Chocolate Chili Chai

It’s only November and I’m already getting antsy for spring. The days seem so gray and dreary, and the nights are already so dark and cold. On the bright side, at least this cold weather is a perfect backdrop for a tea like this one.

I expected this one to be more of an in your face tea with the chili and the peppercorns, but it was surprisingly mellow. The ingredients complimented each other nicely. It was a fabulous first steep, but there was notable deterioration with each following steeping. It’s still a lovely seasonal treat, especially as an alternative to sugary hot chocolate or hot apple cider. This will certainly be a seasonal repurchase for me.

Butter chicken and chai. Because I can!

I just picked this up a couple hours ago so it’s fresh out of the canister. The chocolate aroma immediately made me think of Read My Lips, so I figured I’d love this. At first I was kind of regretting getting only 10g.

That regret quickly diminished once I steeped this chai. Again, it smells like a mintless Read My Lips, which is nice and all, but where’s the spice? Even the peppercorns? I got maybe one or two in my packet. How can you even classify this as a chai (in the Masala chai sense)?

I get no heat from this whatever. If it were actually, simply RMP minus the mint I wouldn’t mind as much, as I enjoy the chocolate flavour in that, but it has that underlying artificial sweetness that a lot of other DT teas have.

Without additives, it’s a thin, faint chocolate black with that signature (I might as well use that term at this point) artificial sweetness.

With milk and brown sugar, it’s better. The soy milk lends the chocolate a hand, and at least the brown sugar covers up some of that artificial sweetness from the tea itself. Go figure.

Another tea from the Traveling Tea Box! I am trying this on behalf of my future son-in-law. He loves chocolate tea and he loves hot peppers, so I wanted to see if this is a “must have” for him. I am a wimp when it comes to hot peppers, but I read a lot of reviews that said this is only mildly spicy.

It smells good. The first tentative sips surprised me. This really is very mild. Everything is mild. The level of chocolate flavor, the tea base, the chai spices, and the chilis. The aroma is rather intriguing and is the best part of this tea. I guess I am picking up the chai spices over the top of the mild chocolate.

Since I drink my tea sans additions, I can’t say this one wins my heart. It is a decent tea but not one I would seek out, but I suspect since Gav adds milk and sugar to some of his teas he might really enjoy it that way. It would give it that “little extra something” that would make it a great cup of comfort on a cold winter day.

A big thank you to Kittenna for this sample.
This one is just okay for me.
I do appreciate the nice light spice from the chilies mixed with chocolate and I think if the chocolate were a better flavor it would be darn good HOWEVER being the chocolate snob that I am I don’t care for this chocolate flavor used in this tea.
Its not too hot just so you know – it won’t cause you to break a sweat and the mixture is well balanced. My rating is only due to the use of the chocolate flavoring that is displeasing to me.

WARNING: I do realize that Steepster is not a place to blog about dogs, but I do have to tell this TRUE story.

Earlier today, I came back from a very long walk with The serial killer of my life, a 2 year old male Doberman ACTING as a serial killer, whenever he feels I need protection. When he’s not acting, he goes back to being his natural self, Bambi trapped in a large canine’s body!

Time for something hot, damn, it’s cold and windy outside! OK, so as usual, the Dobe sits next to me during tea ceremonial. As I’m about to spoon out some tea out of the tin, the phone rings and I just leave everything on the counter as I go answer. The Dobe is a well trained animal, with good manners in the kitchen, that’s why he’s allowed in there. He’s obedient and behaves around food, even when the most mouthwatering roasting chicken is put on the table.

