So, what’s the oldest tea in my cupboa— EXPIRED FEBRUARY 2005?! I didn’t even get into tea as a hobby until 2016?! How… when… Did I buy this box when I moved into this apartment, shove it to the back of my cupboard, and forget about it? It was still sealed! Oh man…

Okay, I will try exactly one packet, and then the rest is going in the trash, for health and safety reasons. And I don’t count trashed items for sipdown. It’s the principal of the matter…

The weird thing is, I have memories of actually liking Oregon Chai instant chai, but from where…? Did we keep this around in my house growing up, so I bought some after I moved out? Or maybe I bought chai lattes from coffee shops around here that used this brand… In any event, I’m sure I’ve had this brand of instant chai somewhere in my past, and recall liking it. Whether I’ll like instant tea powder that expired fourteen years ago is a different matter, though…

It… doesn’t really want to dissolve into the water well, at all. Even after stirring well, I see a lot of little worrisome clumpy bits floating on the top… what have I gotten myself into? Wait, this has dried milk in it? Yaaaaaaa, that’s a big fat nope. I’m not drinking fossilized milk for the sake of a tea review. It smells off, anyway.

A single very small sip honestly doesn’t taste rancid (not that I’d ever risk more than that!), but the flavor itself honestly isn’t bad, so I can see why I liked this in the past: very sweet and honey-like, clove and cinnamon on the spice front, and some underlying maltiness. If this was in it prime, I’d sure it would be fine.

Well, that’s some easy cupboard space reclaimed, at least!

Flavors: Cinnamon, Clove, Honey, Malt, Sweet

Preparation
Boiling 350 OZ / 10350 ML
Lexie Aleah

I practically grew up on this stuff! (usually the concentrate version though) Is it possible it’s from when you lived in the Oregon/Washington area?

Kittenna

Ahaha, I’d totally have drank this. Expiration dates only concern me when children are involved, or when there are signs of spoilage :D

Mastress Alita

@Kittenna: It didn’t dissolve well and smelled sort of sour; if there hadn’t been milk product in it, like traditional type teas, then I would’ve drank it. I had some diarrhea even from the few small sips I took. :-(

@Lexie Aleah: It’s definitely available here where I live in Southern Idaho. I think it’s pretty prevalent across the Pacific Northwest (WA/OR/ID). I think I’ve seen it in the groceries in CA while on vacation there, too. I am thinking I may have had this when I first moved into this apartment, buried it in the back of a cupboard without opening it, and then forgotten about it, only to recently rediscover it. Though I’m fairly certain I recall having these back when I was still in my parents’ house, too. I don’t remember ever having concentrate though, I think it was always these little instant packets, or like a canister with the powder in it? I do have some liquid concentrate in my fridge for Tazo’s Passion tea though, which I usually mix with lemonade instead of water to make bomb iced tea. <3

Kittenna

Fair enough! The effects don’t sound good. (I actually missed that you said it smelled off in your post. Apparently I can no longer read.)

Nattie

Holy moly! You’re making me feel better about drinking instant tea that expired in 2016 haha.

derk

Ohhh Mastress Alita, lol. I’ve renamed you in my head as Ol’ Chai Butt.

Mastress Alita

Hahaha. Now I just need to get the t-shirts printed…

Tabby

Bluhhhh

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Comments

Lexie Aleah

I practically grew up on this stuff! (usually the concentrate version though) Is it possible it’s from when you lived in the Oregon/Washington area?

Kittenna

Ahaha, I’d totally have drank this. Expiration dates only concern me when children are involved, or when there are signs of spoilage :D

Mastress Alita

@Kittenna: It didn’t dissolve well and smelled sort of sour; if there hadn’t been milk product in it, like traditional type teas, then I would’ve drank it. I had some diarrhea even from the few small sips I took. :-(

@Lexie Aleah: It’s definitely available here where I live in Southern Idaho. I think it’s pretty prevalent across the Pacific Northwest (WA/OR/ID). I think I’ve seen it in the groceries in CA while on vacation there, too. I am thinking I may have had this when I first moved into this apartment, buried it in the back of a cupboard without opening it, and then forgotten about it, only to recently rediscover it. Though I’m fairly certain I recall having these back when I was still in my parents’ house, too. I don’t remember ever having concentrate though, I think it was always these little instant packets, or like a canister with the powder in it? I do have some liquid concentrate in my fridge for Tazo’s Passion tea though, which I usually mix with lemonade instead of water to make bomb iced tea. <3

Kittenna

Fair enough! The effects don’t sound good. (I actually missed that you said it smelled off in your post. Apparently I can no longer read.)

