, we realize that we are embarking on a visual journey through the raw reality of India and the dark underbelly of human existence. Although it comes across more subtly than Jamal’s shit bath, when the game show host refers to Jamal as chai wallah, it portrays a deeply-rooted issue that smells even worse: the discrimination perpetuated by the Indian caste system.

In the movie, when call center employee, Jamal, says that one of his assistant duties is serving tea, the game show host cuts him off mid-sentence and mockingly refers to him as chai wallah.  This is not because Jamal is a chai wallah in the traditional sense, but because being a chai wallah is an occupation generally held by members of a lower societal status, and by doing this, he designates the “low” stature of his guest to the audience.  The fact that the host can repeatedly condescend his guest on national television with a smile on his face, and have the audience laughing along with him, is indicative of the limited mindset of those who adhere to the hierarchal Indian caste system, equivalents of which are present in every nation on the planet, where the elite cast judgment and degrade a person because of their “placement” in society. (Of course, not all those who are karmically blessed with affluence hold ethnic prejudice in their hearts and display it through their actions.)

This is not only an Indian dilemma, but a human predicament that chains us to the gross realm of egoic illusion and prevents us from recognizing our own True Divine Nature. To put down the chai wallah, or any other human for that matter, debases the entire human race.

As you can see by our illustration of chai wallahs, we hope to elicit the exact opposite sentiment.  To us, the chai wallah is the welcoming face of India who embodies the Vedic tradition of Atitihi Devo Bhava, or treating the guest as God, no matter who they are. Our vision is to portray the chai wallah, the clay cup potter, the tealeaf plucker and any other “lower caste” humans as unique expressions of the divine who are worthy of being glorified.  We are all the same.  This experiential realization was the greatest boon of our pilgrimage.

What is a chai wallah?  A manifestation of the Divine Presence who is blessed with the humble duty of serving up a sweet break in a sometimes bitter world.

Thanks for visiting our site.  Click on home and check out the rest of it.  Namasté

Here’s a lively sermon from Pastor Eddie D. Smith to sip your morning chai to.  For a more extensive explanation of Namaste, check out this earlier post.  And again, Namaste!

OH WOW, it’s amazing how time flies by when your life is suddenly filled with so much joy and beauty and laughter… Tulsi is 5 months old already and doing amazing! We are still in a constant state of awe watching her grow. She is as sweet as her name and the scent of Tulsi flowers. We celebrated Bhandara with her at the Hanuman Temple recently, and she wore her first jeweled bindi. Sigh.

So, as you may have noticed, our chai pilgrimage blog has been on hiatus during these precious first months, but soon, we will be  back blogging and finishing our book (which will have a 2010 release date instead of 2009).

Winter is the perfect time for such a project, all nestled up in our cozy mountain home sipping chai and creating all day! Patrick has already begun teaching Tulsi the art of making chai. Perhaps when she can stand on her own … and reach the counter. Also, I’m in the midst of finishing my next children’s book, Same, Same but Different, inspired by our travels in Nepal and India. It will be published by Henry Holt.

So there you have it — TWO books inspired by India’s beauty that you can look forward to! Stay tuned, and REMEMBER to sign up for our mailing list to the right so you’ll know when and where you can purchase them.

Almost seven weeks have passed since our last post, and we have a good reason! Our daughter, Tulsi Lila Grace Shaw, was born on April 9th! She chose Hanuman’s birthday on the full moon as the perfect moment to arrive. She’s awesome! And we’re doing great! (There’s more on my blog.) I’ve been drinking a lot of non-caffeinated Tulsi ginger spice chai in celebration. It’s my new favorite ‘chai’. So, in honor of our sweet Tulsi, we’ll be posting a new recipe as soon as time permits!

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For those of you who have asked about the sweet Ganesh doll, our friend found it on ebay. Search for “Ganesh plush doll” or click here.

We love baking our own chai dipping biscuits. We call these Yogi Chai Biscuits because they are eggless, naturally sweetened, full of sacred cow ghee and pure enough to suit a sattvic diet. But be careful! These biscuits are so yummy, they require the cultivated restraint of a disciplined yogi. Click recipe card to view larger.

yogi chai biscuits

Ingredients

1 cup Organic Whole Spelt flour (can substitute with wheat)
1 cup Organic White Spelt flour (can substitute with wheat)
2 Tbs. Arrowroot powder
1/2 cup Maple syrup
1/2 cup Ghee/clarified butter (can substitute with butter)
1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract
1 tsp. Cardamom, freshly ground, course
1/2 tsp. Ginger powder
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp. Nutmeg, freshly ground
& small pinch of salt

Recipe

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Combine ghee, maple syrup and vanilla extract in larger bowl and mix
Combine flour, arrowroot powder and spices in smaller bowl and mix
Add dry ingredients to wet and mix by hand until firm and well blended
Roll into small (3/4 inch) balls and press into cookie sheet
Bake for about 14 minutes at 375 degrees or until bottom is golden brown
Offer up to the Divine. Eat a few warm. Let the rest cool thoroughly for best dipping.

Download printable pdf of our recipe card here!