Grabbed this in an order I’d made as a sample tea, hoping it would offer up as delicious as sampling as it sounded.
First, the smell. It’s DIVINE. Like hot maple syrup; I’m assuming this is part of the flavoring added, because there’s no way it could come just from the maple sugar. Regardless, I could sip this all day.
I made this as a heavy cream latte, knowing it had more than enough sweetener in it for me to drink it as is. I took a quick sip before adding the cream – and wasn’t a fan.
I should note – I LOVE chai. I’ll drink it all day, every day if I can. Cinnamon-heavy is never an issue for me; I note this because I saw Roswell and Kitenna both mentioned it, but I didn’t think it was overkill.
What I didn’t like – initially and after adding cream – was the aftertaste.
Okay, I don’t like apple pieces in my tea, so I’m sure that’s part of it.
But the ‘natural’ and artificial flavorings were off. It left a sour, bitter taste in my mouth, and the only reason I finished it was due to the smell.
I really wish DT would label their flavorings with more detail. Until then, though, this is a hard no for me.
Flavors: Apple, Bitter, Cinnamon, Maple, Sour, Sweet
Could definitely be the flavouring – but to me it sounds like the sour/bitter note you’re describing better fits the roasted chicory in the blend. Regardless, sorry this one was a miss for you!