Nattie

Holy moly! You’re making me feel better about drinking instant tea that expired in 2016 haha.

derk

Ohhh Mastress Alita, lol. I’ve renamed you in my head as Ol’ Chai Butt.

Mastress Alita

Hahaha. Now I just need to get the t-shirts printed…

Tabby

Bluhhhh

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Profile

Bio

Hi! I’m Sara, a middle-aged librarian living in southern Idaho, USA. I’m a big ol’ sci-fi/fantasy/anime geek that loves fandom conventions, coloring books, simulation computer games, Japanese culture, and cats. Proud genderqueer asexual (she/they) and supporter of the LGBTQ+ community. I’m also a chronic migraineur. As a surprise to no one, I’m a helpless tea addict with a tea collecting and hoarding problem! (It still baffles me how much tea I can cram into my little condo!) I enjoy trying all sorts of teas… for me tea is a neverending journey!

Favorite Flavors:

I love sampling a wide variety of teas! For me the variety is what makes the hobby of tea sampling so fun! While I enjoy trying all different types of teas (pure teas, blends, tisanes), these are some flavors/ingredients I enjoy:
-Dessert/chocolate/vanilla/caramel/cream/toffee/maple
-Sweet/licorice root/stevia
-Vegetal/grassy
-Floral/lavender/rose
-Spices/chais
-Fruity
-Tropical/pineapple/coconut
-Bergamot (in moderation)
-Roasted/nutty
-Tart/tangy/hibiscus/rosehip

Disliked Flavors:

There are not many flavors or ingredients that I don’t like. These include:
-Bananas/banana flavoring
-Hemp/CBD teas
-Smoke-scented teas/heavy smoke flavors (migraine trigger)
-Perfumey teas/extremely heavy floral aromas (migraine trigger)
-Gingko biloba (migraine trigger)
-Chamomile (used in blends as a background note/paired with stronger flavors is okay)
-Extremely spicy/heated teas
-Medicinal flavors/Ginseng
-Metallic flavors
-Overly strong artificial flavorings

With the exception of bananas and migraine triggers, I’ll pretty much try any tea at least once!

Steeping Parameters:

I drink tea in a variety of ways! For hot brews, I mostly drink my teas brewed in the western style without additions, and for iced tea, I drink teas mostly brewed in the cold brew style without additions. Occassionally I’ll change that up. I use the https://octea.ndim.space/#/ app for water-to-tea ratios and use steep times to my preferences.

My Rating Scale:

90-100 – Top tier tea! These teas are among my personal favorites, and typically I like to keep them stocked in my cupboards at all times, if possible!

70-89 – These are teas that I personally found very enjoyable, but I may or may not feel inclined to keep them in stock.

50-69 – Teas that fall in this range I enjoyed, but found either average, lacking in some way, or I’ve had a similar tea that “did it better.”

21-49 – Teas in this range I didn’t enjoy, for one reason or another. I may or may not finish them off, depending on their ranking, and feel no inclination to restock them.

20-1 – Blech! My Tea Hall of Shame. These are the teas that most likely saw the bottom of my garbage can, because I’d feel guilty to pass them onto someone else.

Note that I only journal a tea once, not every time I drink a cup of it. If my opinion of a tea drastically changes since my original review, I will journal the tea again with an updated opinion and change my rating. Occassionally I revisit a tea I’ve reviewed before after a year or more has passed.

Inventory:

My Cupboard on Steepster reflects teas that I have sampled and logged for review, and is not used as an inventory for teas I currently own at the present moment. An accurate and up-to-date listing of my current tea inventory can be viewed here: https://tinyurl.com/xjt9ptx3 . I am open to tea trades (within the United States only!) at this time. Note that I will not trade teas that I currently have in a quantity less than 50g (samplers, 1oz packages, etc.) or any teas that are currently still sealed/unopened in my cupboard.

Contact Info:

Feel free to send me a Steepster PM, or alternatively, check the website URL section below; it goes to a contact form that will reach my personal e-mail.

Location

Idaho, United States

Website

https://teatimetuesdayreviews...

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