A Variety of Tastes and Recipes

The original version uses cold water poured over black or green looseleaf tea, and left to infuse outside in the sun. The tea is then strained and refrigerated for 3 days. Served over ice, it was common to add sugar or lemon.
In India, Chai is very popular and enhanced with local flavors and spices.
In Thailand, the tea is sweetened with condensed milk and sugar, served over ice with evaporated milk and coconut milk.
Alcohol added to the recipe yields many variations of the bevarage from classic cocktails to sweet Sangrias.