Pure Chai

Smell like straight up cinnamon to me. Taste like spice and cloves and chai. I don’t like it, but I realize I don’t like chai tea.

The smell made me really excited to try it out. It was very spicy, rich and cinnamony. Reminds me of India right off the bat. Upon sipping though, the tea just tastes boring. Hardly any punch to it, which is a shame because it smells so heavenly. I agree with what the other reviewers say about it being watery. A good 60/100 right there.

Trying a splash of milk and a little bit of sugar – wow! Pleasantly surprised. I feel like I’m sipping a taste of India. Still though, I’d prefer it if the drink were stronger and spicier, at the recommended serving it was pleasant, but left a dry taste to your mouth. It mostly tastes like a strong base black tea (slightly bitter) with a subtle hint of spice to it. The review rating is for the tea with milk.

Probably would not purchase – it needs a stronger spicy kick to be truly ‘pure chai’.

If this one were marketed as a cinnamon tea, instead of a chai, it would have been a better move. Cinnamon is all I taste. I’ve been mixing it with other teas, so it doesn’t come through so strong

Today is a treasured day off. Planning to use it to get caught up on studying and drink down some of my samples and older teas. Made this sample one as a latte as it is becoming my morning ritual to do so while I put dishes away. I’m not usually a fan of Chai teas but as a latte this is more than just drinkable. I get the cinnamon and maybe a tiny bit of heat but that is mostly hiding. Overall, tasty for someone who usually doesn’t reach for something “spicy”. I’m not going to rate this one as I don’t plan on buying it again.

As far as chai goes, it’s not as strong tasting as I am used to. It is a good warm up. Next time I will let it steep more. I did enjoy it, but it is not the flavor I was looking for. So this would be in the book world a case of the accidental browser. Where you read a book you had expectations for but went in a different direction. It surprise me, especially with the scent of the tea.

Books recommended for this tea are: Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman by Haruki Murakami, The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, The Burn Journals by Brent Runyon

A comparison of David’s Tea pure chai and their vanilla chai. I love spiced teas and thought I would compare a couple of samples.

Pure chai: First impressions from the dry leaf and cinnamon smells much stronger and spicier than the vanilla chai. The black tea is bold and full, not bitter nor sour and serves as a well balanced for the heavy cinnamon. There is a buzzy feel on my tongue, maybe it’s the powerful cinnamon or maybe that’s the kiss of the cloves in the mix. Generally a bit one-note, all cinnamon all the time, but it is warming in temperature and flavor and could easily become a go-to comfort tea.

Vanilla chai: in comparison to the sharp cinnamon of the pure chai, this flavor smells more medicinal and sweet. It could be the anise or maybe the herbal vanilla bean that gives it these tones. I’m a fan of licorice, so this isn’t really a problem for me. This chai is significantly sweeter and creamier than pure chai; the vanilla bean is very forward and the touch of anise at the back of each sip plays well with the sweet flavors. This feels more like a dessert than a pick me up, but I’m glad they carry this blend as there are fewer teas with anise than with cinnamon. Definitely a great choice for a creamy reward after a long day.

I steeped both of them on the long side, and drank them without milk or sugar. I know chais are traditionally drank with milk, but due to dietary needs and preference, I didn’t choose to brew them that way.

I was skeptical that these teas would be very different from each other, but they are absolutely distinct in smell and taste and a great choice for any chai tea fanatic!

Drinking up as much tea as I can while I have the time/energy for it!

I got this one as a sample in my last Davids order. Normally, I’m really not a chai person. This one though …

Dry, it smells strongly of cinnamon. Steeped, it’s cinnamon and black tea with the barest hint of astringency. Yum! I’m really enjoying this one.

(And it pairs nicely with Brookside dark chocolate pomegranate things! YES!)

Quite tasteless, leaves a dry feeling in the mouth after each sip.

Received in a swap from Zach S. Thank you!

Brewed on the stove-top. Brought to a boil, simmered for eight minutes, added milk and sugar, brought to a boil again.

I didn’t have high hopes when I smelled the dry leaf. It was full of cinnamon. Hence the long simmer, so that I’d draw out the malt flavor from the black tea. I was lighter on the milk and sugar than I normally am, and even so, this recipe is very weak. The only spice I could detect was cinnamon. The “bite” of everything else was pretty much nonexistent. In additional, this is the last time I will try a masala chai with any sort of flavoring.

My dad agrees it isn’t spicy much, but he still likes the taste, as if it were simply a black tea prepared like masala chai.

This came as a sample with the latest David’s Tea order. I’m not a chai lover. All my friends are surprised by that because I love cinnamon, ginger, and all those spices. My favorite kind of hot chocolate is the spicy Mexican Hot Chocolate. But for some reason chai just doesn’t do it for me. This one isn’t bad as chais go. I liked it enough to finish the two-cup pot I made, and I am glad I had the chance to try it. Even for someone without a sense of smell, the cinnamon made itself known. But this won’t be one I order.