Ok, just back from the store…I picked up Sleepytime’s “Bengal Spice” which is primarily cinnamon, chicory and carob; and Bigelow’s Vanilla Caramel and Cranberry Apple. (I looked for a licorice tea, but I didn’t see one, although I noticed one of the Chai teas I looked at contained anise towards the end of ingredients.)
I opened the box of Bengal Spice and was greeted by a delicious smell. I brewed a cup and the aroma is amazing. Spicy with a slight cocoa note from the carob.
It tastes like a wet stick. Bleah! What up wi’dat?
Bengal Spice is yummy, I swear! Try it with a litle milk and honey, and you will basically have chai without the actual black tea. (A bit of trivia for you: Chai is the Russian word for tea.)
I don’t want milk and honey in it; I want something that’s good for me! If I’m going to add sugar and dairy to it I might as well be drinking hot chocolate. I want one that tastes good all on it’s own.
Dry scent: good
Brewed scent: ugh
Brewed taste: bitter wet stick sprayed with vanilla cologne.
Brewed taste with 1 tsp Sugar Twin (brown sugar flavor): slightly less bitter wet stick sprayed with vanilla cologne.
ALTHOUGH: I suspect with enough Sugar Twin this would taste like Vanilla Coke. Hmmmm. This might be ok iced with a little seltzer in it. Would still rather not have to add anything.
I’m not sure there’s any such thing as a “starter” tea, but you might try something fairly mild like an Oolong tea such as you sometimes get in Chinese restaurants (that, or green tea, or a blend of the two). English Breakfast is stronger but not overly bitter (unless you let it steep too long). Lapsang Souchong is probably worth avoiding at this point, as it’s a very strongly flavored tea.
If you prefer a fruit flavoring in a caffeinated tea, there is orange pekoe (like the Constant Comment brand already mentioned) and also black teas with other additives – lemon, jasmine, rose, that sort of thing. And of course, there’s heaps of herbal teas in every flavor of fruit and flower there is.
Chai (including Bengal Spice) is very nice, but it’s supposed to be made with milk and honey (or sugar); real chai is heavily caffeinated and heavily sweetened. Chai teas without milk and sweetener can be very unpleasant, I know.
I’m afraid trial and error is the best way to go, but in general I recommend Twinings as a brand, and loose tea rather than tea bags. And if you’re drinking it without milk and sugar, don’t let it steep too long or it can get bitter.
