Peacock Chai - The Bud Never Opens

Before It Begins · Sep 10, 2026 · 5m

Peacock Chai opens in the cup with a colour that deepens almost before you can watch it, from amber to copper to a red-brown that closes off the light. Somewhere in the blend, smaller than the cinnamon or the root, is a bud that never opened—a dark, nail-like shape with a cross at the tip, holding everything it might have become. The warmth in the aroma and the numbing sweetness at the back of the nose both trace back to this one unopened thing.

Today's cup: ⁠Peacock Chai⁠ — Camellia sinensis, ginger, cloves, pepper berries, cinnamon, fennel, cardamom, black pepper, pink peppercorns, agave.

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