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My last tea was far too weak for my liking. This one goes the other way — good if weak, but at proper strength a little too strong on its own. I think it’s the cornflower petals. It seems a common problem I find — a kind of bitter plenty taste that doesn’t quite sit well on my palate. It did, however, have a nice creaminess as promised, even when drinking it clear.
I added some milk and honey and that did help somewhat.

In short, this is not a tea for me, but worth a try nonetheless.

Well, this tea definitely smells the part of coffee cake, let me tell you.

The taste… is pleasant enough? But it’s hardly there. I’ve made it as directed, with a little over 1.25tsp in my tea ball in-cup, but it tastes more like a sweet, pleasant nothingness than anything really… clear to describe.

Upon a second, longer steep, I can get a bit of a fruity aftertaste, but again it’s very faint.

In all, this tea is good, but it’s too faint to be great. It could have been more if it were stronger, and I wish they’d made it that way.

Despite not being a traditional chai, this tea has made its way into my heart in a way that I can hardly begin to describe. I’m nearing the end of the sample that I bought of this tea a while ago (having rationed it out because it’s too good and I don’t want to drink it all in one go and then not have it anymore), and I’m definitely going to have to get it again in a larger quantity soon. The fact that it is mate and pu’erh already makes it intriguing, and worth checking out for a high caffeine chai. But the taste is what makes me keep wanting to come back.

I generally doctor my chai teas with milk and sugar, and did so in this case, but I did take a few sips before adding in the extras. It was beautifully pungent and spiced, and I think it would be enjoyable in this format as well, though I do have a love for it with the added creaminess and sweetness.

The cardamom is what really seems to hit home for me with this tea. There’s also a plantiness that is unusual in a chai, but more on the side of “unusual” than “unwelcome”. The added sweetness does help round out the flavour, which even without is reminiscent of cinnamon rolls. The sweetness only adds to this comparison in my mind. The flavour tends to hit all at once in a cloud, and it’s so pleasant and enjoyable that I keep on wanting to go back and drink more. Not too rich, not too spiced. Comfortable and full.

Brewed 1tbsp loose in my two cup pot, tea strainer over cup.

This tea really is reminiscent of marzipan in a cup! It’s sweet and nutty in just the right combination. A very nice dessert tea option, though admittedly I found myself craving something sweet-tart to go along with this nutty sweetness. This isn’t a lacking so much as a possible good pairing.

Finishing off the dregs of the first steep, which has cooled down while in the pot, it’s a bit stronger and just as nice a flavour.

This is a tea I’m definitely glad to have in my collection, and look forward to drinking again.

Brewed 1tbsp of this loose in pot, with a strainer over the cup when poured.

Mint is the primary note of this tea, and I tend to find that there’s a hint of a chocolatey note in the background from the tea. Either way, the black tea gives a robustness and depth of flavour that you don’t find in pure mint tea, and makes me enjoy this quite a bit more than I usually do this tea’s herbal cousins.

The festivity of the tea, I think, comes from the little candy canes found within the blend. However, I wish they sold it year-round because it’s a lovely blend, and I definitely do crave it off-season. (I might have to buy a bunch this year, oh dear….)

I’m used to fruit teas being herbal.

This one is not, but you wouldn’t be able to tell it by taste or appearance. It brews to a brilliant shade of pinkish red, and is dry on the palate, both of which I am accustomed to seeing with herbal fruit teas. However, I suppose I now know that this is much more a fruit tea thing than a type of tea thing (if with many exceptions both ways). Good to know.

That being said, the first ingredient is apple, and that shows, lending the tea a tartness that does not cry out for sweetening at all. In fact, it reminds me slightly of hot cider, though nowhere near as sweet. Perhaps closer to the first experience of hot mulled cider, but without the spiced aftertaste.

While not perhaps my favourite fruit tea of all time, it is still quite a nice blend. I suppose it would be especially good if one wanted a bit of caffeine with their fruity indulgence, though seeing as the tea is apparently over 50% apple, it won’t be much of a caffeine kick still.

Madness? This is Spar-tea!

Wait….

Actually, it’s 2tsp of loose tea steeped in a mug with a metal tea ball.

The first thing that hits me is the sweetness. It gives a brightness to the tea, that helps the mango to come through. Mind, it’s not exactly mango juice by any stretch, but it’s a lovely echo of such — a mango broth if you will. Very tasty, especially compared to other mango products I’ve had in the past.

Let’s not kid ourselves. Christmas is very much a time of teas with orange and spices. I think I have at least two or three teas that claim to be Christmas and include this particular blend, and this is one of them. In fact, I can think of only two teas in my collection have some variation on this popular combination of flavours that is not a Christmas tea, and one of them is Constant Comment.

Having said all that (and I’ll be the first to admit that it’s a bit of a mouthful), this tea is quite a good combination of the above. It’s rather musky without being too strong — even rather oversteeped as my second cup happens to be, it’s more musky than bitter, and not at all unpleasently such. Instead, it’s rather rich and spiced, with just a hint of bitterness, which actually blends well with the citrus. I chose not to sweeten it, but I do think it might go well with some sugar or honey as well — I might experiment with this another time.

All in all, a good take on a holiday classic.

Wow. You can really smell the coconut right off from the moment you open the packet. The coconut actually gives a rather creamy flavour that goes well with the spices making it chai. As it cools, the toasted quality comes out more.
I was somewhat surprised that the directions didn’t mention milk and sugar, as this is specifically entitled as a latte, but decided to make it and try it without anyway. I don’t regret it, but I do wonder what it would be like when doctored up as I normally would with chai, or made with hot milk rather than the water that the packet directs, as well.