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Review: Adagio Teas’ Masala Chai Tea (Loose Leaf)… WOW!

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Adagio Tea's Masala Chai Tea (Latte)
Slurp, Indeed.
In a recent Adagio Teas order, I got to choose a free sample and, being the Chai Tea Latte FANATIC that I am, I went with Masala Chai Tea (loose leaf). Knowing Adagio the way I do, I knew it would be extra special (since every tea they make is outstanding) – and the thought of an extra special Masala Chai made into a Chai latte filled me with unspeakable happiness.

Like all fanatics, I can recall the exact day I became obsessed with Chai Tea Lattes. It was over 10 years ago… on a Saturday afternoon. It was the middle of winter and my husband and I had gone to a local coffee house for liquid warmth. As a Crazy Tea Chick, my hot drinks of choice in coffee houses are almost always tea. This time, instead of a hot black or green tea, I decided to try a Chai Tea Latte…. and my life was never quite the same.

To this day, my winter “go to” drink in all coffee houses is a Chai Tea Latte. My summer “go to” alternates between iced black tea, green tea frapps, and a Starbucks fixation, Strawbery Acai Refresher.

My winter drink does not alternate. Ever.  Naturally, I make my own Chai Tea Lattes at home (can you say daily?) as well.  I normally use my Breville Cafe’ Milk Frother (an absolute must if you enjoy lattes, coffee or tea) but a blender will certainly do the trick.

I made up a pot of the Masala Chai as soon as it arrived. As soon as I opened the pouch, I knew it was going to be a great afternoon. The aroma was unspeakably beautiful – I realized right away that most Masala Chai loose leaf tea doesn’t measure up when it comes to this aroma.

{Review Continued Below….}

Adagio Tea's Masala Chai Tea (Loose Leaf)
When making lattes at home, I always brew the tea stronger than normal. This makes the latte a real work of art. I add equal parts brewed tea and milk (any type – coconut milk from a can is AMAZING with Chai tea… AMAZING) to the Breville Cafe’ Milk Frother (or blender) and turn it on.

After you’ve poured the deliciousness in your cup, taste it to see how much (if any) sugar you want to add to sweeten the deal. More times than not, I will add a little whipped topping to the top instead of adding any sugar.

Another decadent treat is to stir the latte with a cinnamon stick. As luck would have it, I was all out of cinnamon sticks… so I just dove in without any frills.

Phenomenal. Seriously. Adagio Tea’s Masala Chai Tea makes one of the best Chai Tea Lattes I have ever had – and, believe me, I have had gazillions.

Confession – I normally use Tazo’s Chai Tea Latte Concentrate when making Chai Tea Lattes at home. It gives me that strong, addictive, utterly beautiful Chai Tea Latte experience I live by and, quite frankly, I’ve found very few Chai Tea loose leaf teas that can hang with Tazo’s concentrate.

Adagio’s Masala Chai (loose leaf) was more than up for the challenge and it blew me straight away. The concentrate has nothing on this beautiful tea.  If you love Chai Tea Lattes, like me, or have never experienced one on your own… this is the Chai Tea for you. Trust me – if there’s one thing this Crazy Tea Chick knows, you’re looking at it below.

Find the Masala Chai and other Chai Teas on Adagio Tea’s website. Trust me, you won’t be sorry – these people know their tea like few people could ever hope to.

Adagio Tea's Masala Chai Tea (Latte)
More Adagio Teas Reviews on Crazy Tea Chick:

Plum Deluxe Vanilla Latte Loose Leaf Tea (Review)

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Plum Deluxe Vanilla Latte Loose Leaf Tea

Today I’ll conclude my series of reviews of Plum Deluxe Loose Leaf Teas with a very special tea that anyone and everyone will love: Vanilla Latte Tea.

When I first tried this particular tea, I thought, “… the Coffeehouse crowd will flip their cups over this one.” I’d know, after all, since I’m a charter member of the Coffeehouse crowd.

While you could certainly enjoy a beautiful cup of tea simply by brewing the Vanilla Latte Tea without creamer or steamed milk, the flavor really comes alive when you make it as you would a London Fog or Chai Tea Latte.  A London Fog is simply a Chai Tea Latte where Earl Grey Tea steps in for Chai Tea. If you’ve never tried it… well… DO.

I have tried (and loved to the point of distraction) the Vanilla Latte Tea….

  • … all by itself. It’s very flavorful and delicious without any co-stars. If you’re trying to pull away from sugar, this is a great tea for you, as it really doesn’t need any sweetener. The vanilla flavor more than satisfies your taste buds.
  • … with a little steamed milk. It’s similar to a Vanilla Latte with coffee but you have the distinct flavor of tea in place of coffee. It’s fantastic.
  • …. as the tea of choice for a “Royal Milk Tea.” Follow the link (it’ll open in a new window) for the simple instructions. It’s as easy as boiling water, adding tea leaves, adding milk, then straining the whole shebang through a wire strainer and into a mug or cup.  This tea is IDEAL for this process and tastes like something you’d have paid impressive $$$$$ for in a coffeehouse.

