Going back to barista work, I've had to learn how to make every drink on the menu. I also needed to taste them. That includes all the drinks I would never order myself, including a miel. It would never occur to me to order an espresso-based drink that has steamed milk, honey, and cinnamon in it. Gross. And I've realized for as much time as I spend in coffeehouses, sitting for hours, using their wifi, I only ever order hot or cold coffee and hot or iced tea (and snacks, obv). I don't like dairy milks. I like delicious, good-quality coffee, but I never order things that need to be crafted. (I wonder why am I spending so much money on beverages that I can clearly make at home for much less, but I'll have to unpack that another day.)
The first few days back on the line, I would have to taste my espresso shots and other caffeinated drinks for training and quality. After 6 hours or so, I'd leave with jitters and heart racing. I decide my new favorite drink is an almond milk chai latte. This base of this concoction originates in India; black tea, spices, real milk. It's delicious and comforting—no wonder people always talk about it! Why did I always pass on it at Indian restaurants? I'm really late to this party.
I was walking around in the snow yesterday—nowhere near the shop I work at—and I start craving a nice warming drink. I ordered the chai at the closest coffee shop. Not hot enough, not sweet, not spicy. Worst of all, $7. I'm not used to paying for them. Certainly, not at full price.
I start thinking: Maybe my shop has a better-than-most chai mix? Why doesn't the tea we use have a label on it? I have no idea where we source our product. The manager has never mentioned it by name, but has referred to our source as "she." Is it a secret?
Next, I go to Yelp. I search for reviews for "best chai" and "spicy chai." I even message a woman that frequently includes these phrases in her reviews. Still waiting for a response.
A drink that costs $7 a pop is not sustainable with my budget. I take it as a good sign when I come across this tiny tea shop in the Minneapolis Skyway system earlier today.
The Northern Lights Tea Company! I ask the kind person behind the counter about tea offerings and it's all so delightful. A little corner haven away from the noise and rush of downtown Minneapolis. I buy a 1-ounce packet of masala chai to experiment with at home. Three dollars and change.
At home I inspect the packet. It looks really cool and smells wonderful.
I don't really know what I'm doing. On the job, I use a refrigerated tea made by an unknown person, add milk, steam. At home, I Google some instructions and try my best to approximate some of the methods I found
- 16 oz cool filtered water in a small saucepan
- bring to boil
- add 4 heaping teaspoons of tea blend—this is probably not enough
- remove from heat
- let steep 8 minutes
- marvel at 2 cardamom pods floating at the surface
- smells great so far
- strain
- add unsweetened, vanilla flavored almond milk—this is all I have right now; purchased by the case at Costco
- add sugar to taste
I think I can work with this! As I mentioned, I probably didn't use enough of the tea. It may be even more cost effective to make my own tea blend from scratch. There are a lot of recipes online that give proportions of cardamom, black tea, ginger, and cinnamon. We have a Penzey's nearby, but it might be even more affordable to find a store (co-op?) that sells these items in bulk. So I never followed through on making my own kombucha, but maybe tweaking my own chai recipe will be my snowy weather activity.
Jitters!
(612) 332-8869
Monday-Friday, 8 A.M. - 6 P.M.
No comments:
Post a Comment