Ginger Craving

Ever since I read a recipe at Chai Pilgrimage for 'Darjeeling Ginger Chai' I was totally smitten with the idea... and I have a LOT of Darjeeling floating around in the pantry, thanks to the arrival of another order from Thunderbolt Tea.

Check out the original recipe here... there's a printable download of the recipe card too!

So I've been brewing up quite a bit of it the last few days. The totally FOUL weather we have had lately has been extra encouragement. I really like the way the plain pure heat of the ginger harmonises with the brassy taste (I mean that in a good way) of the Darjeeling tea. I don't normally drink my Darjeeling with any kind of milk, but it has worked well.

I've tried it with Risheehat and Giddapahar second flushes, and a bit of Arya first flush as well. I've used soy milk, cow's milk and almond milk. I've made a lot of mess with saucepans and tea strainers.

I think my favourite was the one with the Giddapahar and cow's milk... but that might also be because this was the only one I sweetened, with some syrup from some preserved ginger that I had used up earlier that day. Damn, that was good. And that was Pippin's first sip of chai, too! I should have taken a photo, but I was too busy being a tea-proud mama.

Tuesday's Tea of the Week - Chai Masala

I LOVE chai masala. There is something so comforting about a good cup of milky sweet spicy tea... A really special treat. There are obviously dozens of ways of making such a blend, and this is the one I've come up with for the shop. I think it's well balanced... No single spice predominating, just all round yumminess.

Along with the organic black tea, in this blend there you will find cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cardamom, fennel and black pepper - so many of my favourite things!

The good thing about this tea is that while it's delicious prepared the traditional way, by gradually bringing milk to boil on the stove top etc, it actually also works really well made a bit more quickly, just infused in boiling water in a teapot and with the milk added after, to taste.

I find that the cinnamon makes it sweet enough for my taste without anything added, but of course you can add some honey or sugar if you like! Perfect for curling up with on a cold winter evening - or for serving alongside your Indian dinner! If you have a milk frother, you can also make your own genuine chai latte, too easy (and 100 times better than anything made from chai 'powder' or 'syrup').

Next week: Outback Sunset

Tea at the Library

I love the Journal cafe at the City Library in Flinders Lane. It's so funky. It's one of the few places I can get chai made with real tea, as opposed to some bizarre kind of powder or syrup with no actual tea content. I'm not 100% sure but I think the chai blend that they use at Journal is T2's - yum.

I stopped in at Journal with Pinky Dots (and Pippin of course) when I was in the city to have lunch with a friend. Pippin was snoozing, but Pinky Dots and I read a bit of Liquid Jade...


...and had some chai.


A bit of a tall order for a small stuffed cat, but your Tea Correspondent was equal to the task, I'm pleased to report.


Now we just need to decide on our next outing venue... Hopetoun Tea Rooms? Miss Marple's? Ten Ren? Stay tuned!

Chai Review 2 - Hari Har Chocolate Chai

I have finally got around to brewing up a pot of the second tea to feature in my chai masala reviews - the Hari Har Chocolate Chai.

This is labelled 'chocolate chai' because of the inclusion (amongst other things) of cocoa powder, although I must say that I've never found that it tastes particularly chocolatey. I think, though, that as I'm getting to the bottom of my packet the cocoa powder has been a bit more concentrated, as today I did notice a bit of a chocolate taste in it. It's not strong though, which is a bit of a pity, because I actually think that the combination of tea and chocolate would be quite a good one.

This tea as you will hopefully see from the picture below is made with a very finely cut leaf. The tea itself is grown in the Daintree Region of Queensland, Australia, the only place where tea is grown in this country I believe. The packet claims that the tea from Daintree is 97% caffeine free and tannin free. I'm not entirely sure whether these claims are legitimate (particularly given the difficulties associated with trying to ascertain caffeine levels), but let's not worry too much about this on a Sunday morning. The tea also contains nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, ginger, cinnamon and licorice root, all very finely powdered.

So I brewed it up in my usual way (following the packet instructions) - bring 1 tsp to boil per half cup of water, and then add half a cup of milk and reheat slowly (not letting it boil this time). This takes only about 5 minutes or so for such small quantities. The tea is richer-coloured than the T2 chai, possibly partly because of the addition of the cocoa and possibly because of the leaf being more finely cut, which means you get more per teaspoon I suppose. I have to say I prefer a darker-coloured chai, although I have no idea why.

I made sure to use low fat milk like I used for the one at work, to try and ensure that the mouthfeel would remain similar and the results be consistent. However I did notice that this tea felt much creamier and thicker in my mouth than the other, and I'm not entirely sure why. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that I brewed it in a saucepan rather than just steeping it in a teapot? I'm not sure.

So: the big question - how did it taste? I have been drinking this blend for a long time so it was an interesting experience to turn my attention to it fully. It produces a lovely creamy smooth tea, but I feel that there is no one particular flavour that really stands out and grabs your attention in the way that the cloves did in the T2 one. Overall it's a very subtle taste, a gentle warm spice. Probably the cinnamon is the most noticeable thing, but it's still very mild. The tea is not astringent even after relatively strong brewing (maybe there really aren't any tannins in there), although the milk would help prevent that in any case. It's warming and comforting, which is the main thing I'm looking for when I drink this tea. I didn't sweeten it, because I usually don't anyway, but a teaspoon of honey also goes very well in this particular brew.

I really recommend this one, it has been my favourite chai masala blend to date. Stand by for the third instalment of the chai masal reviews - Oriental Tea House Chai!

Chai tea review

I have been drinking a lot of chai this week, mainly at work because I took in some T2 chai tea bags, so I thought it might be fun to do a series of chai tea reviews, as I currently have 2 different kinds of chai and will soon (hopefully, when my order arrives, finally) have another one as well.

So, what can I say about the T2 chai? This is their regular, common or garden blend of chai, available loose or in those little silky bags (which are apparently so bad for the environment, unfortunately). On opening the box or tin the scent is very fragrant, a bit sweet (cinnamon?) and with a strong small of cloves. There are whole cardamom pods in there as well, but I doubt they’ll be adding noticeably much to the flavour unless you bother to crush them and then make a decoction, which is not an option for me here at work in any event. There are also little bits of ginger and cinnamon stick, star anise as well I think, and the tea used is a moderate sized twisty leaf, type not specified (maybe Assam, that’s meant to be the proper kind to use for making chai, or so I’ve heard anyway).

A little further info on how I brewed it: at work options are limited, so this is how I’ve been going about it. I put 2 teabags in my little teapot (holds approx.. 2 cups) and fill the pot 2/3 with boiling water. Then I warm some milk in the microwave for a few seconds and add it to the teapot. Let it steep for five minutes or so, and drink (preferably with the addition of chai sprinkles, naturally).

So how does it taste? It’s actually a teeny bit disappointing. The main thing in this one is really the cloves and star anise (if I’m identifying that correctly). The cloves tend to overpower almost all of the other favours and to leave your tongue a little numb, into the bargain. It produces a fairly pale brew, or at least it does when made this way, anyhow. It feels a bit ‘thin’ in the mouth as well, although that may also have something to do with the fact that I’ve been using low-fat milk to make it.

Overall I have to say that this is not one which I would buy again, although I will of course use it all up.

Stand by for the next exciting instalment of Chai Tea Reviews: Hari Har Chai ‘Chocolate Chai’…