Summer brings with it blazing heat and long days. In response, our bodies naturally begin to crave coolness, lightness, and hydration. Dehydration, fatigue, and digestive sluggishness or diarrhea like symptoms become common challenges. While many turn to carbonated drinks or artificially sweetened beverages, Ayurveda – the ancient Indian science of life – offers time-tested alternatives that are not just refreshing but holistically healing.
Do Ayurvedic Summer Drinks Actually Help?
The short answer: yes, and here’s why.
In Ayurveda, summer is governed by the Pitta dosha, which represents heat, transformation, and metabolism. An excess of Pitta during hot months can lead to skin rashes, acidity, irritability, dehydration, and digestive issues. To counterbalance this, Ayurveda recommends cooling, hydrating, and grounding foods and drinks.
Many Ayurvedic beverages are infused with herbs and natural ingredients like mint, fennel, vetiver, rose, amla, tulsi, and brahmi. These don’t just lower internal heat but also support digestion, immunity, and mental calmness. Their effectiveness is backed both by centuries of practice and growing scientific evidence that validates their healing potential.
More than just hydration, Ayurvedic summer drinks offer functional wellness, targeting specific imbalances while refreshing the senses.
What Makes an Ayurvedic Summer Drink?
Ayurvedic drinks stand out for their simplicity, balance, and purposeful ingredient selection. Here’s what typically defines one:
- Cooling herbs and flowers like mint, rose, and lemongrass
- Digestive spices such as cumin, fennel, and ginger (used subtly)
- Natural sweeteners like rock sugar (mishri), bhura, khaand, shakkar or honey
- Functional properties like detoxification, immunity support, digestive health, or mental calmness
- Designed as per the requirement of body’s doshic constitution (Vata, Pitta, Kapha)
Most importantly, these drinks are formulated to maintain a healthy digestive fire (Agni) rather than subside it, which may adversely affect the body’s functioning.
Where Can You Find These Ayurvedic Summer Drinks?
One such place that brings this philosophy to life is Café Swasthya, a wellness-forward café that blends Ayurvedic wisdom with contemporary taste. Known for its thoughtful, dosha-balancing meals and drinks, Café Swasthya takes pride in crafting every offering with herbs, spices, and seasonal ingredients chosen for their healing potential.
Here are their must-try offerings this season:
1. Mint Iced Tea
Mint has long been a summer classic. This chilled infusion soothes the stomach, promotes digestion, and keeps your body temperature in check. Ideal for those with excess heat or prone to summer acidity.
Benefits: Cooling, Hydrating, Digestive, Tridosha Balancing
Taste: Crisp, mildly sweet with a refreshing minty finish
Ideal Time: Afternoon or post-walk
2. Lemongrass Iced Tea
Fragrant and subtly citrusy, lemongrass not only calms the digestive tract but also supports immune function. It’s particularly effective after meals and for those dealing with sluggish digestion.
Benefits: Digestion, Immunity, Vata and Kapha balancing
Taste: Light and zesty
Ideal Time: Mid-day or early evening
3. Rose Iced Tea
This floral cooler is as elegant as it is therapeutic. Rose petals calm the mind, regulate body heat, and support heart and digestive health – all while making you feel like royalty.
Benefits: Calming, Heart-Healthy, Tridosha balancing
Taste: Delicate, floral, mildly sweet
Ideal Time: Mid day, or when you’re exhausted
4. Takra Buttermilk
Buttermilk, or Takra, is a revered summer staple in Ayurveda. This café version is customized based on your dosha (whether you’re fiery Pitta, airy Vata, or earthy Kapha) with tailored herbs and spices to match.
Benefits: Digestive, Protein-Rich, Tridosha Balancing
Taste: Mildly sour, spiced, refreshing
Ideal Time: Before or post mid-day meal
5. Sweet Lime Juice
When you’re feeling drained or recovering from a fever, this vitamin-C rich juice restores energy, supports digestion, and hydrates deeply.
Benefits: Vitamin C, Digestion, Fever Relief
Taste: Bright, tangy, revitalizing
Ideal Time: Mid-morning or noon
6. Brahmi Juice
This is a special green drink made from the Brahmi herb, known in Ayurveda for helping your brain stay sharp, cool, and calm. It helps cool the body, ease mental fatigue, and calm stress, making it the perfect refreshment for hot summer days when you’re feeling anxious or mentally drained.
Benefits: Mental Clarity, Stress Relief, Cooling, Vata-Pitta balancing
Taste: Earthy, slightly bitter with a calming herbal note
Ideal Time: Early morning or evening when seeking focus or relaxation
7. Thandai – Rose Variant
This refreshing drink is infused with rose petals, cardamom, fennel which help cool the body and calm the mind. It’s lightly sweet, fragrant, and perfect for hot summer afternoons when you need a gentle lift.
Benefits: Cooling, Mood-Lifting, Pitta balancing
Taste: Sweet, floral, light and refreshing
Ideal Time: Late morning or early afternoon
Thandai – Sandalwood Variant
Made with pure sandalwood essence, this version of Thandai is soothing and deeply cooling. It’s especially helpful for reducing excess body heat and bringing a sense of inner calm.
Benefits: Cooling, Mood-Lifting, Pitta balancing
Taste: Smooth, mildly spiced, nutty, with a woody aroma
Ideal Time: Mid-morning and afternoon or evening when the heat is at its peak
Expert Tips for Choosing the Right Drink for You
Each individual’s constitution, or dosha, plays a role in what their body needs during summer:
- Pitta types (naturally hot, intense) benefit from cooling and tridosha-balancing drinks. Herbal or floral blends like rose, mint, brahmi, and fennel, and coolers like thandai help calm the system and reduce internal heat.
- Vata types (dry, light, cool) should go for slightly warming options to stay grounded and hydrated. Blends like Shubh Saanjh chai or herbal teas containing ajwain, mint, and cumin can help maintain balance and support digestion.
- Kapha types (slow, earthy, heavy) thrive with energizing and slightly spicy options. Detox juices, spiced buttermilk (Takra), or teas with black pepper (kali mirch) can rekindle digestive fire and uplift energy levels.
Also:
- Avoid ice-cold drinks right after meals, they can weaken digestion.
- Space out juices and teas through the day to prevent overloading your system.
- Steer clear of fermented foods or over spiced foods, as they tend to aggravate Pitta.
- Stay hydrated with room temperature or mildly cool drinks for best results.
Final Thoughts
In a world dominated by quick fixes, Ayurvedic drinks offer a slower, more intentional path to summer wellness. They don’t just quench your thirst, they heal from within. With nature as its base and balance as its goal, Ayurveda reminds us that the best remedies are often the simplest.
