Horchata Chai

A few weeks ago when my friend Todd was visiting, several days of lackluster sleep were starting to catch up with me, so I pulled this out even though it is a “newer” order (which I typically ignore to drink older teas first) just because it was only one of two yerba mate blends I had in my current stash. After opening the package I realized it was cut with rooibos and thus probably not the caffeinated bomb I was hoping for, but at that point I brewed it up anyway.

Todd and I both really enjoyed it! The tea smells like cinnamon and cheesecake, and the flavor isn’t far from that, either. The tea is very sweet, with strong notes of woodsy cinnamon and cream cheese. There is a little lingering spice in the aftertaste that I think may be the ginger, but it doesn’t really come out in the sip. I’m not sure if I could say I’m getting horchata specifically, though I definitely understand it. I think for me it’s more of a warm cinnamon bun with cream cheese frosting, which I’m equally down for! A very desserty cup. Makes a fine latte, as well.

Sweetened with milk, this really tastes like horchata! I taste a lot of warm cinnamon, but something else that combines to make this a super desserty cup. Lovely resteep as well.

This tea soft launched earlier in the month as part of a mini collection inspired by different global flavours/terroirs – it was accompanied by Cherry Blossom Matcha and Mint Everest, which had previously first been teased in the Around The World advent.

I first started working on this tea about a year and a half ago. It’s not the first time that DT has done a horchata flavour – a few years back, when I was in store, we had a really excellent tea called Horchacha. I wanted to kind of reimagine that blend since, in the years since, Horchata has become a lot more mainstream/commercially recognized. This time around, we dropped the stevia and gave this blend a spicy Chai twist to play off the cinnamon notes already in Horchata. There’s still that very rich, creamy and thick taste that one should except from a Horchata. This is in part because of the coconut milk powder (which also makes for a richer mouthfeel), in part because of the use of flavouring, and in part because of the addition of white rice which does add a subtle starchiness. Ultimately, within that strong overarching sense of creaminess, you taste a mix of coconut, rice, and vanilla.

In regards to that “Chai twist” – I personally find the cardamom stronger than the ginger but I’ve heard coworkers say the reverse too, so I think maybe personal spice preference could play an effect in how you perceive that balance. Regardless, adding those extra spices does add more depth and layers of flavour to the blend (and breaks up some of the sweetness) without necessarily adding heat.

The base mix was fun too – we went with roasted mate for caffeine, body, and to give some darker “low” notes to the blend from the roast to help balance the sweetness and more aromatic top notes. The addition of rooibos was important too; it also adds body but kept the roasted mate from overtaking some of the more subtle flavours within the profile or getting too tannic/bitter.

Ultimately, it’s a sweet tea but I think a delicious one! I think a lot of people think of Chai as a more autumnal drink and this would, of course, be perfect as a cozy fall or winter beverage. However, Horchata is usually consumed cold and this tea REALLY shines as an iced latte so I’m glad it released a little earlier in the year so that as it warms up people will (hopefully) take advantage of enjoying it as a refreshing tea to cool down with in the summer. I recommend making it with coconut milk or, to be more authentic, rice milk!

Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.