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teataku drank Premium Chai by Butiki Teas

226 tasting notes

Tea of the morning backlog. I was looking for a chai, and we’re running ghastly low on my favorite chai, and plus, this chai had been on my shelf for a while. Apparently, it had been there too long, and I, having not stored it properly slaps self on wrist didn’t help.

So, long story short, it didn’t really end up tasting like chai. It didn’t even really taste like a decent quality black tea, sad to say. I noticed, as I was putting it in the infuser, that it was a CTC type black, so that probably had something to do with it. I more than half blame myself for this bad experience, firstly because I didn’t drink it as quickly as I probably should have, and secondly because I didn’t take care to store it properly. However, some small part of me thinks that it should still have tasted more like chai than it did. Like, the piece of king cake that I had this morning as part of my breakfast tasted more like cinnamon than this tea did. Anyway, meh. It served its function to a certain degree, in that it did keep me warm on the drive to school this morning. :)

Preparation

195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 15 sec

12 years ago

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I very clearly remember my first experience with tea. It was in a Target near my house, and my best friend handed me a cup of chai from the Starbucks inside the store and said, “Try this.” I believe I was about 12 at the time, and from then on, I was completely hooked.

Anyway, as my increasingly weirded out family will tell you, my obsession with tea has (almost) steadily escalated since then. I discovered the world of tea slowly, first with just chai, and then with bagged teas I could get from supermarkets and specialty stores, and then with loose leaf teas. I mostly shop for tea at Teavana, but I also patronize other local shops that I’ve discovered within the last couple of years. I’ve ordered a smattering of teas from a few online places, but I’m always leery of buying tea online, since most of how I select teas in person is by smell… unless I’m at The English Tea Room.

My favorite types of tea are blacks and flavored blacks. And oolongs. Right underneath that are rooiboses and whites, and then greens and herbals, and then mates. I’m always looking for a new favorite, but I appreciate rediscovering old favorites. I like to blend teas, but I never store them that way, mostly because I like to leave myself options.

I prefer nutty/sweet/rich teas to fruity/light-flavored teas or bold/full-bodied teas, but I do try to drink some of everything to widen my palate. I’m always willing to try any tea at least once (except this one tea that Teavana mercifully discontinued… the loose leaf smelled like cheese, I swear). I do perhaps rate teas a little leniently… because I’m not very picky. I will try a tea at least three times before I pronounce that I hate it, and I will always focus on the good aspects of a tea rather than the bad. That’s just how I roll. :3

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Colorado, USA

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