Hazelnut Chai

Thud. Rip. Tap, tap, tap. Crinkle. Plorp. Tink, tink, tink.

That’s the sounds of me throwing the last teabag into the trashcan, followed by opening the Splenda packet and pouring it into the cup (I tap the edge of the packet with my finger), opening and pouring the little tub of creamer, and stirring with a stirrer straw.

That’s one more tea to take out of the cupboard. I’ll use the tin for storing something on my desk. I don’t know what, but I’ll find a use rather than throwing it away.

I’m very much in the mood for creamy today even though it’s hot out. I think it has to do with the AC being on. You see, I’m very sensitive to temperature changes, and my husband is very sensitive to heat. He usually wins this battle by putting on the air. I end up putting on longer layers to stay warm… and drinking hot tea!

To soothe the need to put cream and sugar in my cup, I decided chai would fit the bill. I’m also feeling a bit nutty. Hazelnut Chai is checking off all my wants.

My cups of chai are always sweetened with a healthy dose of dairy. I like this particular blend because its not black pepper-spicy. It’s not my favorite ingredient in chai. The more it has in it, the more I feel I have to compensate it with sugar. So I tend to lean more toward chai has has pepper toward the bottom of the ingredient list, if its in there at all.

This is nutty and comforting – just what I’m feeling like! :)

I bought this because I was in the mood for something sweet and dessert like today. This sounded really good from the description but I should have been leery from the get go because I had another tea from Zhena’s that I didn’t really care for.

This smells amazing in the tin but unfortunately the flavor just doesn’t match up to the hype. One teabag in an 8 oz cup yielded a very weak and watery brew, I guess I will have to try for two next time but that means the price of the per cup is a lot more than what it should be.

I am getting hazelnut, cinnamon and vanilla but it’s just so weak and anemic, oh well. Definitely better once some vanilla soymilk was added but kind of a bummer overall. Makes me wonder if Zhena’s is owned by Republic of Tea since their tins are a similar size and the teabags look the same.

thanks so much Kasumi no Chajin. for sending a couple of these to try. I really like the idea of a black tea with hazelnut and chai. After a four minute steep, this one isn’t terrible. I’m not sure if it is the spices I am tasting or if there is splenda in this. I hope I haven’t started assuming that all bagged teas have splenda in them. But the flavors in here somehow taste like splenda, which isn’t very appealing if it’s here or not. Obviously it shouldn’t be a problem if you like splenda anyway. Otherwise, I like the toasty hazelnut and spices flavor.

This is the second tea that Will Work For Tea was so kind to send me as a sample!

As soon as I opened the bag I was blown away by the heavy smell – thick and dense, really heavy on the nuts. I expected some rough pepper-y smell, but it surprised me with a creamy sensation. So it was a great surprise, smells delightful and reminds me of Christmas somehow :)

I steeped it for 4 minutes to get more of that taste out in the cup. For the first cup I used bit of sugar and it was great. Really great taste, filling all corners of the mouth and leaving a nice tingling sensation in the end. But super-creamy and soft.

For the second cup I used milk, and it was even more great. I’m not a big fan of dairy products in my tea, but this one was outstanding. Usually I enjoy a cookie or some other sweets with my tea, but it was so good that it was a meal itself :)

Overall, this tea is really great, an unexpected mix of spicy and creamy. And my room and kitchen did smell of spicy nuts for at least 3 hours after steeping. Amazing tea, I will be looking forward to buying this.

Again, I have to thank Will Work For Tea for this great sample!

Bagged
Aroma when Dry: sweet spicy chocolate, faint cinnamon notes
After water is first poured: Hazelnut Cocoa
At end of first steep: hazelnut bonbons
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: light yellowy brown
Staple? possible
Preferred time of day: evening
Taste:
At first (without milk)?: cinnamon, nutmeg, spiced hazelnut sugar, creamy close
As it cools (with milk)?: notes deepen, sweetness lessens, but tea gets creamier
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? few oz of milk added after first notes
Lingers? Yes, hazelnut notes across the palate
With milk?hazelnut notes open up, spices deepen, tea gets lighter

Thank you to Skysamurai for the chance to try some of this tea!

I haven’t had many Zhena’s teas, but I see them around a lot and have been meaning to explore. This tea is perplexing. It is spicy, warm, nutty with a little kick, but I can’t seem to pinpoint any of the flavors. I can pick out clove in the aftertaste. I know what ingredients are in it, I just can’t detect them individually. I thought I could taste the black base when I first sipped this cup, but now I don’t. The flavors are strong and I appreciate that. I added sugar, but I would like to try it with some milk on the resteep and see if it takes it up a level.

This is a rich and spicy tea. The hazelnut adds a nice nuttiness to the tea. I usually don’t add dairy or sweetener, but it just feels right for a chai. This is really good with soy or coconut milk! With those sweet milks you don’t really need sugar.

I finally found it! On a shelf tucked away in a Home Goods store. I thought I would have to order it online if I really wanted it that badly, but I got lucky.

The first thing that’s a little disarming to me is the fact that there is no actual hazelnut in the ingredients list. Interesting…

It definitely smells like sweet hazelnut after it steeps. When I sip, I get a lot of cinnamon, cloves, and orange, with a nutty, creamy mouthfeel, hint of hazelnut in the finish. Can’t taste the licorice, thank goodness. Very smooth, very rich. Very enjoyable.

I have been experimenting with different kinds of chai to figure out which one I like better for my chai tea lattes. This is pretty dang good although I haven’t quite gotten the tea to milk ratio (I used coconut milk). It reminds me of the holidays and winter. I love this tea. (: Once I have gotten the right ratio, I will update my rating.