Masala Chai

The smell of the leaves is strong and spicy, with cardamon dominating the aroma. It mellows out a bit when you steep it, but there is still a nice spiciness to this tea that creates a very complex flavor. For this cup, I added some soy milk to make it thicker and creamier, and it think it adds to the experience, though the soy does take over more of the flavor than I’d like. Overall, a good chai tea with a mix of spices that creates an enjoyable flavor.

I decided to have this tea this afternoon when I thought I’d need it as a comfort tea. But turns out it is a celebratory tea.

Just when I thought that this month’s budget had been bent over and had dirty, dirty things done to it (kitty surgery + biopsy, $600+ of car maintenance, new car battery), I discovered today that this month is a magic month. Yay for biweekly paydays! And yay for three in one month! Now, instead of mourning the dip into our emergency fund, I am celebrating the unexpected black ink at the bottom of our budget month!

Chai is always a treat for me. Because of the time it takes to make (I do half milk, half water, tea, sugar all thrown into a pot and brought to a boil for 5 mins) this is an evening tea but due to sugar and caffeine, this is something I only do when I can stay up somewhat late. On top of that, the rich spiciness makes it something I have to be in the mood for. Usually that mood is for the tea-equivalent of curling up on the couch with an afghan. And that’s really what I thought I’d be using it for tonight.

But no. I get to use it while I relax and go “ahhhh!” and bask in the celebratory glory of a surprise magic month while I surf the net to figure out what teas I’m going to buy with some of this month’s overflow. Seriously. Gonna buy tea.

I’m feeling especially chipper tonight so I decided to go heavy on the leaf and pretty much doubled it. The milk keeps the spiciness from being overwhelming but I can tell it is there. And I like it. I think I’m even going to try resteeping, something I haven’t attempted with chai, so we’ll see how that goes. After all, it’s going to take a while to figure out what teas I’m going to get.

YAY!

This tea is much better hot than iced. I used slightly less tea than instructed and steeped it for about the recommended time before putting it in the fridge overnight. (I also re-steeped another cup.) The clove was very strong and it tasted a bit bitter, so I added half-and-half to dilute it and add creaminess. The iced tea was barely palatable plain, but it was fairly decent with half-and-half. The re-steeped tea wasn’t too different from the original steep.

If I ever buy this tea again (which I might… not sure), I definitely will not be making it iced.

Anyone remember the Ren & Stimpy “HappyHappyJoyJoy” dance? Most of the teas Jake and I have sipped this weekend have been less than stellar, but this one makes it all worth it! This is one of the teas I bought from momo, so thank you for this great tea!

I did get distracted and forget to set the steep timer, but the tea has apparently forgiven me for the oversight and actually rewarded me with this delicious flavor. There is a slightly bitter aftertaste, but that could be due to the 20+ minute steep.

Better than Peet’s Chai, in my opinion, but from the standpoint of spice balance and smoothness.

I like the Malasa Chai and here’s why (like what I did there?) It’s a fantastic tea for recipes. A little tough on it’s own (on the spicy side,) but when combined with a little bit of this and a little bit of that, it makes a great healthy alternative to your Starbucks latte’.
Now, I’m well aware that a great tea stands alone, but it is really nice to have the option to use some teas from cooking and experimenting.
We post great recipes using Masala Chai on our Facebook page if anyone is interested (along with other great recipes.)

Someone pinch me because I think I’ve died and gone to heaven drinking this tea. I love drinking Chai at Indian Restaurants and they always include sugar and milk. I rarely put milk, creamer or sugar in my tea but after tasting this Masala Chai straight up I knew that it needed something. After adding some generic non-dairy creamer and some PureVia stevia sweetener I began fading into tea bliss. It makes me wonder how much better it would be with actual milk instead of this non-dairy creamer.

I’m rating this one pretty high for its great flavors after being “doctored up” with cream and sugar. If I would have to rate this tea without the sweeteners, it wouldn’t be as high as it is now.

Method: 1.5tsps for 12oz cup, 5 minutes @ 212º. Added stevia sweetener and non-dairy creamer.

Time for another cup!

We are getting tons of snow here in Collingswood NJ! I thought an afternoon cup of Chai would be nice and warming. I think Adagio’s version is quite lovely. Not overwhelming in spice, and the tea itself is of a good quality. That being said, it’s the only loose leaf Chai I’ve ever tried! What is your favorite loose leaf Chai? I’m running low and would love to try something different to compare.

This is a very fragrant and delicious tea. The blend of spices is fantastic, I taste mostly the cardamom and ginger but then at the end of it is the cinnamon. I am not enjoying it cooler, I think hotter was better, but maybe a cold brew or sugar?

I’ll give it a try and update.

I wish I could think of something brilliant to say, but really, this is just darn good!