Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: ManTeas
Product Description:
Here’s our premium Indian black teas blended with real freeze-dried jalapenos and natural jalapeno flavor! Man up and get some while you can. This is a limited edition blend!
Taster’s Review:
This was a tea that for the longest time I was too intimidated to try. In fact, I was so intimidated by it that I didn’t order this – it was a gift from a tea friend! And like so many teas that have intimidated me in the past, I regret that I did not try this sooner. It really is incredible!
The flavor is not so much “spicy-hot” the way you’d expect a jalapeño to be, although it does have a heat to it that develops as I continue to sip. The way I’d describe this as more of the fruity essence of the jalapeño pepper, with an embracing warmth that offers a hint of peppery kick toward the end of the sip. This isn’t the pickled jalapeño pepper flavor that you might find in a jar on the grocery store shelf – this is more true to a fresh jalapeño pepper that you might find in the produce section of the market.
And the black tea is not to be counted out here – it provides a delicious base for this tea. It is a robust blend of Blue Mountain Nilgiri and Assam teas. I like the way the flavor of the tea and the flavor of the pepper is balanced in this cup – it is a very harmonious combination. The only thing that I can’t help but wonder is how a pinch of Lapsang Souchong might affect the taste. I think that the smokiness of the Lapsang Souchong would add a delicious savoriness to the cup.
As it is, though, I really am enjoying this tea far more than I ever expected to. As I said before, I was a little afraid to try it – not because I dislike spicy food, because I actually love it. But, that doesn’t mean that I don’t proceed with caution when trying something that will no doubt be spicy. And this is a spicy tea, it just isn’t over-the-top with a burning heat to the palate kind of spicy. It is a savory-spicy that develops into a very-warm-spicy flavor, imparting a delicious heat that lingers on the palate. It really is delicious and just goes to show that I shouldn’t judge a tea before I try it.
Chai from TeaSpree
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: TeaSpree
Product Description:
Spicy, lavish and decadent, go round the world in a sip.
Ingredients: organic black tea, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, clove and black pepper.
Taster’s Review:
This is a delicious yet mild chai.
The strongest flavor of this cup is the flavor of the black tea base, and that’s just the way it should be. It is a bold, smooth tasting, organic black tea. While it does provide a strong presence in the cup it doesn’t overwhelm the spices, instead, it works with them to provide a well-rounded, full-bodied flavor.
The strongest spice flavor I taste is the ginger, followed closely by the black pepper. Even though these two spices are the strongest spices in the blend, I wouldn’t consider this cup to taste overpoweringly peppery. It has a nice peppery taste, certainly, but I don’t find it to be too strong, and even the meeker tea drinkers out there will probably enjoy this chai.
The cinnamon weaves in and out of the sip, and I like how it enlivens the sip with a sweet yet spicy taste. The cloves and cardamom are not particularly strong in this cup, although they do offer a nice background of warmth.
Overall, this isn’t the strongest chai that I’ve tasted, but, it is still very good. This is one chai to which I wouldn’t recommend the addition of milk, although I do recommend a drizzle of honey or a sprinkling of turbinado sugar. The milk overpowers the spices here, but the sweetener helps to enhance their delightful complexity.
Berried Treasure from Tea Source
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea Source
Product Description:
This unique blend is sweet, smooth, and spicy with a kick. Contains: black tea, flavor, red peppercorns, and strawberry pieces.
Taster’s Review:
This is pretty tasty. I am really liking how the hint of pepper accents the strawberry flavor.
It’s not a particularly strong flavored tea. The black tea base is the strongest note of the cup, and that’s not a bad thing. The black tea tastes brisk and strong, although I wouldn’t categorize it as an aggressive tea. It has a smoothness to it and a nice undertone of sweetness that melds well with the sweetness of the berry.
The strawberry note is light here – and I think I would like it to be just a little stronger. I would say that the strawberry flavor here is delicate yet piquant, as it does keep my taste buds enchanted as I sip. It has a sweetness as well as a hint of berry tartness.
Since these peppercorns aren’t cracked, I find that they don’t offer a whole lot of flavor to the cup. But again, that is not necessarily a bad thing, because if the pepper notes were stronger here, they could very well overwhelm the delicate strawberry flavor. As it is, this is a well-balanced set of flavors, even though they are on the softer side, they work well as they are.
