Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: The Boston Tea Company
Tea Description:
You’ll do the cha-cha over our Chai tea! Ever so popular, worldwide, Chai is a centuries’ old tradition of Indian culture. Boast to your friends about Boston Tea’s aromatic, cheery blend of black tea with sweet fragrant spices. Simply add a pinch of sugar to bring out its rich flavorful spices of cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and anise seeds. Top with a generous splash of milk and sensually savor each sip!
Learn more about this chai here.
Taster’s Review:
Seldom do I make chai lattes anymore, usually, when I drink a chai, I drink it straight. Sure, I still do love the creamy, spicy goodness of a chai latte, but I’ve been discovering just how lovely a chai tea is without the milk. When brewed in boiling water, and just a touch of turbinado sugar is added to enhance the spices. It becomes a lovely, warm and spicy blend that is delicious no matter what the weather is like outside – at the moment, it’s 72°F outside – a bit on the warm side and the sun is shining brightly, but, I still find this warm, spicy chai (served hot, no less!) to be absolutely refreshing.
When I first opened the package, I could smell the cardamom. It had a delicious, exotic warmth as well as a hint of bright citrus tones and I could feel my mouth start to water just from experiencing the aroma of this chai. I stood impatiently over my timer today … I WANTED – perhaps even NEEDED – this tea!
And this chai was indeed worth the wait. It is gently sweet from the turbinado sugar (I added about a half a teaspoon), but more than the sweetness I notice the depth of the enchanting spices. I like that the ginger and cinnamon do not overwhelm the cup – which is so common in chai blends, it seems – they are more of a background flavor. The cardamom and the cloves tend to be the strongest spices here. The anise is also in the background, offering its unique sweetness to the overall flavor.
I like that I can taste the tea here too. It is rich, a little malty and smooth. It is not bitter (although, I wouldn’t recommend over-steeping it, as that may cause bitterness), and it finishes with a tangy astringency. The spices compliment the black tea quite nicely, providing a cup that is robust with black tea flavor as well as invigorating spices.
I really enjoyed this lively chai, and I like that it is available in both loose leaf and sachet form. At the time of this writing, I noticed that this is currently out of stock – I hope their supply is replenished soon!
Organic Thai Iced Tea Blend from Arbor Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Arbor Teas
Tea Description:
Thai Tea (also known as Thai Iced Tea) is a popular drink hailing from Thailand, commonly found in Thai restaurants across the US. Our Organic and Fair Trade Certified Thai Iced Tea is a traditional blend of strong black tea, vanilla bean, cardamom and anise. It can be enjoyed hot or cold with a twist of lime as a self drinker (without milk). Or it can be brewed to create a traditional, restaurant-style Thai Iced Tea when combined with ice, milk and sugar!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
If any of you have read my foodie reviews for various Thai restaurants in the Portland area, you are probably already aware of my fondness of Thai Iced Tea. In fact, now that I think about it, Thai Iced Tea is probably the first real tea that I fell in love with, because I had discovered it long before I started on my journey with tea in general, and for me, Thai Iced Tea was love at first sip.
So when I was asked to try Arbor Teas’ new Organic Thai Iced Tea Blend, I was excited!
The leaves and spices are very finely cut. This is perhaps the finest tea leaf cut I’ve seen, it is almost like dust. The dry leaf smells delicious, with notes of anise, cardamom and vanilla tantalizing my olfactory nerves. Because of the fine chop on these leaves, I recommend being careful when you measure it … a little goes a long way!
I brewed my first pot of this to try as a hot tea, because I personally think that all teas should at least be tried hot. It has been my experience that chilling often mutes some of the flavor of the tea, so I think to try it properly, all tea should be tasted hot first. Then I brewed more at an intensified strength so that I could add either sweetened condensed milk or coconut milk to it to try it traditional Thai Iced Tea style.
Served hot, this tea is really tasty. It has a good, strong black tea base which gives me a lot of hope for the iced tea version, because one of my biggest complaints about some of the restaurant Thai Iced Teas that I’ve had lately is that the black tea seems weak and is overpowered by the thick, creamy sweetened condensed milk. It is still tasty as a sweet, latte style iced tea, but, I found myself missing the black tea flavor in those other Thai iced teas, the strength of this black tea gives me reason to believe that I will TASTE the black tea in the iced tea I’ll be enjoying over the next day or two.
The spices are also accounted for in this hot cup, with the vanilla providing a sweet, creamy taste that accents the warmth of the cardamom and the zesty anise. This isn’t an overly spiced blend, I think that the spices are in good balance with the black tea and will make a stunning iced tea!
I went on to brew some double strength tea for the fridge. Tomorrow, I’ll be sipping on Thai Iced Tea! I can’t wait!
~The Next Day~
This is really good served as a traditional Thai Iced Tea. I first tried it with coconut milk, which gave it a nice creamy taste and a hint of tropical flair. But I must admit that I prefer it with a drizzle of sweetened condensed milk. Not a lot of milk, but just enough to give it that sweet, creamy taste that you’d find in a Thai restaurant. YUM!
Since I brewed this at double strength, I thought I’d do a little experimentation. I had some ginger ale in the fridge, so I decided to add a little bit of ginger ale to the glass before I poured the iced tea, and held off on the milk. This made for a very interesting “soda-like” taste. It was not quite as carbonated as a soda, but, it had a little bit of carbonation to it, and a sweet, crisp taste that was a little citrus-y, a little ginger-y and very refreshing. I could still taste all the elements of the tea, and it managed to cut through some of the sweeter elements of the soda that I often find to be a bit much for me. It was – to me – a perfect alternative to the traditional soda pop.
