Chico Chai

Enjoying Turmeric Chai as a latte with almond milk and raw honey. Very good turmeric tea with chai spices. I received this in my Sipsby box. I like that all the ingredients are organic. I am picky when it comes to turmeric teas because not all are good. My favorite turmeric teas are from Vahdam but I would buy this tea. The recipe on the bag is stove top. I will have to try it that way next time. A lot of chai’s taste better when cooked on the stove. I need to drink more turmeric tea since I have arthritis. There are a lot of health benefits of turmeric.

This was from a Sips by box, so there’s only enough for two servings, but I think I’m okay with that. I feel like I get some anise flavor, which I don’t usually love in chai, but it works okay here. It’s not at all spicy, and with milk, it’s decently tasty, if not very exciting. I might taste some ginger too? It’s not too remarkable with so many other chais out there.

I’m getting close to a sipdown on this tin, yet I haven’t made a tasting note! I had a sample of this at the SF Tea Festival a couple years ago and bought a tin based on that. I’ve had it many times over the years, but I was steeping it like I would a regular black tea and getting a mediocre cup out of it. I recently looked up the company’s instructions, followed them and got a much better cup. 1c water to 1 scoop tea simmered on the stove for 10m, adding a 1/2 c of milk and letting it simmer for a few more. The pepper came out nicely with that preparation. I added a little more cracked pepper and sweetened with some ginger flavored honey and got such a wonderfully spicy warming cup that I sipped through what turned out to be a 3hr long family yoga zoom class today. I’m likely to make this tea daily until this tin is done. It’s perfect for warming up in cold weather.

Sipdown!

Okay, traditional steeping method this time.

I followed the package instructions but scaled it up by 1.5 to use the rest of the sample, so it was about 2 teaspoons of tea for 12 ounces of water simmered for 10 minutes. Then I added about 3/8 C of milk and 1.5 teaspoons of sugar and simmered for 5 more minutes before straining into a mug.

I actually ended up adding a little more sugar and milk because the cardamom and black pepper here are just so strong. The front of the sip is creamy and sweet with some nice cinnamon, clove, and ginger, and then WHAM the cardamom and black pepper come walloping in at the end to punch me in the throat. The black pepper in particular leaves my throat tingling with heat.

Because of the super pepper kick, I’m not sure I would drink this one again. It’s entirely possible I got unlucky with my sample and because I used the dust at the bottom of packet that the pepper was out of proportion. But this just has too much of a pepper kick for me. :P

From my November Sips by box.

I plan on using most of the pouch to brew this on the stovetop with milk per the instructions, but it seemed silly not to try a small cup of it straight first.

Wow, this is very powerful! It’s hard to pin down all of the spices because there are so many, but I’m definitely getting the clove, cardamom, ginger, and nutmeg. The black pepper shows up mid-sip and builds in heat toward the end. There’s a hint of orange as well.

It’s definitely not something I would drink straight, as it’s a bit much for me. But it definitely seems fresh and is very flavorful! More to come on the stovetop preparation.

I’ve been trying different chai blends by various brands for a number of years.
And then I discovered Chico Chai.
A bit on the pricey side for my budget, but I had a discount code from the Sips By site so I justified the expense.
Worth. Every. Penny.
Easily the best chai latte I’ve ever made or tasted.
The perfect amount of spice that just warms your soul.
8oz of brewed chai, 4oz of hot milk (I use almond milk, by Orgain), and the tiniest splash of SF vanilla syrup…
It’ll cure what ails ya.
I always make sure my cupboard is well stocked with this chai.

Finally, a chai that impresses! I have tried so many lackluster ones in the past few years that I was starting to think I didn’t like chai anymore. (52teas chais excluded. Those are still great.)

The spices in this taste so fresh and bright. For once, it isn’t all musty powdered ginger and cinnamon. No, this tastes wonderfully of star anise and allspice on top of the classics. Maybe a hint of clove, too. I’m sipping it over ice right now and it such a treat. I’m getting really curious about their other flavors. Definitely something to look into as fall slowly approaches.

Anyway, thank you, Sipsby.

EDIT: $18 for 4 ounces?? Dang. You know, I’m honestly willing to pay it.

Big chai fan, but I definitely didn’t like this one. If you like or don’t mind anise, this may be fine for you, but the flavor was overwhelming and very unpleasant for me.

Very spicy and electrifying taste! This is my favorite tea as of right now. I add just a little honey to the already powerful flavor. The sweetness of the honey helps balance the spiciness.

Ooh, this one isn’t for me. It’s strongly spicy but there’s no sweetness to it at all so it just ends up tasting harsh. I added sugar to this cup and it’s better this way but since I don’t like it plain I’m unlikely to reach for it again. To the swap pile!

Yep, I must buy more of this. Delicious, thick, yummy cacao with chai. It’s perfect. Truly. Raising the rating, because it really is that good.

1.5 tsp in 12 oz.

Thankfully, there’s more than a cup or two in this tiny little tin (looks are deceiving!) and so I enjoyed another hefty cuppa earlier today. What can I say? It’s a cacao chai, and it’s absolutely divine.

Now this is a tasty chai! It’s a bit cloudy after brewing, however I find that the case anytime cacao is ground into a powder… think hot chocolate where the solids struggle to mix in properly. It’s sweet, has only a touch of heat, creamy, almost a honey-like quality to it, and then there’s the richness of the chocolate, which is definitely in the background yet still makes itself known in the feel and texture of the tea. Delicious!

Thank you JustJames for sharing this delightfully tiny little tin (about 4 tsp worth) so that I could try it.

booyah! this kicks a three letter word that we all have following us around! beautiful spice balance, gorgeous fresh, the mate keeps me on top of my game….. i think this may be the best i’ve had, chico or otherwise.

i will be buying a tin of this. not a price for the faint of heart, but this works well for me and shines as a saucepan roiled latte.

