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This is a really authentic Chai tea that tastes just like the stuff I drank in India. It doesn’t have all those other artificial additives that Starbucks and other companies add. It’s got a bit of a spicy taste to it as it has pepper, cardamom, etc. It tastes really good with milk.

This tea had a very strong roasted oaky taste that was different than the other monkey-picked oolong I tried from Teavana, but I could tell it was of a better quality as it retained its flavor even through the 6th infusion unlike Teavana’s weak version. I normally don’t like a roast this dark, but the flavor slowly grew on me and it tasted good with meals. So if you like a roasted taste combined with the light floral notes of an oolong, you would prefer this over Teavana’s.

I don’t normally drink black tea except occasionally when I have it with milk, and it’s always bagged tea. After drinking this sample, I was really impressed as it tasted and smelled a lot better than the bagged ones I’ve tried before. There was no bitterness or astringency, and the dry tea leaves had a really floral, musky aroma that was reminiscent of raisins. At 2 oz for 8 bucks it’s a really good deal for a tea of this quality. What’s nice is that they source directly from the farmer as well.

On first steeping, the tea had a nutty, creamy, and slightly sweet flavor. The texture was crisp with a lightness to it. The tea also had a very savory taste that was more pronounced with the second steeping. There was no bitterness. Some of the leaves were broken, but overall, a great tasting tea and a good Dragon Well with a complex range of flavors.