You’re probably guessing what happens next: I get back in the kitchen and the tin is gone. I look at the Dobe, he’s now lying down and he’s got a bad case of «funny ears face». Whenever he’s done something wrong, his ears take a weird position, I call it the Pinocchio alert. He pretends everything is OK, but the ears tell a different story…

I’ve learned over time that Dobermans are rather fancy, never messy. If they have to misbehave, they usually do it in the most neatly possible way. So I ask: what have you done? where is my tin? I notice some major fidgeting going on. The front legs are crossed, and there’s something underneath, R.I.P. Cholcolate Chili Chai…

So it appears that he managed to eat whatever was left, more or less 25gr, without damaging the tin. Told you he’s a neat freak… aside from the fact that there is one speck of black tea I now see, left on the rim of his right nostril…

Now 2 things come to mind:
1) Is there enough chocolate in there to harm him? (chocolate is poisonous to dogs)
2) It’s called Chocolate CHILI for a reason, how is this stuff gonna come out?

Rationally, I don’t think the amount of chocolate in 25gr of tea will do much to a 100 pound dog. As for the chili, well I guess we’ll both find out in the next couple of hours!!

So I have no choice but to conclude that Chocolate Chili Chai is simply irresistible!

If you are looking for a real dark chocolate taste, this is the one. It’s the most chocolate I’ve ever found in a tea. In fact, I think the word Chai is misleading here. If you’re not a fan of Chai, you should not keep away from this tea. Yes, of course the chilis, anchos and peppercorns are there, but as a complement for the chocolate, providing a wonderful warmth, which turns this infusion almost into a hot coco.

I must say I rarely put milk & sugar in my teas. I made an exception as an experiment. I wanted to see how close I could get to a hot coco by adding milk and some brown sugar. I made a stronger infusion, about 3 full teaspoons for 8oz water, added to 4oz of hot milk. Absolutely delightful! Hot coco minus all the calories!!!

I guess I wont be having any of that tonight…sniff…I came really close though…

This smells AWESOME!!!!!

Like if you were in a kitchen with Chocolate Cheesecake and peppers! That’s the aroma I am getting BUT it’s certainly MORE Chocolate than chili and I am VERY happy about that!

Intense CHOCOLATE Aroma!!!

One infused the chocolate aroma mellows out a little and the heat is ON.

As for the taste…WOW! It’s not fireball hot but there is a nice kick to it! As for the chocolate…YAY! This is done right! I am still getting a very nice cheese-cakey type taste to it and I LOVE IT.

It leaves a peppery-roasted aftertaste which is interesting but I like that too!

This exceeded my expectations by FAR!

This is FAR OUT!!!! YUM!

I used 1.5 David’s Tea scoops for my Aqua-Ovo tea tumbler.

The smell of the dry leaf really reminds me of “Love Tea #7” by David’s Tea.

The aroma of the brewed tea is primarily a light chocolate with definite black tea undertones.

On the sip I am getting a full chocolately taste. I am getting a bit of a vegetable-earthy taste- kind of like taking a bite out of a red pepper. I’m guessing that this is the result of the different types of chili included in the blend. I don’t feel that the earthy taste really complements this mix, especially with such a strong chocolate taste. The black tea taste is mostly present at the end of the sip and rounds out the chocolate/earthy flavour. There is a little bit of spice present on the beginning of the sip and in the aftertaste (kind of a tingly feeling on my tongue).

This tea was good all the way through even as it cooled to room temperature.

A couple pre-emptive notes: there are three listings for this tea. I chose this one as it has the most ratings. Also, my sampling is from this year’s batch (I didn’t have the guts to try it last year!) Thankfully I learned the way of chocolate tea. I actually went in yesterday after some Christmas shopping (the earliest I’ve ever started!) to get this and Santa’s Secret but my local store had already sold out of Santa’s Secret and was waiting on stock. I need to try that tea!!! Anyway, the dry smell is chocolate heaven – I don’t smell any chai or tea, really, but chocolate sure delivers. Steeped, the aroma is still dominated by chocolate, but a bit lighter.

