Today I had to go to Toys R S to get a present for a birthday party this afternoon that the almost 6 year old is now well enough to attend thanks to the miracle of antibiotics. I got there before it opened, so I wandered into the adjacent Starbucks armed with my increasingly detailed order. This time I got nonfat, no water, make it from leaves not concentrate.
There is definitely a difference between the leaves and the concentrate. Made with the leaves, the flavor was much spicier. The pepper was really, really pronounced, too. It did taste much more like it does when I make it at home, only creamier.
Surprisingly I’m not sure which way I like it better. It seems obvious I should say with the leaves rather than the concentrate, but the concentrate had a much more blended taste while the leaves were much starker.
I think this decision will have to be case by case and will depend largely on my mood at the time.
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Yay glad the 6 year old is feeling better!
Have you ever tried Panera Bread’s Chai Tea Latte? Waaaaay better than Tazo’s. That one’s from concentrate, too.
No, haven’t tried that. I don’t think there’s a Panera Bread that’s very close to me but I’ll be on the lookout for one when I’m out and about. Looks like the nearest one is in Millbrae, which isn’t really that close.
You think the concentrate is more blended? Interesting. I find the concentrate way too harsh on the spices- but maybe that’s cuz I only have the concentrate iced?
Midnight Train, I too, enjoy Panera’s- for what it is. Although I’ll take Tazo’s hot over Panera’s hot any day.
The concentrate hot was very even-handed flavor-wise compared to what I had today, which was, as I mentioned VERY peppery. I liked it, it was just different and gave a different overall impression of being less blended since the pepper stuck out so much, comparatively.
Moving the bag around may help a bit. Sometimes I think when then bag infuses in one spot, especially in milk, the spices also stay in one spot.
I work at Panera bread and if you want to try their chai they use Republic of tea’s chai tea concentrate and just follow the recipe on the box. It’s good but I think I like the sbux bagged leaves better as the anise is turning out to be something I NEED in chai!
Meghann M- lol that’s odd… until I prepared their bagged chai at home I never noticed the anise.
Nor I, hence why I like the bagged version. I thought the anise was what I hated. But now it is something I crave, and one of the things that differenciates these full leaf bags from several chai’s out there. I have yet to get cravings for other teas but this one has to be in the cupboard :-)
No I mean when I order a full leaf chai latte in store I don’t get the anise, but do at home.
Meghann – Thank you so much! I’ve been trying so hard to find what kind of concentrate Panera uses. It’s about $4 at Panera just for like, an 8oz cup. Can’t wait to try it myself.
Yay glad the 6 year old is feeling better!
Have you ever tried Panera Bread’s Chai Tea Latte? Waaaaay better than Tazo’s. That one’s from concentrate, too.
No, haven’t tried that. I don’t think there’s a Panera Bread that’s very close to me but I’ll be on the lookout for one when I’m out and about. Looks like the nearest one is in Millbrae, which isn’t really that close.
You think the concentrate is more blended? Interesting. I find the concentrate way too harsh on the spices- but maybe that’s cuz I only have the concentrate iced?
Midnight Train, I too, enjoy Panera’s- for what it is. Although I’ll take Tazo’s hot over Panera’s hot any day.
The concentrate hot was very even-handed flavor-wise compared to what I had today, which was, as I mentioned VERY peppery. I liked it, it was just different and gave a different overall impression of being less blended since the pepper stuck out so much, comparatively.
Moving the bag around may help a bit. Sometimes I think when then bag infuses in one spot, especially in milk, the spices also stay in one spot.
I work at Panera bread and if you want to try their chai they use Republic of tea’s chai tea concentrate and just follow the recipe on the box. It’s good but I think I like the sbux bagged leaves better as the anise is turning out to be something I NEED in chai!
Meghann M- lol that’s odd… until I prepared their bagged chai at home I never noticed the anise.
Nor I, hence why I like the bagged version. I thought the anise was what I hated. But now it is something I crave, and one of the things that differenciates these full leaf bags from several chai’s out there. I have yet to get cravings for other teas but this one has to be in the cupboard :-)
No I mean when I order a full leaf chai latte in store I don’t get the anise, but do at home.
Meghann – Thank you so much! I’ve been trying so hard to find what kind of concentrate Panera uses. It’s about $4 at Panera just for like, an 8oz cup. Can’t wait to try it myself.