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Butter tea is a drink of the people in the Himalayan regions of Nepal, Bhutan, India (particularly in Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh), and Tibet, and other Western regions of the modern-day People's Republic of China. Traditionally, it is made from tea leaves, yak butter, water, and salt. Modern-day, butter made from cow's milk is increasingly used, given its wider availability and lower cost. Butter tea likely originated in the Himalayan region between Greater Tibet and the Indian subcontinent.

Customs
Drinking butter tea is a regular part of Tibetan life. Before work, a Tibetan will typically enjoy several bowlfuls of this beverage, and it is always served to guests.[citation needed] Since butter is the main ingredient, butter tea provides plenty of caloric energy and is particularly suited to high altitudes. The butter may also help prevent chapped lips.

According to the Tibetan custom, butter tea is drunk in separate sips, and after each sip, the host refills the bowl to the brim. Thus, the guest never drains his bowl; rather, it is constantly topped up. If the visitor does not wish to drink, the best thing to do is leave the tea untouched until the time comes to leave and then drain the bowl. In this way, etiquette is observed and the host will not be offended.

Another custom recognized by Tibetans is celebrating the birth of their children a few days after the child's initial birth to dissolve the bad luck the child brings from its mother's womb. Usually, the celebration is attended by the parent's friends and relatives who bring the child gifts which include yak butter tea.

Tibetan Buddhism is a common practice and due to such beliefs, the yak butter used in the tea is held in high regard. The Tibetan monks would consume the butter tea twice a day and on occasion enjoy the beverage with paksuma, a special rice porridge.

Butter tea is also used for eating tsampa by pouring onto it, or dipping the tsampa into it, and mixing well.

The concentrate, produced by repeatedly boiling tea leaves, will keep for several days and is commonly used in towns. The tea is then combined with salt and butter in a special tea churn (Tibetan: མདོང་མོ་, Wylie: mdong mo), and churned vigorously before serving hot. Now an electric blender is often used. Although there is no formal ceremony for the preparation of the tea, Butter Tea is drunk at different Tibetan ceremonies. During a proper Sherpa funeral ceremony, it is custom for the deceased's relatives to invite the guests into their house with a cup of Butter Tea. During the Tibetan New Year, Losar, ceremonies last for three days in the monasteries. Prior to their long prayers in the afternoon, monks start the morning with Butter Tea and sweet rice.

History
The history of tea in Tibet dates back to the 7th century during the Tang dynasty. However, it did not reach its nearly universal status until about the 13th century, the time of the Sakya hierarchy, and the Phagmodu kings.

In this time, a Chinese princess married the King of Tibet which later helped establish trade routes between China and Tibet that brought tea into Tibet from China. Butter was later added to the tea brought from China as butter is and was a staple in Tibetan cuisine.

By the 8th century, it was common to drink tea in Tibet. The tea trade had continued to prosper despite dynasties rising and falling. In the 13th century, tea was then used in Tibetan religious ceremonies. Through this, tea is still prevalent today in Tibet as citizens drink up to 60 cups of butter tea per day.

Preparation
The highest quality of butter tea is made by boiling the Pu-ERH tea leaves in water for half a day, achieving a dark brown color. It is then skimmed, and poured into a cylinder with fresh yak butter and salt which is then shaken. The result is a liquid that is about the thickness of a stew or thick oil. It is then poured into tea-pots or jars.

Each teapot and cup symbolizes the standard of living of each family. A ceramic pot is the most widely used, while those made from copper or bronze may be used by families with a higher standard of living. Another method is to boil water and add handfuls of the tea into the water, which is allowed to steep until it turns almost black. Salt is then added, along with a little soda if desired. The tea is then strained through a horse-hair or reed colander into a wooden butter churn, and a large lump of butter is added. This is then churned until the tea reaches the proper consistency and transferred to copper pots that sit on a brazier to keep them warm. When churn is not available, a wooden bowl and rapid stirring will suffice.

Certain places have their own tradition of preparing Butter Tea. In the Ganden Monastery in Tibet, they prepare food for around 2,500 monks. They prepare this traditional tea in large cauldrons and kettles. Each night, they would boil the water, and the tea itself contains around sixteen bricks of the tea and hundreds of kilograms of butter. Each step came with its own prayer. Once the tea was ready, one monk would sound the gong to let others know the tea was ready.

Nowadays, when tea leaves, yak butter, and wooden butter churns are not available, people often make butter tea using tea bags, different types of butter available in the market, and a blender to churn.

Butter Tea in Popular Culture
Butter tea is credited by David Asprey, the CEO and founder of Bulletproof, a lifestyle company, as the inspiration for his company’s signature bulletproof coffee. Bulletproof coffee is coffee mixed with butter or other oil alternatives and appeared in mainstream culture in the United States around the mid- to late- 2000s. In reality, butter coffee was not created by David Asprey and has been part of an Ethiopian coffee ceremony since the 9th century. Butter tea is used in the title of a book of poems by the exiled Tibetan Ten Phun. His book Sweet Butter Tea: A Book of Poems contains poems about his childhood.

Different Names for Butter Tea in Different Languages
“Butter tea” · Tibetan: བོད་ཇ་ po cha

· Wylie: bod ja cha süma

· Mandarin Chinese: sūyóu chá (酥油茶)

· Ladakhi Language: gur gur cha

“Churned tea”

· Tibetan: ཇ་སྲུབ་མ་ cha süma

· Wylie: ja srub ma