Rainforest Maté Tea from The Spice & Tea Exchange
Tisane Information:
Leaf Type: Yerba Maté
Where to Buy: The Spice & Tea Exchange
Tisane Description:
Spice and fruit unite in this unique herbal melange composed of energizing mate’ tea, licorice, spices, rosehips and pineapple chunks that refresh and revitalize when brewed. Moderate Caffeine.
Learn more about this tisane here.
Taster’s Review:
This tisane has a lot going on, but it all works together very nicely. The cloves offer the most prominent flavor of this cup, followed by a sweet licorice flavor. I don’t taste much of the distinct earthiness of the Yerba Maté, and given the natural earthy qualities of the spices I don’t think that earthy/vegetal tone is really necessary and might detract from the delicious flavors that the spices provide.
By the end of the sip, mint tones begin to peek out without becoming too overwhelming. I like the mint notes here, they are mere hints of minty goodness rather than an overpowering mint flavor … which is rather nice as I know from my own experience of blending teas that it is not easy to keep mint from taking over.
The sweet pineapple gives this tisane a luscious, fruity tone that is almost a surprise with the first couple of sips. With the start of the sip comprised of warm (but not spicy) spice, I didn’t really expect the sweet, juicy flavor of pineapple to shine through, but it does! Right about mid-sip, the pineapple begins to weave its way in and out of the sip. It’s quite nice!
In the background there are hints of floral notes that seem to complete the rainforest-y theme that this tisane embraces. I love how this tisane doesn’t just call itself a “rainforest” blend – it actually captures the spirit of what I imagine from a rainforest. Zesty, but with a cool, crisp mint coming in toward the end. Sweet, starting with a sweet yet snappy licorice note which is followed by a lovely pineapple flavor. It all comes together in a very refreshing and energizing way!
Fairytale from Shanti Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Herbal Tisane
Where to Buy: Shanti Tea
Product Description:
Fairytale tea is an inspired blend of colorful herbs and flowers whose vivid infusion and magical aroma will take you back to your childhood fairytales of magic and romance, lovely damsels and dashing princes. It has a smooth light taste with a slightly minty finish and a hint of spice. Just the right combination to accompany your imagination on its magical journey…
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The dry leaf of this tisane looks and smells gorgeous! Lots of blossoms and petals – chamomile, jasmine, osmanthus, rose and calendula – to please the eye and the nose. Once brewed, the aroma is quite herbal, so that worried me a bit. But I could also smell a promising note of peppermint.
The flavor is really quite nice, despite that herbal note. I’m not a fan of an overly herbal-y or medicinal tasting tisane, but, I think that the other flavors in this tisane keep it from tasting like a cup of medicine. The peppermint is a subtle flavor, and I like the way it melds with the other flavors in this blend.
I like the floral combination of this blend – it creates a flavor that is definitely flowery but not distinct. That is to say, it tastes like flowers … but not like any one particular flower. Instead, I taste sweet floral notes with fewer sharp tones and without any perfume-y taste.
When I first started sipping on this, I was a little disappointed that I did not taste any anise. But now that I’m about halfway through the cup, the flavor of the anise has developed. It is just a hint of licorice. Kind of like sneaking a quick treat before bed!
While I enjoyed this tisane while it lasted, I can’t say that this is my favorite cup from Shanti tea, because it isn’t. However, it is one of the tastier “bedtime” blends that I’ve encountered, and that is saying something, because there are a lot of bedtime blends out there. And it certainly does what it is supposed to … I can feel my body and mind relax and I do believe a good night’s sleep will follow.
Maté Chai from Element Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Yerba Maté
Where to Buy: Element Tea
Product Description:
Boost circulation and stimulate your senses with this popular blend of Yerba Mate and Masala Chai Spices. For a sweeter and creamier finish, add milk and sugar.
Ingredients: Mate Green, Cinnamon, Ginger Bits, Cardamom, Cloves, Fennel, Anise Seed
Taster’s Review:
I love chai (and when I say “chai,” I mean the beverage that is made from a masala spice blend … with or without tea or other leaf types, like the green Yerba Maté leaf used in this blend). I enjoy it year ’round, but I find it especially enjoyable this time of year. The spices warm me from the inside out, and the zesty flavor is very invigorating.
The spices dominate this tisane, and what I taste most are the fennel and anise seed. They give a sweet, licorice-y kind of taste to this chai, and I’m really liking that. (I’m quite fond of black licorice!) While the cinnamon does not present a really strong presence in this cup, I like the way it mingles with the fennel and anise.
The ginger, cloves and cardamom are pretty well balanced here. One of these spices does not seem to be stronger than the others, they all seem pretty even. Every once in a while, a flavor will pop out that I recognize distinctly as one particular spice, but for the most part, it is a very unified set of spices.
The green Yerba Maté of this blend lends an earthy, somewhat vegetative taste to the cup. It isn’t nearly as strong a flavor as the spices, of course, but, it really adds an interesting dimension of flavor to the cup. The earthy notes are a pleasing contrast to the licorice-y flavors.
I recommend drinking this hot with a dollop of honey to help round out the flavors. I didn’t drink mine with milk, but, I think it would be quite nice as a latte. This turned out to be one of the nicest Yerba Maté Chai blends I’ve tried!