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I tried this from Takeya’s iced tea variety pack. This was definitely one of the better teas in the pack. It is very sweet and fruity, with the citrus lime as a primary flavor. The coconut is also prominent, smooth and creamy. At first taste, this blend the flavors of a sweet, tropical rum cocktail (but with no rum). I admit the flavors are a bit artificial tasting, but they are sweet and bright enough to not taste like medicine, which happens with some artificial flavors. This is a green rooibos base, so the smooth, nutty rooibos is mellow and caffeine free. I wouldn’t drink this tea on a regular basis, and can’t recommend it hot, but as an iced treat it can be really delicious. Drink it without milk or sugar (it’s plenty sweet already) and pour it on ice. Maybe add some rum and serve it out of a coconut for the full effect.

A comparison of David’s Tea pure chai and their vanilla chai. I love spiced teas and thought I would compare a couple of samples.

Pure chai: First impressions from the dry leaf and cinnamon smells much stronger and spicier than the vanilla chai. The black tea is bold and full, not bitter nor sour and serves as a well balanced for the heavy cinnamon. There is a buzzy feel on my tongue, maybe it’s the powerful cinnamon or maybe that’s the kiss of the cloves in the mix. Generally a bit one-note, all cinnamon all the time, but it is warming in temperature and flavor and could easily become a go-to comfort tea.

Vanilla chai: in comparison to the sharp cinnamon of the pure chai, this flavor smells more medicinal and sweet. It could be the anise or maybe the herbal vanilla bean that gives it these tones. I’m a fan of licorice, so this isn’t really a problem for me. This chai is significantly sweeter and creamier than pure chai; the vanilla bean is very forward and the touch of anise at the back of each sip plays well with the sweet flavors. This feels more like a dessert than a pick me up, but I’m glad they carry this blend as there are fewer teas with anise than with cinnamon. Definitely a great choice for a creamy reward after a long day.

I steeped both of them on the long side, and drank them without milk or sugar. I know chais are traditionally drank with milk, but due to dietary needs and preference, I didn’t choose to brew them that way.

I was skeptical that these teas would be very different from each other, but they are absolutely distinct in smell and taste and a great choice for any chai tea fanatic!

The pearls smells strongly floral in the dry leaf, which is a much gentler floral presence when brewed. It has an amazingly smooth mouthfeel and flavor. The jasmine is floral without feeling too soapy or perfume-like. The green and white tea blended base behind the jasmine is green and herbal, slightly nutty, without being grassy at all. White teas are not always my favorite for the almost mineral muskiness in their aftertaste, but the white in this blend is not too strong, and is adds a smooth balance to the green. While this first brew is slightly brothy or buttery, the floral, almost fruity tones, come out in the sweeter second steepings. I also did a cold brew of the jasmine pearls in my favorite Takeya pitcher. I let them steep in cold water for 24 hours. The brew was lighter in color, and more flowery than the hot brews, the green and white teas much lighter and smoother in the cold brew. Classy, gentle, and soothing in all its brews.

I tried this tea as a full pouch of loose leaf in my Takeya iced tea pitcher. Wow, do these teas brew up fast! The water was deep dark blood magenta after only a minute or two. This is not a typical hibiscus tea, and pomegranate was a pretty good pairing with it. Not sour at all, this blend is very sweet without anything added, with a bit of an artificial cherry candy flavor. I also taste the apple or fruit base, tasting almost juice-like. Probably best when brewed lightly or when mixed with something like lemonade or sangria. It was a bit too sweet and artificial on its own.

I can’t say I was impressed with this tea the first time around. The leaves arrived in little pre-packaged iced tea portions and they were pretty crushed, not a lot of large leaf pieces. The smell of the dry leaf was off-putting, but I just assumed I don’t drink much sencha so I wasn’t used to it. They said hot water was tends to be too hot for this tea, so I did a 8 hour cold brew in my fridge. I definitely overdid it. The tea was a rich yellow green, almost neon in some light, and the steeping time was far too long. In the bag the tea smelled strongly mineral, with odd vegetal tones. Brewed, it tasted almost like dirty water; more dirt and mineral than grass and earth tones. I assume its bitterness came from my oversteeping, but I just was not a fan of its sour vegetable flavor. I can try again with more careful temperature and time methods, but it might be a while before I get up the courage.

This is definitely a sweet, decadent, relaxing tea, and fitting for its Spa Day name. I took a whiff of the dry leaf and was sold immediately. I got this iced with no milk or sugar. The mango flavor is juicy in smell in taste, truly irresistible. Pair that mango with the slightly tart pineapple and lemongrass is divine and keeps it from being too sweet. Thankfully, the coconut is not so prevalent, as it can have an overpowering soapy, nutty in other blends if overbrewed; in this blend is adds just a gentle creaminess. Probably too sweet to be in my rotation all the time, but it might find its way into my cupboard for some summer iced tea in the coming weeks.

This tea is pretty tasty, but not the favorite I wish it were. The coconut is creamy and at the forefront, maybe overpowering if overbrewed, but makes for a sweet dessert-like blend. The chai spices are a bit gentler, mostly sweet ginger and cinnamon but a kiss of pepper and fennel. It’s a rooibos decaf blend so it is good for anytime of day or night. Not a bad blend, but a little bit too much coconut for me.

I took a smell of the loose leaf for this tea and thought that it didn’t smell quite like any of the other fruity or berry teas I had tried. Brewed up, the berry notes are somewhere between strawberry and blueberry, not too dark but definitely sweet. The redeeming flavors come from the more floral notes, which are not quite jasmine, not quite lavender, but something else. The elderflowers look adorable in the blend too. Beneath both the floral and fruity, there’s the white tea core. I’m not quite able to describe this white tea flavor, and it’s not always my favorite accent. There is a sort of lightly earthy, or deep crushed foliage flavor, not grassy like a green but not mineral like a pu erh; almost savory at times. This tea is for white tea fans, or for something elegant for spring. A little too sweet for me to get all the time, but a nice flash of spring for one cup.

I bought a sample of this tea simply because it smelled so strongly like Fruit Stripes bubblegum in the bag (an old favorite of my brother and I). It’s definitely sweet and strawberry, emphasis on the candy like flavors. It’s a fun trip to brew up a cup of this tea, but it certainly doesn’t seem super natural in the fruit flavors and lacks a bit of the earthy oolong foliage flavors. It was constantly sold out at my store after I bought that tiny sample, so I guess people are loving it, but it’s definitely more casual and sweet than deep or herbal. Maybe as good as a “bubblegum” tea as you’ll get? Just know that going in and you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised.

I wanted something to replace a cup of coffee in my day, and I gave this tea a try. It’s got yerba mate (roasted) for high caffeine, and some of my favorite chai spices. The nuance of the spices are more prevalent in the smell of the dry leaf, and tend to get drowned out by cinnamon in the brewed tea. The toasted yerba mate is great, not as astringent as black tea but with a nice warm body flavor, almost like a nuttier hojicha. The spices trick me into thinking this is sweeter than it is, with lots of cinnamon and ginger and just a hint of anise, it feels like a spicy baked cookie. A really great take on mate and worth the change of pace.