Teavana Samurai Chai Mate

Country of Origin: not listed
Leaf Appearance: mottled mix of colors, stemmy looking
Ingredients: green mate, green rooibos, cinnamon, anise, cardamom, almond, papaya, pineapple, orange and lemongrass
Steep time: 5 minutes
Water Temperature: 205 degrees
Preparation Method: ceramic teacup and mesh infuser
Liquor: gold


This tea was given to me as part of a secret Santa present. It was very heavy on the cinnamon but still fruity and light. All of the sweeter ingredients completely masked the astringency of the green mate. The finish of each sip left a tongue tingling feeling and a cloyingly sweet aftertaste. While not necessarily bad, this wasn’t really my cup of tea. I’m a bit of a chai purist so I prefer a more robust and earthy tea. There are plenty of good reviews on Steepster so I believe it comes down to a matter of personal taste. In general, I find that I don’t enjoy most of Teavana’s flavored teas but I have enjoyed several of their unflavored teas.

You can find out more about this tea here.