Discontinued. Similar tea available.
“Winter is finally showing itself here tonight, with the winds picking up and temp dropping. Fully expect to wake up to see snow in the a.m…. not much I hope. But hearing the wind outside caused...” Read full tasting note
“Some blenders throw in a handful of cinnamon and call it “chai.” This one is a powerful blend of traditional chai spices with a heavy hand given to the ginger and cardamom. Visually, the tea...” Read full tasting note
“Made this up for my mom and I yesterday and we both enjoyed it. She really enjoys black tea and I thought this would be a nice way to mix up the gasp bagged black tea she usually drinks and to...” Read full tasting note
“I love this tea! My favorite of all time, and I am so sad that Teavana discontinued it :(” Read full tasting note
Channeling the majestic splendor of the Taj Mahal, this spice-infused delicacy inspires awe and wonder with each sip. The height of this culinary classic takes an ancient and traditional chai mix of whole cloves, warm cinnamon, piquant ginger, and anise and modernizes it with India’s famed fragrant masala spices of coriander, cardamom and clove, taking you on a sublime, savory tea journey.
Spicy infusion with cinnamon, ginger, and coriander overtones
Use 1 teaspoon of tea per 8oz of water. Heat water to just below boiling (205 degrees/ 96 degrees Celsius) and steep for 2-3 minutes. For stronger flavor, use more tea leaves. 2oz of tea equals 25-30 teaspoons.
Ingredients:Assam black tea, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger oil chukku, clove, anise seed, whole coriander, cardamom extract, clove extract
Winter is finally showing itself here tonight, with the winds picking up and temp dropping. Fully expect to wake up to see snow in the a.m…. not much I hope. But hearing the wind outside caused me to reach for a chai to test.
For the record, I love their popular chai/chai blend (haven’t had a chance to add review to site yet). And I added a tbsp of honey while brewing.
This chai is tamer to me than the blend. It’s missing that slight “red hot” element that makes it unique. But as soon as I said tamer, I realize that it really isn’t tame per se…just different. The spices are in the “medium” spicy category (preferred) and you can tell it’s a black tea background (not a favorite, but this one pulls it off). Not dominated by cinnamon, the other spices meld nicely. Enjoying this cup and warming up already : )
Some blenders throw in a handful of cinnamon and call it “chai.” This one is a powerful blend of traditional chai spices with a heavy hand given to the ginger and cardamom. Visually, the tea appeared to be less than 20% of the mix.
I was surprised by how well the assam presented itself after steeping. The tea made a considerable contribution to both fragrance and taste, speaking well for the quality of the black tea used.
The gingery heat has some staying power making this a great choice for a cold night.
Made this up for my mom and I yesterday and we both enjoyed it. She really enjoys black tea and I thought this would be a nice way to mix up the gasp bagged black tea she usually drinks and to share a cup. Something she and I have never done! There’s a nice touch of spice to this chai. But it isn’t overpowering which I haven’t enjoyed with some other chai I’ve tried. We added a little milk and sugar to the chai and that seemed to bring out the spice a little more and added to the overall yummy flavor of the tea. I’m glad I picked this up on a whim the other day.
I love this tea! My favorite of all time, and I am so sad that Teavana discontinued it :(
I cried the night I found out this tea was discontinued. I had bought a pound of it a while ago, and just recently ran out. I drove to teavana to buy some more, and they broke the news to me.
I saw your comments about the Taj Masala Chai being discontinued—my local Teavana has just been telling me that they are out of stock right now. So—I wrote to whoever answers email at the Teavana corporate office, and got back this reply: “Taj Masala Chai is currently out of stock. We are working hard to get new supplies in-store and online as soon as possible. Currently, we are experiencing shipping and customs delays.” I hope this isn’t just wishful thinking, but it sounds like it might not actually be discontinued?
Hopefully it isn’t, that would be great news. The person at the local Teavana store here told me it was discontinued in favor of their other chais…
IMHO, masala chai should be both bold and strong. This tea is made with assam, and I love that about this tea. It’s become popular her in the U.S. to use other teas to make masala chai, such as darjeeling, oolongs, and even green and white teas, because assam has a reputation for being bitter and astringent. Darjeelings aren’t quite bold enough, oolongs don’t cut it, and green and whites get completely over powered by the spices. Assam is used in India to make masala, and the power of it really stands up the boldness of the spices, so it’s certainly preferable to any tea . While I enjoyed the blend of spices in this one, I found it to be too heavy on the cinnamon. Overall though I am happy with this one, even though it’s too expensive.
I like to think that I’ve tried enough chai teas to spot a good one. This is a good one!
As compared to Teavana’s plain Masala Chai (which has been discontinued) this tea’s flavor is much more robust and complex than other chai teas I have tried. I like the balance of spices in this one, as the cinnamon is not overpowering (like Teavana’s Maharaja Chai). However, the cardamom and ginger taste may be quite off-putting to some. If you’re looking for a chai that you can’t help but contemplate while sipping it, I suggest this one. Just don’t oversteep and add enough sugar to make it sweet (2 tsp rock sugar/16oz). I also use about 3-4 tsp of tea/16oz water to beef it up. A splash of milk helps mellow it out and get rid of some bitter undertones as well.
A very soft yet bold chai blend, it is less about the spices and more about the strong black and cardamon.
I believe the ginger softens this with a tinge of sweetness, bringing out the teaspoon of rock sugar, to lessen the bold taste of cardamon; very complex, very interesting.
I’ve had many chai blends that tend to go a little overboard on the cardamon, but this works with it and then some, delicious.
I almost bought this the other day! I haven’t been purchasing tea at all so far this year (trying to get through some stuff). I’m glad to know that it’s pretty well received.
I actually have only done one review on their site and you know what? It took them almost 2 months to post it! It wasn’t worth it at all imo. I was very upset when they released their newest teas and only just recently let them be posted to the actual site.
I can’t think of anyone who doesn’t like the chai/chai blend…
Sorry, that should have read they released the teas and then waited until much later to post the reviews.
I haven’t tried to post reviews on their site, but have heard they do hinky things on the disc. boards (taking down negatives?). Sounds like the reviews there should be taken with a grain of salt. But yes, this chai is pretty good. I still like the chai/chai blend a bit better, but will finish this too. If I had a way to send a sample bag, I would (but alas, don’t know where to get them). Still have the Samurai one to test too, but know I got it to blend with the White Ayurvedic if worse comes to worse : )
Going to go back and read your reviews of their teas….
I actually only ended up doing a review on the aurora tumbler that I had purchased (I love it!). What else was surprising is that the day mine showed up a whole bunch of other reviews for the same product also suddenly appeared…I don’t understand their posting procedures.
I haven’t had a chance to try the chai/chai blend as its separate components. I also realized when I was drinking mine (the sample) it had sugar pre-added.
:p I’ve posted quite a few reviews of their teas on here! I have immediate access to their store so it’s what I often order b/c I hate shipping fees.
Oh lucky you! I can get to one, with about an hour drive, but I’m one of those strange females who avoids malls whenever possible :)
Let me know when you get a chance to try it. I did add a bit of honey (trying to stop using white sugar and don’t want/like artificials).
LOL I go to the mall for two reasons only; the Gap and Teavana. So everyone in that section of the mall is starting to know who I am (they’re very close to each other). I go a lot with my siblings. :p I just remembered that one of the Teavana workers is in a class I attend! Now she knows my shopping habits! O.O Oh I’ll let you know! :D I do like adding honey to certain blends, but it really depends on my mood. I’m with you on the not liking artificial sweeteners. They taste very obvious to me.
I don’t like strong chai, so this sounds about right for me.