Coco Chai Rooibos

Delicious! I thought that this would be like a blend of adagio’s thai chai and a regular roobios tea, and boy was I wrong! But in a good way. This tea tastes like a creamy coconut cake with clove , honey and and slight ending note of the pink peppercorn. The cream and honey come out even more if you add a bit of raw honey. I think this will definitely be a stable in my house!

This review is going to make me sound like such a shill for David’s Tea, but oh well. Also, it’s a sample sipdown.

So, this is a sample that I got in my recent order from David’s Tea. Not only is the tea from David’s, but I brewed it in a David’s Tea teapot, measured out the leaf using a David’s Tea’s perfect spoon, and sweetened it with some of David’s cinammon-flavoured creamed honey.

On top of that, I’m drinking it at the same time as I’m tasting a bar of David’s Coco Chai Rooibos-infused milk chocolate.

I don’t work for them, I swear! Anyways..

Dry leaf: Bits of rooibos, cardamom, and peppercorns were visible. I was surprised by how fruity this smelled when dry – I thought I detected something lemony. Looking at the ingredients, I was probably responding to a mixture of the ginger, cardamom, and coconut. Quite refreshing, actually.

Steeping parameters: I know that I underleafed this. I only had enough in the sample to make 2 8-oz cups of tea, but my teapot is 24 oz instead. I let the kettle come off the boil for about 5 minutes, then steeped the whole lot for 6 minutes.

Liquor: Orangish red, like a dark terra cotta. The ginger and the rooibos combine here to make a smell that’s surprisingly lemony/fruity. Definitely unexpected. The liquor and the dry leaf smell very similar, and the strongest taste is of ginger and cardamom. I was hoping to get more coconut out of this than I expected (though the coconut flavour is much more present in the tea-infused chocolate). However, because I underleafed this significantly, it’s entirely possible that there are several layers of flavour I’m missing.

Verdict: I think I like the chocolate version better? I’ll definitely finish off this pot, and see how drinking a properly-leafed cup from the store would taste.

I never really liked Chai until I found this tea. It is the perfect tea for a cold winter night.

I made this into a latte with a little bit of vanilla when I heated up the milk. Put it this way, I spent all day looking forward to it. When I finally got to make it…16 hours later, it did not disappoint. The perfect mug of peace after a long stressful day. Next time I may just add a tiny touch of stevia just to sweeten it up a little bit.

I got this tea as a gift from a co-worker. It has a great balance between the spices and the sweetness of the coconut and rooibos!

This is the only rooibos I’ve tried so far that I can say really like. And that’s because it doesn’t taste at all like rooibos. I can’t even smell it in the blend and usually it automatically puts me off, even if I can smell it only a little.

I’m really enjoying it tonight as my last cup of the day. It’s nice and warm, very different from the other chais I’ve ever tasted. It’s mostly ginger, with a sweet aftertaste of coco. Yummy.

As it stands, rooibos isn’t one of my favourite teas. There’s a certain taste to red tea that I find too earthy, and when blended with many other spices, can be muted altogether. I’ve heard it’s great for sinuses and allergies, which should be a reason I drink more of it. And some of the main mixes I’ve seen with red tea include citrusy notes like orange, and fruity herbs like lavender, my faves. But still, red tea doesn’t quite cut it.
And yet!
This blend was quite surprising. DAVIDsTeas isn’t one of my top tea stores to buy from, and would honestly rather buy from smaller tea vendors. But when it comes to creativity, I have to say Mr.David has a vivid imagination.
The pink peppercorns were by far the most outstanding flavour punch and I think that was a great decision. The coconut was missing, and for me, that’s quite all right: it’s not a preferred taste. The cinnamon grated so finely as to camouflage into the red tea was also a brilliant idea.
I usually let my tea steep for way over the suggested time. I let this sit for 12 minutes and added a teaspoon of light honey.

Ok, I understand why this one is popular. While it’s not to my usual tastes, it’s quite nice and a nice intro to the planet of rooibos and chai.

Finally, a chai I can handle! I’ve tried several in the past that had way too much pepper in them—too sharp. This one smells very sharp dry, but brewed it’s gentle and a little sweet. Right now I’m trying it plain but I’d love to have some with milk too.

The cardamom and coconut make this tea slightly floral, and the mix of flavors almost reminds me of some desserts I’ve had at Thai restaurants. I think I could easily get addicted to this blend in the winter months!

The taste blends well with the aroma, it is truly a delicious tea.