 

Learn more about Plum Deluxe teas, gift sets, newsletter, and tea club by visiting their website: Plum Deluxe. You can also find them on Pinterest and Facebook.

More Plum Deluxe Reviews on Crazy Tea Chick:

Plum Deluxe: Sunshine in a Cup Herbal Tea (Review)

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Plum Deluxe Loose Leaf Tea - Sunshine in a Cup Herbal Tea

Plum Deluxe Sunshine in a Cup Herbal Tea

I was recently sent some beautiful Plum Deluxe Loose Leaf tea to review on Crazy Tea Chick.

Who said there weren’t any perks to being crazy? Not me, I never said it.

The first thing I noticed about Plum Deluxe was the stylish way they go about everything.  They do everything with the level of charm you’d expect from a tea business.Even the logo is perfectly lovely.

I’ve actually been wanting to tell you about this beautiful and delicious tea for a few weeks now, but what with Christmas, New Year’s, and embarking on a total new design for the Crazy Tea Chick tea blog, I have been busier than anyone has a right to be.

Frankly, I thought it much more fitting to wait and “do right” by Plum Deluxe as opposed to rushing through a review and throwing up a random picture or two.  Tea deserves better than that and Plum Deluxe is simply too classy to treat in a shoddy fashion.  I may be crazy, but I’ve never been accused of being shoddy.

When I first brewed the beautiful and aromatic “Sunshine in a Cup Herbal Tea,” I was knocked out by the color as well as the taste. I’m a very visual person, so I take in and “breathe” the entire experience when enjoying tea (or coffee, chocolate, baseball…).  The way I see it, the more of our senses we involve in our moments, the fuller our moments will be.

After thoroughly enjoying my first cups of tea, I brewed another little Hario pitcher of it, this time a little stronger than before – I wanted to make sure the gorgeous color showed up vividly in the pictures.  Frankly, I’m still not sure the pictures do it credit.

The flavors in this tea are amazing. With calendula flowers, hibiscus flowers, you’d probably expect this tea to be unique. You’d be right! It’s very unique… very special.  If you’re a fan (as I am) of Tazo’s Passion Tea, you’ll absolutely love this tea.

It makes a wonderful hot cup of tea but my favorite way to drink this particular herbal tea is iced.  Words can’t describe the beautiful flavor.

{Review Continued Below…}

Plum Deluxe Loose Leaf Teas

Plum Deluxe

I love the approach Plum Deluxe with all things, including their About Page:

We’re a little different than your typical lifestyle blog, and we’re very different than your typical online tea company. We’re a community – and one of my not-so-subtle goals is to share the story and lessons I learned from my mother, Pam.

My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 59. The subsequent 5 years of her life while she battled the disease were some of the best years of her life. She took the opportunity for self-care days and spa treatments, to keep her spirits up. She went out to dinner parties with friends to celebrate each day, and went to the gym regularly and became very fit. She laughed more. She traveled more – visiting her favorite city, Paris, and finally visiting the town her family was from in Germany.

My mom taught me that no matter your circumstances, you can choose to create moments that matter, every day. And some of the most enjoyable moments are the small things – time to sleep in, relaxing in a reading nook, going on a neighborhood walk, or catching up with an old friend over a cup of tea.  {Please Read More…}

As a mother, I can’t tell you how much I love and respect this son’s tribute to his mother. I can, however, tell you how incredibly proud and honored she’d be.

I’ve read through Plum Deluxe’s website and I’ve come away with this – it’s more of a community than a business. There is absolutely NO corporate coldness about Plum Deluxe. They’re as special as their tea is.

I hope you’ll visit their website and see all the exciting things they have going on. Things such as…

If you have a special someone to shop for this Valentine’s Day, you might want to check out Plum Deluxe’s Tea Gift Sets – if you’re at all familiar with my sweet tooth, you won’t be surprised to know my personal pick is the Sweet Tooth Gift Set. Come on, anyone can pick up a box of candy. Show your Valentine that you’ve put extra thought into this – give them a tea gift set AND the box of candy.

Man I hope my husband’s reading this…

Tomorrow, I’ll review Plum Deluxe Tea’s Oregon Breakfast Black Tea and Monday I’ll post my review of their Vanilla Latte Tea. Each of the three is outstanding and highly recommended by none other than the Crazy Tea Chick, herself.

More Plum Deluxe Reviews on Crazy Tea Chick:

Learn more about Plum Deluxe teas, gift sets, newsletter, and tea club by visiting their website: Plum Deluxe. You can also find them on Pinterest and Facebook.

Plum Deluxe Loose Leaf Tea