Another impulse buy, there was some kind of a sale or coupon or so at Smart and Final of all places, and I gave in and picked this up. I had never tried a coconut chai combination before, and I found that it actually works well. The coconut-iness mellows the spices in a complimentary and complementary way 🙂 But is there actual coconut in this? Read on to find out…
Each tin has 22 flat discs. There are no tea tags, no staples, nothing. Just a flat disposable tea disc with all the ingredients inside.
The inner walls of the tin are coated with the spices and other powdery things from the tea discs. Here’s a peak inside:
AROMA and TASTE
There is a nice modest aroma from the spices to this tea, along with a coconut taste from the phantom coconut. This makes it a more mellow chai if you prefer to drink it straight without sugar or milk/cream. And that’s what won me over.
Having said that, it is still a small flat tea disc, so you are not get the more dimensional taste of a loose leaf recipe. But this is convenient and fast. The shape of discs also makes them a good idea you like to drop one in your togo cup and let it brew grandpa style. You don’t have to worry about hanging tea strings and tea tags 🙂
INGREDIENTS
Coconut is part of the tea’s name but strangely, there is no coconut in the ingredients. Yet there is a coconut-y flavor to the tea. Smoke and mirrors or mayhaps a combination of flavors, or those “natural flavors”? I have no clue! Maybe it’s the power of suggestion? 🙂
The tin is round, the picture above looks almost flat because of a wide angle lens. Here’s how it is with a more normal lens:
However, on the front of the tea tin, it says there is “Island Coconut”. So it could be a mistake in the printing of the ingredients list. I do not have a CSI lab to find out if there’s actual coconut in the tea bag 🙂
This is one of a very few teas out there that mentions how much caffeine there is per tea bag, 40 milligrams (mg) [see the section below]
BREWING INSTRUCTIONS
The tin has a good way of sealing, it’s not just a flat lid on top of a tin. Which can keep the aroma of the spices and tea fresher a bit longer.
The brewing instructions are expected, 3-5 minutes in boiling water, and adjust to taste. If you are planning to use milk or cream, you need to make a stronger brew. The coconut-y flavor make this a good candidate to drink on its own as well. That’s how I prefer this particular tea.
I haven’t tried it iced because winter is here and I’m out of tea bags 🙂
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
Per the tea tin info, this is made with at least 70% recycled material, and the tin is 100% recycable and/or refillable as well. If you are going to refill it, use tea of a similar flavor profile, or if you have any boring tea (eg generic assam), you can put it in there so it can absorb some of the spicy aroma [see our Unconventional Tea Hacks].
That the tin looks nice makes it a plus for reusability 🙂
NOT A BAD GIFT IDEA
The tea tin is very nicely decorated with all kinds of different things, including a variety of informative little nano-articles, talking buzzworthy topics such as antioxidants and aromatherapy. I am not an expert in these topics, that’s up to health professionals 🙂 I just like to drink teas of different kinds.
Regardless, it makes the tin look nice as a gift idea, or even a random “pick me up” gift for a friend or loved one who may be having a bad week.