A decent cup of tea that I’d recommend to strawberry tea lovers out there who are looking for something just a little different.
PRODUCT REVIEW: Original Bhakti Chai Concentrate from Bhakti Chai
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
For more information about this product including how to purchase, visit: Bhakti Chai
Product Description:
Antioxidant-rich black tea, fresh organic ginger, milled spices and a touch of evaporated cane juice.
Taster’s Review:
Oh. My. Goodness! This is SO good. This is so good, that I am on my second cup within a half an hour!
According to the website, Bhakti Chai uses fresh pressed ginger as opposed to dried ginger. The difference this makes can be tasted! The ginger tastes zippier, zingier, and ginger-y-er!
The black tea base here is a smooth tasting tea, but really, the focus of this chai concentrate is the spices. And, that’s quite alright with me, because this is so delicious that I wouldn’t want to change it. It’s absolutely perfect.
The ginger is the dominate flavor, and I can taste the black pepper supporting the flavor of the ginger. The cardamom and cloves are a bit more subtle but can be tasted, providing that familiar background chai flavor. The fennel is also quite subtle, but, I taste a hint of licorice-like sweetness in the distance.
One spice that seems to be “missing” is cinnamon – which is a common chai ingredient. But, even though it isn’t in this chai, I’m not missing it. Don’t get me wrong, I love cinnamon, but, like I said before, this tastes so good that I wouldn’t want to change it.
The ginger provides a lot of warmth (or “agni”) and offers a very warm, comforting sensation starting at the back of the mouth and permeating its way to the belly. This is a perfect cuppa on those cold winter-y days. Like today!
This original concentrate is sweetened, but, I am not finding it too sweet. Bhakti Chai also offers an unsweetened version, which I will review at a later date.
If you like Chai Latte – this is definitely one you should try. I love this stuff!
Spicy Seattle Chai from MarketSpice
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: MarketSpice
Product Description:
Our spiciest chai, with plenty of Pepper, Ginger and Cardamom. Add milk and sugar to taste. Ingredients: Black tea, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Tellicherry Peppercorns, Ginger and Cloves.
Taster’s Review:
This chai is AWESOME!
As most of you probably know (because I’ve said it enough!) I am very discriminating when it comes to chai – because I truly believe that I created the best chai blend ever. However, that doesn’t mean that I cannot appreciate other chai blends, and this is definitely one for which I have tremendous appreciation!
It is SPICY! The pepper and ginger are prominent, and I can actually feel it hit my throat in the finish – like a spicy, peppery blanket that warms my palate, then radiates down my throat and warms my entire body right down to the tips of my toes!
In fact, after my initial sip, I had to check the MarketSpice website to see if this chai had chili pepper in it, because the heat from the pepper is that kind of heat. The website does not indicate that there is chili pepper of any kind in this – so I suspect that it is the rather fine grind of black Tellicherry peppercorns that brings the heat, as well as the ginger.
But, while the heat from these two ingredients is rather dominant, they do not overwhelm the palate so much that the other ingredients – cinnamon, cardamom and cloves – cannot be tasted. The flavor of the black tea is even quite present in the sip – it is rich and bold and offers a tasty base for these zesty spices.
I really like this chai. I have tried it several times now. The first time I tasted it, I drank it with no additions, the second time, with just a drizzle of honey. I found that the honey brought out some of the other spices very nicely and softened the edge from the tea, ginger and pepper just a little. For an extra special treat, try it with brown sugar – the molasses in the brown sugar will be delightful with this spicy chai!
The third time, I broke down and made myself a chai latte by steeping the tea extra strong (using a little extra leaf and a little less water) and adding honey and some warmed 2% milk and frothing it.
When served as a latte – the spices present themselves a little differently. It is still spicy, but the creaminess of the latte softens the spices and creates a warm, comforting cup that puts the coffee house chai lattes to shame! The chai latte was absolutely delightful and my favorite way of serving this, although I quite enjoyed the other preparations as well.
An excellent chai – perfect for those who like their chai on the spicy side!