Backlog:

A really good chocolate chai. There is finely ground cacao in the blend, so the chai brews up kind of cloudy, but don’t let that deter you … that’s chocolate in there!

Milk really isn’t needed with this chai (I usually brew my chai in water, not stovetop with milk/water combo) because there is a pleasant creaminess from the vanilla notes and the cacao. Milk wouldn’t hurt it, I’m sure, I just didn’t add milk to mine because I didn’t want to mess up the chocolate. It probably wouldn’t have … but we’re talking chocolate, and I wasn’t willing to take a chance on that. Chocolate is too important!

Rich with chocolate, nice spice level, this chocolate chai gets two enthusiastic thumbs up from me.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/10/31/chocolate-chai-blend-chico-chai/

when was the last time you had a cup of ‘wow’? i mean on here, although we’re polite about it, we’re all fortunate enough to be afforded the luxury to be tea snobs (or connoisseurs if you’re more comfortable=0). so many companies send out ‘wow’ samples…. how do you measure after such skilled generosity?

for me this is WOW.

LiberTEAS drew my attention to the fact that they offered a sampler. that worked well for me seeing as i had just gone through my ‘rishi chocolate chai’ fiasco and i was not prepared to invest a ton without trying some first.

chico’s a california company, free trade, fresh made, highly spoken of by LiberTEAS. i love chai… never had it fresh =0)…. i was intrigued. the brilliant LiberTEAS even included a link for me!

the sampler included an original mix, a chocolate, a mate and a rooiboos. aw! rooiboos…. i wrote a letter. the tea blender, sarah replied promptly: ‘no problem. we can offer you another sample as your fourth.’ perfect!

as asked i made a note during checkout to remind sarah of our conversation and hit the ‘pay now’ button. …. …….. ………. ‘confirm payment’ WHAT???? THIRTY FIVE DOLLARS FOR SHIPPING FROM CALIFORNIA TO BC? um, no. i politely said so.

again i got a very polite and prompt reply from a now concerned sarah. ‘WHAT? it is NOT supposed to be doing that!!!!’ of course it all wound up fine after a bit of fiddling, and i got my rooiboos free sampler with a surprise strainer included which perfectly fits the top of my mug! sarah! thank you so much!

customer service 5/5. on to the chai.

fresh makes all the difference apparently. it makes very good sense of course, but never having had it how could i know? lots of heat from the spice, a well rounded, comforting punch.

i used 7grams for 1.5 cups of water. water brought to a boil and then dropped to a simmer at which point i added the chai and let it roil for a conservative 10 minutes (they recommend anywhere from 5-30 minutes lol). i thought i’d start conservatively!

OMG…. LiberTEAS… i owe you. this is spice cake, this is spicy enough to give me an endophin rush but not so spicy that i have to sacrifice dignity by fanning my tongue. decadent, fresh, no hint of off-the-shelf spices. beautifully balanced. with cream added it reminds me of the spiced cream i make in the summertime with a lot more punch….

i absolutely see why sarah and chico are award winners. if i had more and (arguably) if i were a nicer guy i’d share to prove my point, but i don’t ….. and i’m rather in love so in this instance i’m not feeling abundantly nice! lol.

by FAR the best chai i’ve ever had. i will definitely order more… just have to figure out which one!

http://chicochaitea.com/shop/chico-chai-variety-box/

Backlog:

I’ve tried a few rooibos chai blends out there, some I’ve liked, some I haven’t … this one is one that I definitely liked. A really good rooibos chai.

The anise really comes forward in this chai, then I notice the cinnamon and pepper/ginger. The rest of the spices are more of a “spice medley” on the palate, and it is more difficult to pick out the individual flavors. But I am enjoying the way the flavors all come together.

The vanilla is especially nice here, because it gives an undertone of creaminess without adding dairy, which is something I don’t like to add to rooibos chai blends because rooibos is so thin … milk will just … overwhelm the flavors.

Warm and cozy!

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/10/18/loose-leaf-red-chai-rooibos-blend-from-chico-chai/

Backlog:

A very delicious chai. Good and spicy! Makes an excellent latte too.

Warm, spicy … I love the anise in this one. The touch of vanilla gives is a pleasing, creamy undertone so you don’t need to add dairy to it … it has a nice creaminess to it without the dairy (although like I said, the dairy does make a delectable latte)

A rich malty assam serves as the base for this, and it’s a really rewarding Chai.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/10/02/original-loose-leaf-chai-chico-chai/

Backlog:

A really good Mate chai! I’ve been very impressed with Chico Chai’s products. There is a good level of spice, spicy but not overwhelming. I can taste the tea base (or in this case, yerba mate base.) Peppery, energetic, it isn’t a weak chai by any means, and not for someone who tends to be wimpy when it comes to spice. But I like that I’m tasting the earthy notes of the yerba mate too, and the earthy tones of the mate bring out a different sort of flavor in the spices too, allowing those earthy notes to be explored.

A really good chai.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/09/22/mate-chai-chico-chai/

Backlog:

AWESOME! I tried this chai concentrate a few different ways since I had a quart of it. I tried it as a blended ice drink which was amazing!

I also had it as a hot latte, and it is so good. The ladies at Chico Chai know what they’re doing! A nice spicy-sweet blend of tea and spices. It’s been sweetened, but it’s not overly sweet which is important to me when it comes to chai concentrates, because most of what you’ll find in the markets are more sweetener than they are tea and spices and quite frankly … that’s off-putting to me. This is lightly sweetened … and my taste buds thought it was just perfect!

My full-length review can be read here: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/09/10/product-review-chico-chai-strong-brew-chai-concentrate-from-chico-chai/