Spices for drinks

Spiced drinks are among the oldest uses of spice, from mulled wine and masala chai to Mexican hot chocolate, Arabic coffee and Caribbean sorrel.

Hot drinks

Masala chai combines black tea with ginger, cardamom, clove, cinnamon and pepper. Arabic coffee is flavoured with cardamom, sometimes saffron. Mulled wine and wassail use cinnamon, clove and orange, and Mexican hot chocolate takes cinnamon and sometimes chilli.

Cold drinks

Sorrel, a hibiscus drink with ginger and clove, is served at Christmas in the Caribbean. Jamu in Indonesia uses turmeric and ginger, and tamarind drinks are sold across Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Spirits and bitters

Spices flavour spirits and liqueurs, such as anise in ouzo, pastis and arak, juniper in gin, and clove, quinine and gentian in bitters.

Drinks on EveryMasala

The spices written up so far, best known first.

🇮🇳 IndiaKewraकेवड़ा A fragrant essential oil distilled from the male flowers of the screwpine plant.Resin · Sweet and mellow · Floral and perfumed

🇲🇽 Mexico and 4 moreVanilla The cured seed pods of a climbing orchid, the world's second-most expensive spice by weight.Fruit · Sweet and mellow · Floral and perfumed

🇮🇩 Indonesia and 5 morePandan The fragrant leaf of a sterile screwpine, used to scent rice and desserts across Asia.Leaf · Sweet and mellow · Floral and perfumed 🇨🇳 China and 4 moreLesser galangal高良薑 An aromatic Asian rhizome with orange flesh and a sweet, gentle spiceRoot · Sweet and mellow · Warm and sweet-spiced 🇺🇸 United StatesMrs. Burns' Lemon Basil An heirloom sweet basil cultivar from New Mexico with intense lemon flavor and large leaves.Leaf · Citrus and bright · Floral and perfumed

🇩🇪 Germany and 4 moreHops The green female flower cones of a climbing vine, used to bitter and flavour beer.Flower · Bitter · Sharp and pungent