A chai without tea, without fruit, without a dominant flower: nothing but spices. Chai des Sept Chakras Bio strips the Indian recipe of everything that is not essential, keeping only its aromatic heart, the one that perfumes the kitchen as soon as the pan begins to simmer.

Ginger, from Peru, Nigeria and China, leads the composition. Cinnamon sticks, from Indonesia or Viêt-Nam, follow, along with Ceylon cinnamon; black pepper comes from Tanzania, India and Sri Lanka. Then come clove, pink peppercorn, cardamom, rose petals, ground ginger, ground cardamom, powdered cinnamon, turmeric and caraway. Several spices appear twice, in pieces and in powder: the former infuse slowly, the latter release their fragrance straight away. Each comes from organic cultivation.

The dry blend resembles a grocer’s stall in miniature. The liquor, a deep amber, proves rounder than expected. Heat rises in successive waves: cinnamon first, then ginger, then the two peppers, the black sharper, the pink more fragrant. Cardamom softens the whole and leaves a long, almost floral finish, in which the rose can barely be detected.

It is drunk after a meal, and is caffeine-free. For half a litre, put 6.5 to 9 grams of spices in the teapot, pour the water as soon as it reaches 100 °C, then wait: six minutes at least, ten at most. For a chai latte, infuse in a little water, then top up with hot milk, cow’s or plant-based, and sweeten lightly.

It goes with butter biscuits, rice pudding or a squash tart. Store it in an airtight container: ground spices are the most sensitive to air.