Fireside Chai

I am so thrilled – I was making an order to drugstore.com for the protein bars that I like to eat for breakfast sometimes (I buy a few cases at a time) and lo and behold – they sell Zhena’s Gypsy tea! I was able to get Coconut Chai plus a few others including this one! They are having a buy 3 get a dollar off each tin deal right now.

This is another excellent rooibos chai. It’s full bodied and very black pepperish. I am surprised how robust a tisane those lil teabags make! I put some sugar crystals and a splash of milk in (great!) and I think next time I’ll try some honey.

Once again, Zhena – I’m very impressed! Another winter evening staple!

(Oh – and the one I bought is called Firelight Chai but I think it’s the same thing. Not sure if mine is the old name, or if this is the old name)

I got this at the bulk foods section at Rainbow Grocery a while back…

This rooibos is pretty tasty, I don’t think it’s the best I’ve ever had but it’s good for my evening tea nightcap. The valencia orange and clove flavoring adds a nice touch here, I think. It’s kind of a cross between a regular chai and an orange spice tea. A nice cinnamon element is also present.

I steeped this for 7 minutes in a t-sac and then added some soymilk. A nice tea to wind down the week, I think. Happy Friday, Steepies! :)

Last tea of my bagged chai trio!
This one has an obvious rooibos scent, but thankfully the sour wood note is not present in the taste. I would say this tea is very balanced in the spices department and the rooibos seems to add a natural sweetness to the cup. I’ve gone through an entire tin of this now and I’m still not sure how much I actually like it. I do think this is a rooibos done correctly (for me, that is a rooibos that doesn’t taste like rooibos). I wouldn’t go out of my way to get more of this one, but I would probably pick some up if I ran across it.

None of my chai trio teas have been typical chais and I’m still not sure that I need to have any of them constantly in stock. So perhaps this experiment has been a failure since the point was to pick the one I really liked….a big, tasty failure. I still think the best chai I’ve had was RoT’s Green Chai, although I’m sure there are better ones out there.

So hard to find Chai that isn’t caffeinated or stimulating.
My BFF gave me her stash and I’ve been loyal to it ever since because it tastes like actual chai but has none of the uppityness…

I tend to suffer from a lot of anxiety so at night I want something that tastes good but won’t get my heart rate up.

It’s so hard to find this combination..I wish DT had such a thing!

also doesn’t taste like Rooibos.

I drink it straight up I never sweeten tea anymore…I used to be 3 tbs of sugar girl..I think tea in general is better and more complex when not adulterated by sweeteners of any description..however there are always pleasant exceptions!

Okay, this just shot up in my esteem! Last time I made it, it was in my 3-cup pot with one teabag and about 2 tablespoons of honey. This time I made it in my 2-cup pot and used Sugar in the Raw with two teabags. Add a dash of milk and it really tastes like I’m sipping a chai latte at Starbucks. Maybe it’s because when I go there I’m a 6-pump chai girl – I just like it RICH and very sweet. I can’t go tea-shopping for another week, so I’m delighted that we have something I can enjoy in the meantime!

I went through the better part of a pound of this stuff! What can I say, I’m often powerless to resist the siren call of a good deal on Amazon. Ahem. Anyway, I was happy to drink this tea up. I drank so much of this last winter and fall – because it’s a rooibos blend, it’s a great go-to drink on a chilly night. Even though it’s very warm and summery now, I’m sipping on one of my last cups – I’m down to just a few more servings. I often drink this tea straight, though now and again I will add a splash of creamer (preferably almond-coconut milk) and/or brown sugar.

Drunk by itself, Fireside Chai is really autumnal, making me think more of mulling spices than an Indian market. The cinnamon and clove pop out first on the palate, along with a suprisingly prominent orange note! The orange peel plays well with the smooth, slightly sweet rooibos holding the tea together. Ginger and cardamom are just present enough to keep this thing tasting like my notion of a masala chai, but the real kick here is provided by black pepper. The longer you steep, the more intense all the flavors get, but especially the pepper! Honestly I prefer my chai to be heavier on the cardamom, so I won’t be replenishing my huge stock of this tea once I sip the last of this. However, this is a very good bet if you want a caffeine-free or rooibos-centered chai and would appreciate an orange-fruity and spicy black pepper bent!

Smells good, and spicy. Mostly like cinnamon, and ginger. The flavour is mild and sweet. A good evening tea.

I used 2 tea bags for my cup, since I use a rather large mug, and it’s a good thing I did – after adding a splash of milk, I think it wouldn’t have been spicy enough for my liking had I only used 1 tea bag. Letting it steep for what seems a ridiculously long time was helpful as well – the first few impatient sips weren’t very spicy, but as it’s sat for a bit, the flavors have come out nicely. Great pick-me-up without the caffeine!

Aroma: Smells like Chai…a South Asian or Middle Eastern spice market!

Taste: I am picky about Chai teas…the spices have to be just right and Zhena’s gypsy tea blends them just right; not too much of anything especially the black pepper. One caveat, the longer you keep this one steeping the pepper becomes only slightly more prominent but not so much so as to throw it out. I keep my sachets in the whole time while drinking and the pepper doesn’t really bother me. This version has a slight sweet taste due to the Rooibos tea used. I have not had the Coconut Chai yet to compare. This is a very good tea to have in the Winter months to start your freezing morning nice and warm…or before going to bed since it’s naturally caffeine free. Forgot to mention, I drank this tea straight-up, “neat” meaning, I did not fix it in the traditional “chai” manner…with sugar and milk mixed in.

Aftertaste: Nice and warm and comforting. Like finishing a delicately spicy meal with some tea…seriously, an amalgamation of sweetness, spice and tea.

I highly recommend this tea…a must buy!

This is definitely high up there on my favorite teas list. It’s one of the best tasting chai teas to me. Delicious rooibos gives the tea balance. None of the flavors are too forceful, and its really easy to chug this tea. Bonus points for being mostly organic and coming in a reusable tin.