Country of Origin: Kenya
Leaf Appearance: small, dark with lots of visible spices and petals
Ingredients: black tea, fennel, clove, licorice, coriander, rose and safflower petals
Steep time: 5 minutes
Water Temperature: 212 degrees
Preparation Method: ceramic teacup and mesh infuser
Liquor: deep reddish brown
I was really excited to finally get to try something Jus Tea. You might remember that I recently interviewed the Bane family and that I interviewed Britta from JustTea on Episode 2 of my podcast. This tea is different from a traditional chai in that it has a Kenyan tea base and the addition of rose petals. The taste was earthy and robust with a healthy dose of spice and a surprisingly sweet finish. It had a brisk astringency but it never crossed the line into the unpleasantly bitter territory. If you like your teas to have a little less bite, try steeping it for just three minutes. Cardamom is a classic chai ingredient and I found myself missing it with this tea. Other than that one small qualm, it was a very balanced and well-put-together blend. The base black tea was probably my favorite part so I am really looking forward to trying the other two teas that I have from them. I drank this tea straight up but it would take milk and sugar well if need be.
African Chai sample provided by JusTea.