Kama Sutra Chai

I won this as part of Tea-Oh’s facebook contest a few weeks ago. I wish I knew what all of the ingredients were, as something in it is just not sitting right with my tongue. Maybe it’s that I used skim milk instead of the richer soy or half and half, maybe it’s the CTC sized leaves, it just wasn’t a tea for me.

I’m looking to give this tea another home. Roughly 50g left. It is similar to Adagio’s masala chai with some added roseblooms. PM me or leave a comment if you would like this tea forwarded to you to try. I really think other chai lovers may enjoy it. I just think I’ll stick with my favorite chai with chocolate-52teas for awhile.

I had just found this tea place called Empress Tea House, hidden away within Prince George on Nicholson Street. Despite being located quite near to Pine Center mall, it was an adventure to find it, especially in the late 2012 snowfall.

Apparently, they have been there for close to six years, but their website shows them established in 2004, which is more close to ten years. Despite, I had never heard of this place until I asked a taxi driver if there were more tea places other than David’s Tea in Pine Center.

The word penetrating doesn’t come up describing teas often, and seeing as I haven’t really purchased a chai in quite a long while, this particular one intrigued me.

The leaves give off a fairly familiar Masala chai scent, not as strong as I would anticipate, but strong nonetheless. Rose pedals concern me, as I associate that to a pale flavor, but it doesn’t seem to be present in the leaves’ aroma, which left me slightly reassured.

Steeping the leaves, though, brings out that hidden pale floral scent. I had also forgotten to add maybe equal amounts of rock sugar, so let’s hope the penetrating spices penetrate the unnecessities.

The first initial sips reaffirm my concerns. This chai is not penetrating enough. The pale characteristics overwhelm a potentially interesting blend of spicy and “sensuous” ingredients, as the flavor is attempting strength, but ultimately cannot go further.

I would expect rock sugar would improve the dull flavor, but probably not by much.

It is a shame; a good chai, the right chai, can be hard to find.

Tea #7.

This one was actually on my shopping list, because it sounded really tasty. Chai, with rose petals? Yes please.

I was disappointed to find that one of the spices is not quite to my liking. I was going to say fennel, but apparently there isn’t any in the blend. Coriander, maybe? It’s hard finding a chai with the right balance of the right spices in it. Maybe when I figure it out, I should just get some rose petals to add in, and see if I like that better…

This is a pretty dull tea. I put in a small amount of rock sugar and steeped it for a while (10 minutes?) because I read that it could be a bit flavorless. My first few sips tasted like bitterness and rose petals, which was not a great combination. I added some half-and-half, and now the rose petal taste is gone and it just has an earthy black tea taste… which I’m not finding pleasant.

Let’s just say that for a tea who’s named after the Kama Sutra, I was expecting something a little… spicier! This is a very, very mild mix. It’s not bad, but it’s not exactly the spicy kick in the mouth you expect from a chai.

I made this in my to-go insulated cup this morning, and actually forgot about it for a good 10 minutes or so. Two teaspoons of sugar and a dash of milk later, and I’m not even sure if it qualifies as a chai.

It’s been on the shelf a while, but I don’t think that would change it to this extent. Even with the over-steep it’s so mild you can taste the flower petals more than any of the spices. I like my chai very, very spicy. This just isn’t for me.

I’m trying to decide whether or not to throw it out. I have 2 or 2-1/2oz left, and I think it’s about 2 years old. At what age should you throw out tea?

May Flowers! I was a little disappointed that the Spi Chai sampler by T2 I tried the other night, which was supposed to have rose and jasmine petals, ended up not having any, so here is my second try at a floral chai! This blend is the Kama Sutra blend by tea wholesaler Metropolitan Tea Company, which means it’ll be in tea shops across the country. I purchased mine from The American House in San Diego, California, during a vacation. This particular chai blends Indian and Kenya black teas with chai spices and rose petals, jasmine blossoms, and lavender buds.

Unlike my sad Spi Chai sampler, I do have ample flower petals in this tea, and a pronounced floral scent from the bag! It’s actually a very interest aroma, a little like cardamom and clove mixed with lavender, and I actually find the combination of aromas oddly pleasant! The base tea steep up very strongly, and it actually wasn’t as bitter as I was expecting (I think the floral notes actually helped a lot in this regard), but it did have a fair bit of astringency following the sip.

This is a chai that needs to be well shaken, and preferably scooped from down inside the bag rather than from off the top to get a good flavor, since the spices are ground up and tend to sink/settle easily. When I took the tea from the top I got a very weak flavor that was like some slightly cardamom-flavored black tea, but when I shook the bag and then dipped the teaspoon down into the center of the bag, my second cup actually had a very full, spicy flavor. This was a strong chai, with the cardamom, ginger, and black pepper leaving a strong impression on my tongue. I think the floral notes got a little lost by how strong the spices and how astringent the black tea was; I could make out a hint of lavender toward the end of the sip when the spices were starting to die down a bit, but wasn’t tasting any rose or jasmine in my cup.

Since this chai has such a strong black base, I tried it latte style as well, and it was much nicer taken that way. That tamed the black pepper notes and the astringency, and the sweetened milk helped bring more of the floral notes to the forefront, as well; the lavender finish suddenly really popped! If I ever make this again, I will only make this as a latte in the future.

This is actually pretty nice as a latte, since I do like the way the spices and lavender play against each other, but on the whole I think the blend still needs a little balancing between the spice notes and the floral to more fully bring out all the flavors. I would’ve liked to be able to taste the other florals in the blend, to have a bit more balance between all the spices, and just a better balance between the spice and floral so they aren’t competing. I really do think it could be done!

Much spicy. Very not wow. I don’t usually use that meme but i couldn’t help it. It’s a spicy bland chai. I’ve added some orange honey to it and even that doesn’t help much.