Sugar, Spice & A Cup That's Just Right

A collaboration born of mutual admiration & friendship—we partnered with Diaspora Co. to create a limited-edition kulhad in pink to hold the world's most thoughtfully-sourced Chai Masala.

The Chai Kulhad

Our vessel is inspired by the kulhad—a handleless cup form that originated centuries ago in the Indus Valley. Today you can still find potters near railways in India, throwing one-time-use cups "off the hump" to hold a few glugs of tea before being thrown into the scrap pile to be recycled and re-made into kulhad of the future.
Three women sit on colorful pillows and blankets along a riverside while sipping tea out of pink cups




Sipping Chai And Cocktails With Friends

East Fork is a vessel for many things, one of the most important: connection. Collectors connect over shared glaze admiration and reminisce on the forms that got away. Friends and loved ones tell stories while passing serving bowls around the table. Children sip from their juice cups, admiring the matching mug in the adult hand. As we continue weaving connections through our pots, we are honored to introduce a new, limited time vessel steeped in tradition and filled to the brim with human connection, a Chai Kulhad in collaboration with Diaspora Co., on April 28th.

Founder Sana Javeri Kadri launched Diaspora Co. in 2017 with one spice, Pragati Turmeric. Today, they source 30 single-origin spices from 150 farms across India and Sri Lanka. Diaspora Co. has been an East Fork partner and pantry staple since we began carrying spices in the shop in 2019. Much like our CEO, Connie Matisse, Sana is a courageous and impassioned woman advocating for transformative work, proving intentional business can be successful while also reimagining the ways we can navigate through capitalism with compassion.



At home in Connie Matisse's kitchen, Sana Jeveri Kadri, founder of Diaspora Co., scoops freshly made house chai masal from a cast iron pot into an East Fork Chai Kulhad in Rococo.

After 4 years of sourcing across 40 farms in India & Sri Lanka,

Sana pours Chai Masala with Iniya Cardamom from Tamil Nadu; Aranya Black Pepper from Kerala; Makhir Ginger from Meghalaya; Lucknowi Fennel from Uttar Pradesh; and Kandyan Cloves & Peni Miris Cinnamon from Kandy, Sri Lanka—six spices freshly milled for peak potency and deliciousness.

Lightly rimmed glasses hold brilliantly saffron-colored cocktails with dried chiles on top.

Double-fisting. Chai in one hand, a margarita in the other.

Everything Diaspora Co. sources is incredible, but Connie's especially a fan of their Kashmiri saffron. She used a few strands to make a bright yellow simple syrup, shaken up hard with 2 oz tequila, 1 oz passion fruit juice, 1 oz fresh lime, and topped with a smokey, salty Sirārakhong Hāthei Chillies rim. We highly recommend this glass for juicy summertime cocktails.

Connie Matisse shakes up saffron-infused cocktails in her bright kitchen in Flat Rock, North Carolina.






Saffron-infused cocktails topped with dried red chiles and rimmed with salt.
The fixings for a saffron-infused cocktail: gin, saffron, salt and chiles.
Chai pours out of a brass ladle, through a metal strainer, and into a hot pink cup: the East Fork Chai Kulhad in Rococo

Strongly Opinionated CEOs

"Running this business from the mountains of North Carolina with a lifelong bad habit of insisting I go at things alone means I rarely pull my head up from work to see how other people are doing things. Having Sana on speed dial when I've hit a wall and need to bounce things off a similarly stubborn leader with a radical vision for a different world helps me sleep at night. Being in partnership with companies like Diaspora Co. make the hard days feel worth it." — Connie Matisse, Co-Founder & CEO at East Fork

Sana Jeveri Kadri and Connie Matisse, two fierce female CEOs, sip chai and stay warm under blankets along the Hungry River, a short walk through the wood's from Connie's house in Flat Rock.




Dinner on the Hungry River with Chef Ashleigh Shanti

We're over-the-top kind of people and Sana happened to be passing through the South, so we celebrated at Connie's house, with Chai by the water, saffron & passionfruit margaritas, and an exquisite meal prepared by our chef and dear friend, Ashleigh Shanti. Chef Shanti brought Diaspora Co. spices to play on Southern staples. Want to make this dinner yourself? Stay tuned for recipes from Ashleigh.

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