The taste is impressive, to this formerly chocolate-tea-hating girl. It’s extremely similar to Read My Lips, minus the mint. Occasionally I think I feel the chili heat a tiny bit in my throat at the end of the sip but it doesn’t really stand out. For those of you that like chocolate tea, this should be a guaranteed winner. Might need to get some more, for those odd days I don’t feel like having mint in my chocolate tea. The black tea base doesn’t come out to play but I feel that it’s very important to the balance of the cup, lending the chocolate some weight and really keeping the base a bit darker – I guess I’m trying to say it’s not too sweet and though the tea doesn’t shine I think it is a VERY important supporting character.

As I continue sipping, I find the impression of chili heat increases over the course of the cup. Still not dominant in the sip itself, but in the back of the throat after swallowing. This is different. I like it. Also, there’s nothing chai about this, but I don’t mind. Really impressed with this one.

I have to say, I am enjoying this tea.

As previously stated by others, the flavour is a bit light, but I don’t mind. The chocolate flavour is equatable to Read My Lips, and in my opinion, that makes a very very good chocolate tea. I love the little chippies! Also, I’m going to make my own artisan chocolate chips one day, so this is inspiring me :3

Anywho, The first sip had a little chili kick to it., but after a few sips it was gone. I looooved this tea when it was hot, but as it cooled down the taste got less and less .. tasty! :( Granted, I will probably still buy a 100g tin of this because I have no tea that is like it. Mayan Chocolate Chai is totally different.. in fact.. I think i will mix the two one night !

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this chai! I was excited to try it, but I see that it is no longer on the website. I guess it is a winter only chai.

This is really good. The chocolate is stronger than the chili taste, and I love that. The chili is zesty without being too hot. It does leave a chili pepper ZING in the aftertaste, along with a light throat burn, which is quite alright with me, because I’m loving it.

The black tea is not as notable a flavor, I can taste it, but, the chocolate and chili really do outshine the black tea. I don’t get a lot of other chai flavors here – as in cinnamon or ginger… I’m tasting mostly just chocolate and chili. It’s really good though.

At the suggestion of one of the girls at my local David’s tea. I had this as a latte! Like ‘Read My Lips’ and other chocolate teas, I do prefer them with milk, anyway. This tea tasted just like Lindt’s dark chocolate with chili peppers: that dark chocolate bitterness and a bit of a bite from the peppers!

It reminds me of a really great cup of hot chocolate! This will certainly be a new indulgence for me.

Dry Leaf Nose: Very chocolatey, with tea notes and a hint of chili pepper.

Liquor: Toasty brown colour, with a rich chocolate note and chili background.

Flavour: A rich chocolate flavour with touch of chili that enriches the chocolate and leaves a lingering flavour on the palate. The black tea base adds a sweet, ripe and full bodied note to the cup.

how is it possible i haven’t reviewed this one yet you ask?
well, i have a horrible thing to admit…i’m not really a chai drinker.

but the truth is that this is really a chocolate tea!
i mean it is isn’t it? it’s warming.
it’s like mexican chocolate, it has a little bite at the end.

but i feel like that’s all obvious from the name of the tea.
good name.

I can’t believe I never reviewed this tea – I’ve been drinking it for months! I suppose now is as good a time as any to fix that.

I’d actually expected this tea to have a bit more bite to it than it actually does given that it has both chili pepper flakes and peppercorns blended in it. But it’s actually fairly mild and the dominant flavour is probably the chocolate which is rich and cocoa-y. It goes quite nicely with milk, but a touch more spice would be my preference.

The last of my free samples from David’s…prepped at the below parameters with a splash of milk.

The dry leaf smell is INTENSE chocolate. The darkest kind of chocolate which is fine with me because I love dark chocolate. And also, something else…it’s vaguely spicy but I don’t necessarily think spicy. If anything it’s got kind of a chemically smell that I’m not fond of and I hope doesn’t have any say in the final taste.

