Pumpkin Chai

Steepster is playing tricks on me again. Oh well. Just downed a cup of this still LOVE…a very nice pumpkin offering – chai but not too chai, pumpkin but not too pumpkin…and brown sugary-sweet! LOVELY!

Mmmmmm. . .
My dog is sleeping on my lap right now. She’s not small (60 lbs) and I’m typing on a laptop, most awkward note ever. But, she’s cute any gets away with everything. 1.5 years ago I joined the waiting list for Spynx breeder, the first breeding didn’t take. When I got home from work yesterday there was a msg telling me too call her right away. Apparently from her recent litter there is one kitten left, her intended purpose was a gift for her aunt. Her aunt is waivering and I’m next in line! Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! I’ll find out Tuesday if I get to become a sphynxmama!
Which of course means everything is exciting. I already know I love pumpkkin chai, but I especially love it today!

I think I can recognize a DT in a blind test- or blind taste.
I don’t know, there is a signature, something like a kind of special vanilla maybe…an aroma I get everytime I drink one DT.

So this one is a DT as well. I have the same complaint about the tea base, too weak for me, I don’t have the feeling to have a tea but more an infusion, once and again…bis repetita…

The dry leaves scent is a perfection, very spicy and mild cinnamon mainly + pumpkin of course.

I was expecting something stronger as it is a chai but it’s a very light chai to me.

I think I am quite happy with this tea because I normally dislike pumpkin and I found it fair. If the tea base was stronger I would probably even have really liked it.

Forgot to thanks Darby for giving me the opportunity to taste this blend ! Thanks so much Darby

Stovetop, coconut milk, Pumpkin Chai. Winning combination! This is the perfect cozy, comforting nighttime treat to celebrate a day of lovely fall weather. I love fall.

Why am I drinking this? Simpson & Vail’s Gingerbread is SO MUCH BETTER.

Also, I got an ereader, tea peeps! HALP! It’s a Sony, so I can’t just click and email things (ooh, but can I click and transfer if it’s plugged in to my computer? I sure hope there’s a Firefox addon for that!), but OMG. OMG! And it’s red! :D I’m trying to decide what to read. Yay Calibre!

1 “perfect scoop” (1.5tsp)
1 16oz mug
1 cinnamon honey stick
16oz of hot water….

Oh… Oh… Starbucks, eat your heart out! THIS IS pumpkin chai! I am glad I gave this tea another chance. That first sip of a sample must have not been made well. (It happens I have had bad tea days)

I think the biggest issue is that DAVIDs Black teas have a suggested leaf measurement that is too much. 1.5tsp to a meagre 8oz cup is over kill; for me.

Today, boys & girls, we will be making a Pumpkin Chai Latte. You will need:

Hot, frothed milk. Check.
Light brown sugar. Check.
A touch of boiling water*. Uh-huh.
BIG, big mug. Checkedy check.
Ample amounts of Pumpkin Chai. Check, check, check.

Steep loose tea in 1/4 cup boiled water in the bottom of a glass measuring cup for, oh, 1-2 minutes. While waiting prepare your hot, frothy milk using whichever method you see fit (I used the microwave since I have no patience, but the stove works, and if you have a milk steamer then even better!) and stir in desired amount of brown sugar. Pour milk into steeping tea and wait… I waited about 5 minutes… then strain into mug, top with sprinkle of brown sugar, and ENJOY!

Note: I know, I know, one could just skip the whole water bit and steep the tea right into the hot milk, BUT I guarantee that by slightly steeping it beforehand you get so much more pumpkiny goodness. And one can never have enough of that!

i’m coming to the sad realization that i need to reduce my caffeine.
it’s going to be very hard.
very very hard.

i’ll start this week by not drinking black tea or the like after 2p, and no caffeine at all after 4p.
then next week i’ll do no caffeine after 2p.

i’ll try at least. try until i succeed.
sorry i just realized how dramatic this kinda sounds. BUT IT’S TEA WE’RE TALKING ABOUT!!

see, in 2010 i lost 60lbs and in 2012 i ran 6 marathons and an ultra.
and i used to tell everybody who asked that of all the healthy changes i made in my life, quitting caffeine was by far the best thing i’d ever done for myself.
quitting caffeine relieved me of my sad moods and general prevailing anxiety. it made my pms/pmdd almost go away entirely. it made me feel more whole. and i felt like i could do anything, any time of the day. (instead of feeling like i could do anything only after a cup or two of tea and only for some times of the day.) sure quitting removed those wonderful poetic highs, but it also relieved me of the grey and irritable lows. and if you know what i am talking about, then you know that the grey lows are nothing to mess with. they get in your skin, in your mind, and in your heart.
point is, it effected me in a very positive way. in fact, it’s what brought me to tea!! i became obsessed with herbal tea and bought as many kinds as i could find. then i branched out and had a white or two. maybe a green. and before i knew it i had 100 teas stocking my cupboard. oh lovely lovely teas.

but the honeymoon’s over, and i gotta reign it in.
i say this because i know you will all be able to relate or commiserate with me in some way. i’m not even slightly suggesting that anyone else should quit no way!!! and i will try to find a balance and a way to still drink tea regularly no doubt. just not as MUCH tea is all. just not as much.

Dry Leaf Nose: Caramel, rich black tea and spices.

Liquor: Red-brown clear.

Flavour: Rich black tea flavour blends well with the pumpkin and spice. This is a rich and warming cup that speaks of fall.

I don’t know if I got a bad batch of this but the first time I drank it it was a little spicy and creamy. The second and third time it tasted musty, it just didn’t taste right. It even smells musty. So I am lowering my rating for this. I ordered it online before it came out again in the stores, so maybe they gave me a old batch.