The DragonFly Chai guys are spicing things up in Portland. |
You can smell the spice before you even get there. On a recent visit to the DragonFly Chai “headquarters” in Northeast Portland our senses were alive with the fragrant smells of Madagascar vanilla, pepper and cinnamon before we even stepped foot through the door.
“We’re not even brewing chai today,” DragonFly owner David Fischer says with a smile as we walk in the two-room brewery. The “entire neighborhood” he says, fills up with the fresh aromas of chai when they do their brewings four times a week.
David energetically shares his passion for chai-brewing as he gave us the tour and the story of his company.
The five-man operation that makes up DragonFly began in 2002 just north of Portland in Port Townsend, Washington. David was bouncing back and forth from Portland and Port Townsend when he had his chai-calling. He remembers his first taste of the spicy sweet beverage at an Indian restaurant in Portland. It was love at first sip! His curiosity of the beverage grew, so he took it to the kitchen.
He messed around with some recipes and soon enough, he had more requests from friends than he could keep up with. A year or so later, he began to bottle it and sell it to a few cafes in the Port Townsend area.
So how do the dragonflies come into the picture? Great question. “You’ll love this,” he tells us as he recaps the story. “It came to me during one rather serendipitous moment whilst hiking in the beautiful and lofty Olympic Mountains on a perfectly clear summer solstice. I was with a good friend who had been listening to me as I was searching for inspiration around a name for the new chai.
“I posed the question to my hiking buddy, ‘What should the chai's name be?’ As we stood there gazing into the blue sky and sub-alpine treetops, we were surrounded by a small swarm of ... yes, of course, gorgeous dragonflies. We looked at one another and laughed because without even saying it, we realized the meaning in the moment. The name fit so perfectly. It was as if we were being told by some clever and poetic higher being. I guess that is the nature of serendipity.”
So far so great with the rest of DragonFly Chai’s history. David moved the business to Portland in 2004 and they’ve b
een brewing bottle after bottle ever since.
Speaking of bottles, we think it’s pretty great that they reuse every one they get back. Yep, they take back the empties, clean and sterilize them, then fill them with a fresh batch of chai. Furthermore, they’ve mastered the art of composting the used tea making the entire process nearly 100 percent waste-free! Very cool; although we prefer our chai steamed hot and mixed with Pacific Village 2 percent milk. Try a cup from our Deli to enjoy while you do your shopping, or pick up a bottle from our Grocery Department to take home with you. We think the time is always right to spice up your life with a little DragonFly Chai!
Learn more about DragonFly Chai.