Uh, yeah. It does. At first you are kind of sidetracked with the dark chocolate, which I think the milk nicely complements, and then you get slammed with something… I’ll go with chemically and medicinal. It’s pinging some kind of taste memory, but I can’t quite place it. Ugh. After it goes from chocolate, to yuck, there’s that pepper burn that is only slight and fits with the whole chai motif.

I’m not going to be able to finish this one. The beginning and end of the sip are fine, but that middle part totally drops the ball and ruins it for me. Again – uuuuugggghhh. I’ll be back shortly with a different tea once I rinse toss this. :(

1 scant TB for 450mL water, no milk or sweetener.

On my second attemot with the Chocolare Chili Chai. I expected to like this one, but I’m underwhelmed.

Lots of really good chocolate aroma, but very little tea aroma. I think the base is a China black. I dunno, I can’t help thinking an India black would have been a better choice. No real heat, just a minor nibble from the chilis on the aftertaste. Except for the Chai Guarana, I’ve found anything labelled ‘chai’ from David’s Tea to be a bit dull. No true heat, no singing marriage of hot and sweet spices. Not for me.

Another sample that came with my order from DAVIDsTEA. The dry leaves smell kind of spicy and have light chocolate smell.

Noble Mug with boiling water for 5 minutes. I added a little sugar to try and lighten the spice.

A very nice tea! The chai spices don’t come out as much as I would like, but the chocolate is nice and smooth and not too harsh like it often can be. The spice lightly pierces through and creates for a wonderful blend!

We went into DavidsTea today to check out the new advent calendars and other goodies; it was crazy! Guess everyone else had the same idea. They ended up giving us a free cup to-go for being so patient, which was great because I was excited anyways and the staff was already extra courteous. I figured I’d go for the Chocolate Chili Chai.

If my bf wasn’t sitting there waiting patiently I would have been tempted to buy more than I did. :O Those perfect tea mugs look great – I know I’m late to the game, but I really like the large fall one they put out with all the trees on it (http://www.davidstea.com/giant-perfect-tea-mug-forest?&TF=69F219E5A1A1&DEID=). I LOVE the giant sized cups, and have been a bit out of sorts ever since I dropped my favourite mug on the floor 7 months ago. The Christmas ones are lovely, but are too specific to the season for me to want to use them all year round… I’m hoping I can suggest it as a Christmas gift! :P But then if the bf is paying attention at all he can just get me a gift card for DavidsTea and let me snag all the goodies myself – that’s part of the fun after all! #spoiledROTTEN

(Oooh – does anyone know if DT does anything for Boxing Week? :P)

Anyways… on to the tea!

The first few sips were really good. The chocolate was smooth and it didn’t taste weak. The chili was a nice balance too. I love the smell too – I walked into the living room and the whole room smelled delightful!

Unfortunately, I had to let it sit for an hour or so and there must have been a few loose leaves in it or something because it tastes a little murky now. Or maybe that’s just what happens when it cools. I had originally originally planned on rating it in the 80’s or so. Now I’m not sure where to put it. Guess I’ll have to try it again. :)

I didn’t think I was going to like this one. I mean lets compare it to the fall returning chai, pumpkin chai. No way it can be as good right? Well it isn’t, but that’s because it has more of a bite for winter.

In store I ended up getting some because it smelled like really intense dark chocolate. No spice at all. I figured once I brewed it the spice would come out.

This is a really deep spicy chai. It tastes like cocoa with some spice it in, it reminds me of a really strong dark chocolate bar mixed with some of the more authentic strong chais that I have had in my life. I would recommend it only if you like spicy chai teas, but it’s a great one to have if you like chocolate for the winter.

Black tea, chocolate and chilis? It’s all of my favorite things! This one smells really yummy, and it’s one of my favorites so far.

Really, I’d like it even more if there was more of a kick to it. I guess I like it when chai teas give me a good swift kick in the bum, and this one isn’t quite there. But I like it, just the same. Nomnomnom.