There's a version of chai tea syrup that starts with a spice blend and hot water and tastes vaguely like the idea of chai without actually tasting like chai... and this isn't that.
This one starts with a proper tea concentrate: two bags of Masala Chai steeped in hot water until it's strong enough, and then builds from there. I'm going for a syrup that actually tastes like a proper, robust cup of chai tea, and won't just disappear when I try using it in cocktails.
I did add an optional step at the end: adding cinnamon sticks, star anise, dried orange. It deepensthe spice character while the syrup cools and adds a subtle citrus note that plays really well with a lot of fall and winter cocktails... but if you have an exceptionally bangin' chai tea you are using, then follow your heart.
What You'll Need:
- 2 Masala Chai tea bags (Smith Teamaker is what I'm using here)
- 250g hot water
- Approximately 200g tea concentrate (usually what remains after steeping and removing the tea bags)
- 200g cane sugar (roughly 1 cup: equal parts to your concentrate)
Optional aromatics:
- 2 whole cinnamon sticks
- 2 whole star anise
- 2–3 dried orange slices
Instructions:
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Steep the tea. Heat 250g of water until just off the boil: around 200°F. Add both tea bags and steep for 5–7 minutes. You want a strong concentrate here, not a cup of tea you'd drink straight. Remove the bags and weigh your remaining liquid. You should have a little over 200g. That's your concentrate.
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Dissolve the sugar. Add the tea concentrate to a small saucepan over low heat. Add an equal weight of cane sugar: so if you have 200g of concentrate, add 200g of sugar. Stir gently until the sugar is fully dissolved. Don't let it simmer or boil. You're just warming it enough to dissolve.
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Add the aromatics (optional but recommended). Remove the pan from heat. Add the cinnamon sticks, star anise, and dried orange slices directly to the warm syrup. Put the lid on and let everything cool completely at room temperature... about 45 minutes to an hour. The aromatics will continue to infuse as it cools.
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Strain and bottle. Once fully cooled, remove the solids and pour the syrup into a clean glass bottle. Refrigerate. Keeps for 2–3 weeks.
Estimated Yield
This batch yields approximately 10–12 oz of finished syrup: enough for 15–20 cocktails depending on how much you use per drink. It's a solid home batch that you can work through comfortably before it starts to turn.
A Note on Scaling Up
The method stays the same at larger volumes: just scale proportionally. A few things worth noting if you're batching for a bar program or a larger gathering:
- Weigh your concentrate every time. Tea bags do absorb different amounts of water depending on steep time, bag size, and tea variety. Weighing after steeping rather than before keeps your sugar ratio accurate and your syrup consistent batch to batch.
- Scale the aromatics conservatively. Cinnamon and star anise get assertive fast in larger volumes. Start at half the proportional amount and taste before adding more.
- Consider steeping time carefully at scale. Larger volumes of water take longer to cool, which means the aromatics keep working longer. Either shorten the steep or remove them earlier than you would in a small batch.
- At 2x batch: 4 tea bags, 500g water, approximately 400g concentrate, 400g cane sugar. Yields roughly 20–25 oz.
How to Use It
- Chai Old Fashioned: bourbon or rye, chai syrup, a few dashes of aromatic bitters, orange twist
- Chai Sour: whiskey or dark rum, fresh lemon juice, chai syrup... shake and strain
- Dirty Chai Martini: vodka or brandy, fresh espresso + chai syrup... shake hard and strain into a coupe
- Sparkling Chai: chai syrup, fresh lemon, sparkling water. It's a simple and really good zero-proof drink that tastes like it has way more going on.
- Hot Toddy variation: whiskey, chai syrup, hot water, squeeze of lemon
Final Pour
Tea syrups are one of the most efficient things you can make at home. Two tea bags, some sugar, twenty minutes. What you get back is a syrup with a full flavor profile already built in, without having to source and measure six individual ingredients.
This one in particular feels like fall in a bottle... chai just has all those fun flavors already going for it, so you might as well pick up some tea and make a batch.
And if you're working through the Slow Sip Seasonal this month alongside this one, several of the cocktail recipes in there would be absolutely delicioues with this syrup swapped in. 😋
—Jordan / High-Proof Preacher
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The Slow Sip Seasonal Volume 1 is the first of many seasonal cocktail guides I will be releasing (one at the beginning of every season):
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