Shaktea

This was quite a nice tea! I’m not sure I’m really a fan of milky oolong in general, though, so that might be why I wouldn’t count it among my favourites, though I did enjoy it for what it is. It definitely tastes just how you would expect, very melon-ey with that creamy aftertaste, so I would definitely recommend this to someone who enjoys milk oolong!

I ordered this tea as a sample, and I’m glad I did because while it smelled absolutely wonderful, it was a bit of a disappointment when brewed. It smells beautifully fruity but the fruit flavour was actually quite weak, and there was a bitter edge to it as well. I might try brewing it at an even lower temperature to see if that helps.

I visited Shaktea while on a trip to Vancouver, and my friend beside me was drinking this tea. I’m not normally a big fan of chai purely because it has to hit a perfect balance of spices and most I have tried seem to miss the mark, but something about this one smelled quite nice as my friend was sipping it, so when we left I took a bag home with me.

Boy am I glad that I did! This chai hits that balance of spices that I had been looking for, and on top of it you get this lovely creamy coconut flavour. The spices don’t overwhelm the coconut, and the coconut doesn’t overwhelm the spices – they work together in perfect harmony. I enjoy this tea with a splash of almond milk or simply plain, and I’ve been craving it so much since I ran out that I ordered 250g of it online and I’m sure I’ll be going through it quite fast. I’ve tried other coconut chai before, but this one is by far the best I have tasted!

It is very windy and cold outside, it has been like that all day.

The great thing about this tea right now is the aroma that fills the room after steeping, a very sweet and spicy scent that engulfs the empty and tired spaces of the office.

This will be a great way to end a very long and blustery Monday.

Longer steep equals spicier chai.

I added a teaspoon of rock sugar in case that would happen, which gives a nice biting sweetness.

I actually like the longer steep, allows more flavors to come out, and gives me an excuse to use more rock sugar.

No milk with half a teaspoon of rock sugar, this has a surprising kick thanks to the spices.

A very true chai flavor, not too spicy, and very very delicious.

Happy holidays, I guess this means my Christmas season has begun.

This is a very warm and cozy tea, the flavor very reminiscent of dark winter nights by a fireplace.

The aroma kind of throws you off, as it smells like a spicy chai blend, but the flavor gives a more refreshing taste with a hint of cinnamon.

Lovely mint green tea, the aroma is fresh and inviting.

I think I am getting to a point where the flavor is reaching an almost buttery texture, similar to Teavana’s Almond Biscotti.

The black tea and almond still harmonize, but the taste is now getting comfortably creamy.

I wish it could taste like biting into a cookie, as the almond biscotti always does, but this is as close as I’m going to get for now.

That’s better, less steep time with more tea leaves.

The flavors harmonize, the black tea not so strong and the almond complimenting.

So, with most black teas, I steep them at approximately 3 minutes, unless specified it requires more or less time. For some reason, I decided to steep an extra minute, I think I was probably curious to see how it would taste. Unfortunately, it isn’t good.

The almond flavor is now overpowered by the black tea, there is no harmony in this oversteeped cup, which makes me a sad panda.

So, moral of this note: do not oversteep this tea. 3 minutes seems more than enough.

More tea leaves equals more flavor, particularly the almonds.

I had increased from 1 teaspoon to 1.5 teaspoons, with a little more rock sugar, and it made a world of difference.

Such a beautifully sweet almondy treat for the late morning.

This is a nice warm flavored black tea, which is nicely blended that both the tea leaves and the almond pieces compliment each others.

No alarms and no surprises, just a straightforward delicious black tea.

I have decided to revisit this tea, among others, as it has been sitting on my tea shelf for close to a year.

Unlike Shaktea’s Marzipan, Cola Licorice doesn’t seem to be affected by the time just sitting there unsteeped.

There is still a very warm and nostalgic deliciousness to this tea, that is probably even more nostalgic given it’s age; the very brown colors of the 70’s, the stale dusty faux-sophistication scents of wood and polyester.

It’s a strange yet comforting feeling, considering I was born in the 80’s, but very much fuels the attraction of this tea.

I’m not quite sure when there is an appropriate time to drink this particular tea, maybe on a snow day, when roads are closed and you are stuck at home, sprawled out on your shag carpet close to the fireplace.

I’m not much of a licorice person, but this is quite a satisfying tea. It blankets you with warmth and triggers fond memories, probably because of the significant licorice aroma.

I would have thought this tea would have an overwhelming flavor of licorice, but this is not the case.

It is a delicious blend, which I would assume the cola nuts and mullein flowers help level out the flavor.

True to it’s description, it has a very warm nostalgic feeling, bringing me back to the 70’s. Of course, I wasn’t born in the 70’s but for some strange reason, I feel like I’m there.

I don’t like rooibos or honeybush teas, the taste is overwhelming to most blends I’ve tried, and this is no different.

The fruits and spices are there, subtle and faint under the honeybush tea, and as much as I can taste, the flavors can be delicious.

Unfortunately, there is more honeybush than ginger pear and all other pieces.

It would be nice if the blend had more complimented the honeybush rather than seemingly fight to make it work.

Fortunately, the honeybush is not as stomach turning a flavor as rooibos, so I can tolerate this tea at the very least.

A teaspoon and a half of tea leaves to a teaspoon of rock sugar makes for a milky smooth and sexy brew to close out the day.

I am now starting to double the tea leaves from chai teas.

The result from this tea? Heavenly. Because of the thicker brew, again, the rock sugar seems to embody instead of fall to the bottom of the cup, giving the tea a much sweeter, creamier flavor.

And just as Shaktea’s signature organic chai is one of the best chai teas I’ve ever steeped, their coconut cream chai just takes that one step further.

It is less spicy, more delicious cream and coconut. The creamy flavor really adds that extra dimension to an already dreamy chai, with the accenting coconut to top it off.

You can literally curl up into this tea and escape a snowy or rainy or any cold day, or night.

This was the first tea my brother and I had tried at Shaktea over the weekend, both of us agreed this tea was simply delicious.

It is a very traditional chai, the spices very familiar and very light. The subtle flavors of vanilla and coconut are what really make this blend stand out. Its body is very creamy, even without milk, which is how I am drinking it at the moment.

I can still see why this is Shaktea’s signature and most popular blend, every steep and every sip is very much heavenly.